Your questions answered: Should I trade my Ford Falcon V8 for an AMG?

There’s no such thing as the status quo in the car industry in 2022, as our readers’ letters reinforce.

New brands and an imminent influx of electric vehicle offerings have people asking plenty of questions, which we’ve tackled this week.

But there’s also loads of love for the good ol’ fashioned V8, with one reader wondering whether to trade from his locally-made Ford to something sportier from Germany.

We’re also touching on car colours and just how much you have to splash out on your 4x4 before heading off on the big adventure.

Question: It will be sad to see the last of the V8s in the AMGs. I could really stretch the budget to obtain an AMG C 63 S being the last V8s they will make before going hybrid. My dilemma is: Owning a Ford Falcon XR6 Sprint, a manual XR8 Sprint and a Ranger as a daily driver, should I trade one or both Sprints in for the AMG or bite the bullet as I don’t see them devaluing any time?

And, yes, it will be driven not hidden, just not daily but more for a weekender, not really about investment but more about how they make you feel and last of the V8s. Is it even worth buying one citing maintenance costs? Is it worth even buying one or something completely different like an Audi RS or an M5? A Nissan GT-R did come to mind and hangs around in the back of my head. Yes, Powerball problems are real, even if not the big one. – Brian M

Answer: Sounds like you’re a true enthusiast – and a Ford fan at that! Much of your decision will probably need to come down to how much you value your Sprints, which were very worthy limited-edition models of the Falcon. It’s impossible to say whether they’ll go up in value beyond where they’re at now (which has been impressive) but we’d suggest probably not. The bigger question may be whether you’ll regret it if you sell them?

As for the Mercedes-AMG C 63 S, it’s a weapon of a machine that makes one of the best V8 noises in the business. It’s certainly great fun, albeit with a very firm ride to match. With anything making that sort of noise and accelerating as briskly as it does you can expect the C 63 to use plenty of premium unleaded.

On top of that it won’t be cheap to service. Over the first five years the service costs amount to about $6000 and we’d expect some bigger service costs after that. Then there’s insurance, tyres and other outlays that are also likely to make your Falcons look like something of a miser.

Question:

Answer: Short answer — No. Any of the proper off-roaders (Toyota LandCruiser, Nissan Patrol, Toyota Prado and most utes) can drive straight off the showroom floor and tackle some of Australia’s more challenging terrain.

Obviously things such as driving lights and roof platforms can be great to improve the attributes of the vehicle, but they’re by no means mandatory.

If you really want to change something, a set of all-terrain tyres would be a great investment. The tyres on most 4WDs are more about bitumen driving than trudging over rocks and mud. The additional puncture resistance of a decent set of A/T tyres could mean fewer punctures.

Also, while the Toyota Prado is a great choice, also consider the new Ford Everest. It’s a terrific vehicle to drive and packs plenty of features in for the money. Like the Prado, it’s also available with a larger fuel tank.

Question:

Answer: There’s been loads of research done on new car colours for things such as safety and their propensity to heat the cabin on a hot day. No surprises that black cars get warmer under direct sunlight and bright cars are easier to see, although interestingly there’s not much data to suggest that darker colours are involved in more crashes (things such as daytime running lights take over when it comes to visibility).

At the top end of the market (think Rolls-Royce, Ferrari and Bentley), you don’t want to be making radical colour choices because it can negatively impact what the car is worth once you go to sell it. But with a mainstream vehicle such as a Toyota C-HR you can have a bit of fun and choose the one you want.

The short story is there will be enough buyers in the used car market years from now to snap up whichever hue you choose today.

Question:

Answer: Yep, cheap cars have mostly gone the way of the dodo. Blame it partly on inflation, but also on the demands of the market. Aussies like safer cars and the reality is safety systems cost money. So whereas previously you could get away with selling cars with skinny equipment lists, these days buyers demand more.

That also partly answers the question of the MG3. Yes, it’s cheap, but it’s missing much of the latest safety kit.

The Kia Rio isn’t perfect, but in our mind it’s a better bet, and was last year rated as our Best First Car.

Don’t forget the used car market either. In launching the latest Toyota Yaris, the company made it clear it was pushing budget buyers to the used car market. There are plenty of great used car options out there.

Question: Love reading all those carsales reviews. I am getting a new Ford Everest Platinum due around November! I want a comparison between two or three cars. Ford Everest Platinum vs Toyota 300 Series LandCruiser Sahara vs Toyota LandCruiser Prado Kakadu. Also when towing caravan and how much fuel does it use when towing? It might help the buyer choice between the Toyota and Ford.

I know the new Toyota Prado is due in 2024 – I’m not waiting for that long and, yes, I know the current Prado old. I have picked the Ford because it is not a $150K car and I do know the Toyota holds its value very well. My father got a Toyota 300 Series LandCruiser Sahara ZX (motor blew up). – Mark V

Answer: We are actually comparing the Ford Everest Platinum and Toyota Prado Kakadu this week in the Outback. It’s early days on the test but the Everest is faring well. That said, it’s easy to see why the Prado is such a popular off-roader. We’ll have the full results soon.

We’ll also be comparing the Everest with the LC300. Obviously, the LandCruiser is a bigger car with a bigger price tag. But we also realise there are plenty of people interested in a comparison between the two.

In both tests fuel economy is something we will look at, although fuel use when towing is tougher on these big tests.

We can say that on test recently, the LC300 GX returned 19.1L/100km with a 2800kg van behind it. We’re yet to tow test the new Everest but based on claimed figures it’s slightly more efficient than the LC300 (8.6 v 8.9L/100km).

It remains to be seen if there will be a similar difference in fuel use when towing.

Question:

Answer: At this stage there’s no clear timetable for Zeekr coming to Australia. It’s obviously a new brand globally and there will likely be other markets that are a priority over Australia. If we must hazard a guess, we’d suggest not before the end of 2024…

That may change, but with massive global and domestic Chinese demand for EVs, and relatively low incentives to launch in Australia, Zeekr is unlikely to launch here any time soon.

The good news is there will be plenty of new EV models from existing brands as well as newcomers such as Chery and GWM Ora.

Question:

Answer: The new-car market is shaping up to be a dynamic offering with plenty of newcomers. Keep in mind we’ve also seen plenty of brands killed off over the past decade or two: Holden, Chrysler, Daewoo, Hummer, Saab, Daihatsu and others. So you could argue there was room for more!

To your question about support once you own the car, it’s a very relevant one. Some brands do it a lot better than others, and they’re the ones that tend to have high loyalty when people come to buy another vehicle.

As for how Chery and BYD will support their customers, ultimately only time will tell. BYD got off to a shaky start by reducing its promised warranty by one year and excluding a bunch of features from that six-year warranty.

As for Chery, it has experience in the Australian market and learnt that customers have high expectations. Hopefully the company has learnt from those early days and will have a more convincing offering. We’ll know a lot more soon.

Another newcomer is Ora. It’s part of Great Wall Motors, which sells GWM and Haval in Australia. Early signs are that they offer decent aftersales support.

There’s also the impact of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which sets minimum standards by which car retailers must abide. It includes clauses about supplying parts and back-up for a “reasonable” time, whatever that means.

But short story is we’d imagine it would be at least 10 years, given the average age of a car in Australia is about 11 years.

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