Ford Falcon XR6 Turbo vs Subaru Liberty GT Spec B vs TRD Aurion 2008 Comparison

With the economy booming and John Howard's ill-fated AWAs soon to be defunct, the time might be right to renegotiate your worth at work. Of course, it goes without saying that if you're earning better bucks, you deserve flasher wheels. But you've moved beyond poverty-pack Camrys and Commodores and, as a user-chooser with bargaining power, you want some hoof under your foot, right? Well, step right up, because we've rounded up an energetic trio that achieve similar end goals via significantly different routes.

Our first option is that well-known local hero, powered by a lusty turbocharged inline six cylinder driving through the rear wheels, the Ford Falcon XR6 Turbo.

Contestant number two is from Fuji, Japan, and enjoys driving in all weather conditions, thanks to all-wheel drive and a feisty, force-fed flat four. Yes, it's Subaru's Liberty GT Spec B. Our final contestant also hails originally from Japan but these days calls Melbourne home. Like the Subaru and Ford, its engine is force fed but it puts its prodigious power to the ground via the front hoops only. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the 3.5-litre, supercharged V6 TRD Aurion.

Checking now to see if the price is right, the TRD Aurion's $56,990 sticker just squeezes past the Liberty's $55,990, with the XR6 Turbo more than $12,500 cheaper. Given this discrepancy, perhaps the $61,810 FPV F6 Typhoon might have been a better choice, but with 270kW and 550Nm on tap, the FPV is on a different performance planet altogether.

In keeping with its price, the TRD Aurion offers more standard kit than the Falcon, adding such niceties as leather and suede trim, 19-inch alloys, eight-way, power-adjustable driver's seat, and a six-stacker CD system. The Falcon's simpler single-disc CD, 18-inch wheels and cloth trim (leather is a $2100 option) are no match for the Aurion's kit, nor for that matter does it contend with the Spec B Liberty's full leather, six-stacker McIntosh stereo, 18-inch alloys, drilled-aluminium pedals, dual-zone climate control and full-size spare.

OH&S being what it is, every good middle manager needs to be mindful of workplace safety, and this is an area where the Aurion's standard ESP, plus dual-front, front-side and curtain airbags (six in total) take some beating. The XR6 Turbo matches the Toyota's ESP and raises it one via a better calibrated system, but big hits are cushioned by just one airbag each for driver and passenger. Fortunately, a pair of front-seat side-mounted airbags are available for a very reasonable $600. The Liberty Spec B splits the difference, matching the Aurion's airbag count, but failing to offer ESP, even as an option. Curiously, ESP is available on the regular GT and virtually all other Liberty variants, but strangely not on this sporting flagship. Go figure.

Practicality and comfort are never far from the top of the list for someone shopping for a sports sedan. While we all dream, the harsh reality is that the daily commute and domestic duties will be more common pursuits than licence-risking strafes down mountain passes.

Pull the door handle of the Aurion and a vivid red leather-and-suede interior blares so loudly it's all you can do not to recoil in shock. It's very HSV circa-1999 and it's too bad if you don't like it, as it's the only interior available. Drop into those boisterous buckets, though, and you'll discover that serious levels of comfort and support have been pumped into what started life as standard Aurion pews.

Clamber into the back seat and you'll notice TRD's designers have partied back here, too, reshaping and re-contouring to create a more bucket-like effect on the outer seats. Unfortunately, it renders the seat more of a 2+1 arrangement than a genuine three-seater.

Back up front, a half turn of the ignition fires the previously dark instrument panel into life as the techno-blue 'Optitron' dials do their best to simulate a 3D effect. It's more gimmicky than anything actually useful, but it does lend the interior a nominally high-tech feel, albeit one countered by the flimsy, low-rent feel of the HVAC controls.

The Subaru again treads a middle line between the Falcon's purposeful austerity and the TRD's garishness, with a classy, well- designed and finished cockpit. The soft leather, classic design and exemplary build quality mark this as the most grown-up interior on test, with excellent ergonomics and a nicely tactile feel to the major controls. The front seats, however, are disappointingly flat, hard and lacking in adequate side support for spirited driving. The rear seat also feels the pinch of the Liberty being a half-size smaller than its rivals, and passenger comfort suffers accordingly.

With workstation set-up covered off, it's time to get down to the business of driving. First up is the TRD Aurion, which relies on tested-and-proven techniques to morph from sensible sedan into street machine. The formula is a simple one: more grunt, tauter suspension and the biggest, stickiest rubber that will fit under the guards. A belt-driven supercharger provides the extra 41kW and 64Nm over the already impressive base V6 to give this hot Aurion the impressive stats of 241kW and 400Nm. The strut-front and multi-link rear suspension has been overhauled with stiffer front and rear springs, matched with dampers capable of delivering greater discipline. The ride height sinks 12mm so that the body hunkers lower over big 19-inch alloys that come wrapped in Dunlop SP Sport 300 tyres. Extra negative camber front and rear, and more front toe-in for improved steering feel completes TRD's substantial chassis overhaul of the Aurion.

Of course, the measure of any performance car must be gauged at least in part upon the drag strip. Lined up on Oran Park's main straight, left foot holding the brake, right foot pressuring the throttle, the TRD strains against its vented discs. Step off the left pedal and it launches off the line in a scrabble of wheelspin and induction roar, Toyota's normally conservative ESP system allowing a surprising amount of wheelspin before intervening.

Clearly, this is a very strong engine, with a muscular spread of torque and a hunger for revs. We pile on startling pace as the speedo needle sweeps relentlessly through its arc, the stock-standard six-speed auto dispatching shifts emphatically. The 400m mark is despatched in a Vbox-verified 14.3 seconds at 165km/h, with the crucial 0-100km/h split seen off in an impressive 6.2sec. Cardigan material the TRD Aurion definitely is not.

Next comes the 245kW/480Nm turbocharged Falcon. Same launch technique as the Aurion and then... Jaysus! At 4000rpm, with the Garrett turbocharger spinning at maximum velocity, the peak boost of 0.4bar arrives with a brutal shove in the back. The engine's top end feels relentless as the scenery blurs and knuckles whiten on the steering wheel. This is acceleration more akin to the hardman FPV F6 Typhoon than a regular-strength XR6 Turbo. The Vbox confirms our seat-of-the-pants impression, logging a 5.7sec 0-100km/h and a 13.8sec quarter mile at 171km/h. It's the second-fastest production Falcon Wheels has ever tested, and one can only begin to wonder where this five-year-old Ford has found its new turn of speed...

With just 185kW/339Nm on tap, the Subaru is outgunned on power and torque and probably won't match the acceleration of its six-cylinder rivals. Nevertheless, the all-paw sedan slingshots off the line and pulls strong and smooth to stop the clock at 7.0sec to 100km/h, with the 400m gone in 14.95.

Not bad, but a distant third in this company.

Accelerating is one thing, pulling up quite another. The Aurion matches its swift turn of speed with impressively stable and sure-footed stopping power, its 325mm vented front discs clamped firmly by twin-piston calipers, while the rear 310mm discs make brilliantly effective use of a single-piston caliper. In fact, the TRD brakes are a standout aspect of the overall dynamic package, boasting superb feel and a linearity of response that makes them a pleasure to use.

Subaru fits less expansive vented discs (smaller by 9mm up front, 20mm out back) to the Liberty, and the pedal lacks the TRD's impressive feel, but with 70kg less kerb weight to haul up the Spec B's braking performance rates as better than average.

Of the three, it's the hard-hitting Falcon that lacks the braking punch to back its raw speed. The Ford's vented discs are just 3mm smaller up front and actually 18mm larger at the rear than the TRD Aurion's, but they do a less impressive job of scrubbing off speed. The relatively high-kilometre test car also had a slightly spongy pedal feel that did not inspire total confidence when hauling almost 1700kg of flying Falcon back down from 170km/h. We also noticed a mildly unsettling twitch and shimmy from the rear end as weight transferred forwards under big stops.

Of course, race-track numbers are one thing, open-road performance quite another and, with the former nailed, we saddled up to test this trio on wide, open road and congested artery.

Dawdling through town in fourth in the Liberty, an attempt to plug a gap in traffic reveals a major chink in the Spec B's armour. With throttle nailed, and expecting a lively surge of force-fed acceleration, we get instead a yawning pause as the ECU struggles to interpret the throttle position and pick a suitable gear. The five-speed auto hesitates, stutters through third, before chugging back to second and hurling the tacho needle beyond 5000rpm. It's uncouth, unnecessary and infuriating, given that the 2.5-litre flat-four pushes out a very useable spread of mid-range torque, with the 339Nm peak arriving at a relaxed 3600rpm. The transmission's idiosyncrasies are exacerbated by a slow-witted tendency to stubbornly hold onto gears too long at part and middling throttle. Even a gentle flex of the right ankle can see the engine rev out to beyond 4500rpm, before the auto slurs up into a more comfortable taller ratio. The result is a relative lack of throttle control that affects the ability to drive the Spec B smoothly.

These shortcomings are thrown into sharp relief by the crisp and responsive six-speed transmissions behind the Aurion and Falcon sixes. The TRD's swaps cogs seamlessly and is rarely found wanting in terms of gear selection. The same can be said of the XR6's smooth, responsive and expertly calibrated ZF auto, which just nudges out the Toyota 'box by virtue of smoother downshifts and more decisive upshifts.

With its performance bettered and its transmission flawed, the final nail in the Liberty's coffin is its poorly-judged suspension tune. In Spec B guise, a Bilstein sports suspension package introduces stiffer springs and dampers and virtually no impact-absorption. Over pockmarked tarmac, impacts buck and shudder through the chassis and into the cabin. The suspension is constantly working against imperfections in the road, yet feels to filter very few bumps. In fact, the Spec B actually finds bumps you can't see with the naked eye. Over a minor hotmix-hiccup that the Aurion ignored and the Falcon simply sailed over, the Subaru introduced itself with enough force to knock the windscreen-mounted E-Tag clear from its bracket and send it clattering into the dash.

We know from experience that the regular Liberty GT, without the Bilstein suspension and with a manual gearbox, is a lively, engaging and wonderfully competent car. But in this specification, it's disappointing, and that's enough to end the Liberty's ride.

Riding on its even more aggressive 19-inch wheels the TRD Aurion shamed the Liberty over the same roads. Exhibiting a sweet mix of body control and ride comfort, the Aurion dealt deftly with all that was thrown at it, prompting our testers to comment that the transformation from soggy Toyota rep-mobile to taut, eager sports sedan is nothing short of remarkable. Deputy editor Taylor observed: "If you hadn't told me, I'd never have known it was riding on 19s. It's undoubtedly taut and a bit stiff, but the trade-off is right on the money for dynamic ability and bump-blotting".

On a good bit of road the Aurion proved its ability to carve corners with remarkable alacrity, sitting flat mid-bend and charging out of apexes with a flurry of contained wheelspin. The chassis is responsive, and the grip levels hugely impressive, the latter due in no small part to the excellent Dunlop rubber. Combine this with an engine that delivers instant throttle response and the sort of ferociously linear power delivery that only a supercharger can - even if sounding a tad vacuum-cleaner like in the process - and it all comes together as a thoroughly convincing and remarkably well-integrated performance package.

Even the standard (non-switchable) stability program doesn't spoil the fun too much. You'll receive a whack on the nose if you trail brake into bends or lift mid-corner, but stay smooth and you're mostly left to your own devices.

Okay, so the TRD Aurion goes, grips and stops, but what about that hoary old chestnut of big mumbo channelling through front wheels, and what that means for steering? Turns out the adage is true, and steering remains the TRD's weakest link. With a rubbery and slightly vague on-centre feel to begin with, any communication is further muddied by the inevitable tugging and jerking of the wheel under hard acceleration. The Aurion also tramlines over busted tarmac and sniffs out camber changes more than is ideal. It's not quite a fatal flaw, but it's impossible to ignore.

And so, to the Falcon. For a car that's nearing the end of its five-year model cycle, and that traces its technical roots back a further four years before that, the BF II Falcon package is holding up surprisingly well in some areas, less well in others. Road and wind noise remains nicely hushed at freeway speeds, the Ford doing a better job than the Aurion, but failing to better the aural isolation of the Spec B.

The Ford's suspension isolation is also commendable - admittedly in this case on the smaller, no-cost option 17-inch wheel package - with a relaxed and supple ride that soaks up ripples and imperfections like a supermodel's makeup kit. This cocooning comfort does, however, come at the price of body control.

Charging over gnarled back roads exposes a relative lack of rebound control. But while there may be more body movement than is ideal, the XR6 Turbo is still a very dynamically competent machine, its chassis and drivetrain combo relishing a punishing back-road strafe. The steering is quick, accurate and well weighted, even if unable to match the quality of uncorrupted feedback of the current local benchmark, the VE Commodore. The responsive tiller allows you to accurately place the broad-shouldered Ford where you want it in corners. Tip it in and the nose arcs faithfully, the wide front tyres biting into the tarmac to follow your lead. Then, once the nose is pinned, you can feel the weight transfer to the outside tyres as the chassis and suspension absorbs the cornering forces and the car settles.

The long wheelbase and wide footprint engenders stability and confidence - leaving the mind clear and the foot free to dial in more power. Sense the wave of turbo torque swelling under your right boot, squeeze on just a little more juice to compensate for the slight delay in turbo response, and the floodgates open to a hearty 480Nm. With its rear end hunkered to the road, pliant suspension absorbing the hits, and quality six-speed auto channelling the turbo six's fury, the blown XR6 makes a brilliant back-road bruiser.

So, you've torn up your AWA, renegotiated your package, and it's time to crunch a car deal. But which car is it to be?

The Liberty Spec B is a relatively easy exclusion for reasons already outlined, but from there it gets a whole lot harder. For many, the simple fact the TRD Aurion is an all-new 2007 model, based on a 2006 donor car, while the Falcon's replacement is just months away, will be enough. But there is that $12,500 saving, and the further chance that Ford dealers will sharpen their pencils, which must bring the XR6 Turbo back into frame. Even when optioned with the extra airbags and leather, the Falcon is still almost $10K less than the admittedly better equipped Aurion, which also has a superior resale rating (55.5 percent plays 50.2).

The Ford wins the straight- line battle, the TRD Aurion fights back with its superior body control and superb braking. However, in the end there's no escaping the fact that the Falcon's superior steering and rear drive configuration, along with its all-round competitiveness, should make it the enthusiasts choice.