Originally Posted by Falc'man

G6E EcoBoost: Driven!

Pictures by Quoc Nguyen






In April 2012 Ford Australia released the EcoBoost range of Falcons and since then we've seen a common trend and theme in all the reviews from the motoring press of Australia: Get out there and drive it! And drive it I did. If you're familiar with how a Falcon drives then you'll be shocked at how much better this feels.

Not that the Falcon in six cylinder guise isn't any good to drive, but the reduced mass over the front, courtesy of Ford's 2 litre four cyl Ecoboost, significantly alters the balance and feel of this car to another level.

The G6E Ecoboost surprised me in so many ways that it left me wondering, "what bracket is this car supposed to be in?". I'll rephrase that. Which other vehicles offer what this car has in terms of safety, comfort, performance, dynamics, size, economy, style, execution, and the ability to function so well in key areas in the simplest and easiest ways? I think of what's available in the market and without sampling every vehicle in the G6E's price bracket it's hard to say, but if I was judging by some popular cars that do compete with Falcon and that I have driven extensively there is simply no comparison; Falcon, when considering the aforementioned traits in a vehicle, is a winner.





I had the privilege of driving the G6E Ecoboost for three weeks and so it was a great opportunity to not only enjoy it, but also get as many butts in the driver's seat as I could. Thank you Sinead and the team at Ford Au for this opportunity.

So, there are family cars made for general commuting (yawns), taking you from A to B without fuss and with some of the features you expect in 2013. Then you have the Falcon range, now complemented with the Ecoboost 2.0 litre. It's very hard to sound unbiased but if you think any of the following comments I make about this car are an exaggeration then all the motoring scribes and critics of Australia will tell you there is no exaggeration.

This car is very much a blast, it's designed to be driven and makes for a very rewarding driver experience. Whether you like to drive with the flow, in a relaxed, sensible manner (like me), or whether you appreciate some performance in a vehicle - this car, hands down, is too good to be compared with medium sized FWD fridges on wheels and that would be a complete insult to this product, the FG Falcon, if you have any appreciation for dynamics and driving pleasure.




A friend and I picked it up from Alto Ford in Artarmon. He took the reigns and that was a good opportunity for me to get a good look at the car on the road and from all angles, for a good half hour. The changes brought on to MkII have really grown on me and on the open road the G6E looks fantastic. Actually, it's striking. I'll be honest and say that I didn't think Ford could improve on FG Mk1 G6E's styling but as I said FG2 has grown on me and I love it.

As we were heading back something out of the ordinary happened. This 37 y.o. friend was 18 again; him trying to hide that grin at the lights wasn't the real giveaway because I noticed the 2.0 EcoBoost packs a nice punch, and I don't think the BF 4sp Falcon XT I was driving could have kept up, even if I tried. Apparently a VX SS had the same difficulty. The Ecoboost 2.0 generates 179kW @ 5500rpm but that is not even half the story because the peak of 353Nm is served almost immediately, enough to overwhelm the 245's grip.





This friend happens to be 6'1" and at least 150kg - the NSW version of Mal Meninga - and the feedback in regards to space was "it's not bad"... That isn't bad at all. He did complain about his legs (otherwise known as tree trunks) hitting the steering wheel on entry and egress. He liked it so much we decided he should hang on to it for a few days. I reminded him that we're in the double-demerit period of the year so he promised to keep it under 180. Needless to say he was quite surprised by the power of the 2.0 but expressed that he would be probably be more at home in the 4.0 litre turbo. That's fine be me, as long he gets his butt in a Falcon.

During the few weeks the car was driven by a lot of other people as well. On most occasions when told it is a 2 litre four cyl the general reaction was "Wha..? No!". After driving it their response changed to "Wow! YES!", as well as various forms of expletives.

One gentleman in particular, a brand snob who drives nothing but Mercedes S Class and/or Cayennes, (BMWs are not good enough), was pleasantly surprised. "To me, this is as good as a six". The challenge with such an individual is extracting any sort of compliment. Well, the G6E didn't fail. The performance surprised him and he was also impressed with it's cabin and the general feel of the car's road manners.
Another chap wasn't happy with the throttle calibration, saying it wasn't as responsive as he'd expected. He wasn't too pleased with the dash's design. The feel of the some of the materials weren't to his liking, either. He was very impressed with the steering, power, and general ride and handling, and of course, the comfort.
George Rugernen was very pleased, and so this is where the whole story should end, but I'll keep going. He was very happy with the ride, saying it was better than the latest 3-Series BMW! Poor fella couldn't drive it, though, as he'd recently lost his license. But he was there on both occasions, at the test track, where he and I witnessed the G6E EcoBoost's remarkable handling prowess. "We haven't been this quick through here in a very long time", sayeth the Ruger.
Next, one other young gentlemen told his brother after sampling the Ecoboost's acceleration, "this'll eat your ute to 100". That ute is a manual SS VE. It was just banter, he wasn't serious. There's no way a 2.0 Ecoboost four cyl in a full size family vehicle could keep up with something so powerful. Or could it? It surprised me down the quarter, it really did. But, no, it'll take the 2.3 litre Ecoboost to match that 6.0 V8, for this 2.0 is only good enough to slap 5.7s. Stock 5.7s, and I'm not pulling your leg.
Now, the wife.. well.. she doesn't ask about pricing for something unless she's interested in it and after driving the Ford she inquired about it's price, so that's a start. She has her mind set on an MPV but I get the feeling my job of coercing her into a Falcon was made a little easier. Little Taha, our 2.3 year old son [hint hint, Ford, 2.3!!!] said it felt like being in a roller coaster, his exact word for that was "weeeeeeee.". The 4.7 year old doesn't like the colour (Smoke). If it's not blue, red, orange or black, he's not interested. His thoughts on the interior were "the beige and the black are nice and go well together".
An old gentleman, in his mid 70s, shook his head in disbelief at the amount of power after only applying half throttle. Initially he didn't want to drive it but I asked him to take a seat and the rest is history. A Ford man at heart, he was very pleased with the G6E's polish and plushness. He also said "Ford's broke, they're shutting shop ...I heard it on the news.", so I had him re-adjusted.
Many more drove it and like the above accounts the G6E Ecoboost won a lot of praise and respect. The idea that a four cylinder can motivate a large vehicle hasn't sunk in the minds of Aussies but I was happy to remind them that the European large cars are also propelled with less powerful and less efficient four cylinder motors. Jaguar's large sedan, the "XF" also has this same 2.0 litre Ecoboost.





There is something that for too long has been used as a criticism of the Falcon - it's high seating position. Compared to most vehicles it does feel high but after just a few days behind the wheel I wouldn't have it any other way, and that's nothing to do with adaptation. The posture you're in benefits in at least a couple of ways; comfort, and visibility. The higher position is optimised for the benefit of the driver. You sit nice and low in a Hyundai i45 but do you ever think you'll get comfortable? I had an i45 for a week driving through North Queensland - Anyone who'd buy an i45 (or a Camry) over the Falcon has lost the will to live. You also sit nice and low in a VE, but how's the all-round visibility going for you? In the end the seating position in the FG is not only a non-issue, but, for me, the preferred position.





The creature comforts in the G6E are plenty and well known, but I'd like to highlight a few points of difference between it and the i45 and SV6, they're the two cars I've recently driven for extended periods.
I don't know about you but for me the one feature that has to work well in a car is cruise-control. If you've experienced any contemporary Falcon you will know that this feature couldn't be any simpler to use, and in the FG it's even better. This alone doesn't make a car but if everything else was equal between these cars then the cruise puts the Falcon ahead by 56 generations.
Trip Computer: Falcon wins again. Not by the same margin but it's still a win, mainly due to the extra info that's available, and the interface between the dials is well set up and easy to read. Very easy to scroll and select through the menu.
The Falcon misses out on rain-sensing wipers. The SV6 also misses out but not sure of the upper spec VE models. This feature, which is in the i45, is pretty good. Set and forget, no fiddling whatsoever and gets a big tick from me.
Paddle-shift in the i45. Oxymoron. Paddles alone would be more fitting. I don't think the Falcon needs paddle-shift because that ZF has telepathy. It knows what you want to do. I don't know how, but it does. It's as if it's linked to your brain.
The VE's box is okay - noticed how I just went back 15 years in time? Cool trick, eh?
Keyless entry, keyless start and Hyundai Active Locking Operation (HALO) in the i45 is also a feature the locals don't have and if you're lazy like me it's one that you'd highly appreciate. The keys don't ever need to be taken out of your pocket. Ever. I heard Hyundai will go further, they're working on customising their cars to be in full sync with smart phones, so much so that you don't need any keys or remotes at all. Toyota might be doing the same but theirs will be a shared version with Fisher & Paykel.
I won't compare the ride and handling of the Ecoboost G6E to the other two vehicles because as I said that would be an insult to the Ford. Okay, fair enough, the VE is a good handler but that's where it stops. The i45 is comparable to the 1986 model XF Falcon GL with 14" tyres.





Moving on to FG2's 8" display. It's quite easy to use, but a little difficult to see if sunlight's shining on it. The reverse camera is gimmicky and a distraction because I think the reverse sensors do a good enough job. I say distraction because one of these days someone will forget to check their surroundings and end up awkwardly parked or leave themselves in a skewed position. Or just hit something. The Satnav I found to be easy to use as well. I'm used to the Garmin 1490T, which is a couple of years old but works great. I'm no expert on GPSs so the only opinion I can share on this is relative to my experience with the 1490T.
The cabin in general we're all familiar with - quite roomy, and the dash layout was complimented by most. It all comes down to personal taste and I thought it was plush and very inviting. There's nothing like sitting in an interior of a car that looks good, has a simple, clean layout, and an instrument cluster that is easy to read and functional at the same time.





I haven't experienced any direct-injected turbo-petrol-powered vehicles that I can remember so I can't judge how good or bad the 2.0 Ecoboost is in part-throttle situations compared to the same, and, part-throttle is in use 99% of the time for (just about) any motorist, so it's an important aspect of this motor I was keen to trial. In a nutshell, it's acceptable in nearly all cases but isn't as good as the worlds best engine, the Barra 4.0. You're only feathering the throttle and it's moving nicely with the rest of the traffic and considering the 1650kg kerb mass of the G6E, that's pretty impressive. The BF 4sp I have feels flat, as in lacking fizz, compared to the G6E in these light throttle applications. However when you up the tempo to 7/10s the response of the naturally aspirated motor is the easier to peddle. I'm still talking about response, not speed. If you go all out you'll reach a point where the amazing ZF transmission masks any lack of response from the Ecoboost and then everything's just brilliant.

Riding on 245/40 R18 Dunlop Sport Maxx this G6E was very well behaved on most surfaces. It won't glide over everything like my B Series XT Falcon does, so you do need to back off over sharp speed humps, Camrys, and footpaths (when chasing down Commodore owners). Noise isolation is pretty good and a lot of those who drove it noted the same. From my perspective, as one who's in the driver's seat for extended periods, it's a very nice place to be in. Taxi drivers love Falcons for a reason, and those degrading Falcon for being a "taxi" are obtuse or just plain arrogant.




The FG Falcon in it's own right is a very accomplished car. It's maleable and adaptable, it will cater for whatever mood you're in. No need to compromise on handling/performance if you want comfort and space. The handling and grip levels with this "Foured" Falcon are much higher than most would venture, and that means it's a much safer bet to steer you out of trouble in hairy situations. I do believe ANCAP's rating system is flawed. Why have 5-stars for small vehicles when the same amount of stars in a larger vehicle is actually safer. This is according to ANCAP, I believe. I give the Falcon 7 stars, one extra for being a large car, and another for having much better passive safety in the form of a higher grip threshold.

After the first week the time came to refuel and I chose 100 octane for certain reasons. Total average consumption over the entire 3 weeks was just under 11 litres per 100km. I don't think you'll be able to get worse than that; very hot conditions, towing the family about, and the "odd" stretch of the right ankle(s) didn't help.

On the subject of fuel I was hit with a question:
"If I was after economy, why would I buy this over a small or medum car?".
A little difficult to explain but I got there in the end. Yes, if it's economy you're after why bother when you can save a litre or two with a small/medium size car, but If you're purely after economy then you've missed the point of the Ecoboost Falcon range. From all reviews thus far I think most people would know this already, and as noted above, the dynamics of this car are superb, but in the same breath you can say it's more comfortable than just about anything at double the price. Yes, for size, comfort, handling, safety, function, equipment, power and economy, the Ecoboost Falcon is a luxury to have even in the base XT guise. Nothing comes remotely close in this price bracket. After spending a good 3 weeks in the car it's no surprise it took out best family car for 2012 and go one to take the best car awards. This car is a winner!



"Youssef-o... Youssef-o... wherefore art thou, oh Youssef-o?", said Mother Nature... "Be Gone! This tank of 100 Octane will not be consumed at 2000rpm!".

Originally Posted by Falc'man

"Mother Nature"? I personally prefer "Lady Wakehurst", and so I gladly waved goodbye at all 15km of Mother Nature as I drove through. Boy this car is fun. Clay, so sorry you missed this one. The harder I pushed the more confident I became. It conquered the Koni section and did so in style. Named the Koni section for it's not-so-smooth black top, a section of road, about 3kms long, that can bite and literally make you hug Mother Nature. The Koni section is where the heroes slow down, they back off because they drive racecars and their suspensions are too stiff. Well, stiff, the G6E totally annihilated this section. In the end Zach had many excuses. "Oh, my tyres, they're new but they're not good. Oh, I had to pull over and check the wheel nuts, ohh, it felt like my wheels were coming off.". He couldn't make it the following week. Unfair comparison, though, he only had a VX SS Commodore.

Ultimately this car understeers at the limit, which is what you want in a passenger vehicle. Prior to that though it's very neutral, the balance is unlike any other Falcon - so much less mass over the front is the reason, and you certainly feel the better weight distribution over the six cylinder Falcons, leaving the car feeling very sharp in change of directions. Very composed through long sweepers and I'm not talking about the ones with smooth surfaces.
If there's one complaint I have in all of this it's the steering; a little too light for me and lacking a little feel compared to previous FGs I've driven. The brakes in day to day driving are excellent, but they're not racetrack grade but they weren't meant to be. They did work very well through the mountains, offering good bite and feel. After all the punishment they still have a long life ahead of them.





Then I took it to the strip. I was very excited about going and I had a great time, especially since I haven't been in God knows how long. Many guys came and had a look and many also asked questions, of which the most popular was "how does it go?". It goes good, but I'm here to find out exactly how good.
Two lanes of cars slowly rolling into the scrutineering shed a gentleman beside me was in a G6ET. Windows down we started chatting about both cars. He's had his car since buying it new in '08 but it was his first time at the drags. We actually ended up racing one another as well which was a good thing. Despite the fact he wheel spun and then mistimed his shifts he well and truly beat me as you would expect.
The Ecoboost surprised me, though. I knew it had good pace off the mark, thanks to the press' efforts earlier last year where they recorded 0-100km/h times of less than 7 seconds, but I didn't think it'd keep on pumping so hard to 150km/h. With the times it achieved it looked as though this four-banger won respect at the track.
The second run was also my last as I had to be home by 7pm. On both runs I went around the water - no skids to warm the tyres. Stav recommended that to me once. The first run the launch wasn't perfect, it broke traction ever so slightly. Harder to juggle than the atmo 6 where the power delivery is a little more controllable. The second run I was also conservative - didn't want to screw up my last and only run - so the power feed was adjusted and resulted in a slightly better 60' and subsequently a better quarter. Not by much though.
With more trialling, practice and experimentation there's a definite 14.3 on a good winter's night. All shifts were at 6000rpm. Peak power is at 5500rpm so there's nothing happening beyond 6000, although the factory limiter goes to 6500rpm. The car weighed in at 1806kg with me in it (I weigh about 100kg), and it had 3/4 tank of fuel. Tyres weren't messed around with and obviously nothing taken out of the car. With just a filter, tune and practice and I wouldn't be surprised if it dipped below 14.0.

In the end I was really impressed with the outcome. To put it into perspective, this Ecoboost powered four cylinder Falcon accelerates as good as the more powerful six cylinder Falcons and Commodores of today. For reference, some will remember the days when we were battling to get the 6 cyl, non-turbo BAs below 15s. Not one was capable of doing so without extensive modifications. The BF Falcon of 2006 with better power than BA was the first ever naturally aspirated Falcon six to dip into the 14 second bracket in stock form.





It was also booked it in for a dyno run at Autotech Engineering and as always Spiro was happy to oblige despite the fact he had cars double-parked on the street waiting to be worked on or dyno'ed. The result is a little higher than I anticipated but that's only because it had the 100 Octane fuel (the trees cried). My guesstimate would be mid 130s for 91 but in this case it almost nudged the 140rwkw mark. The first Barra 6s were the same - mid 130 to low 140rwkws. After the dyno run Spiro was quite enthusiastic about taking it for a drive. He was pleasantly surprised with it's performance - much better than he expected, "shocked" was how he described it to one of his employees.

As you can see the torque delivery is very good, very flat. To those that aren't initiated with torque and torque curves (Camry and SIDI V6 owners), "flat" is a good thing. It doesn't mean flat as in lethargic or lacking fizz. To say somethng has a flat torque-curve means you get the sensation you experience when taking off in a jumbo jet. That is felt on the road in the Ecoboost Falcon. This two litre turbo doesn't have the thrust of it's big brother, the 4 litre turbo found in the XR6T, G6E Turbo and the-even-more-powerful F6, but then again, nothing under $100k does either. First gear is gone very quickly, shifting at 6500rpm and quickly getting to 100+ at the end of 2nd gear.
Street racing is bad, and so therefore I don't street race. But, hypothetically speaking, and as an example only, a Gen 3 VX SS (hello Zac), would not beat this to 80. We're talking about 5.7 litre Chev powered 225kW V8 here! Beyond first gear, though, the power deficit at the top end of the rev range was (or would be - forgot this is a hypothetical) apparent; you go from a very good launch in 1st to a relatively mild experience heading towards the national speed limit at the top end of 2nd gear. By the way, you feel a much more direct and firm transition from 1st to 2nd using manual mode, and that's an experience I recommend to all, especially Camry and Hyundai drivers; their hearts may get a jump-start.

Originally Posted by Evil_Capri

Wow! Thanks for sharing Falc'man!

Originally Posted by Moosetang

Great article, here's hoping EcoBoost breathes new life into Falcon sales.

Originally Posted by future9er24

That was a really interesting read, thanks for posting. I love reading about the Falcon, since we're not allowed to enjoy them in any other way over here lol. Makes you wonder what else this 2.0T could find its way into

That Green Car Guide stuff sounds like some awful bull though.

Originally Posted by Zastava_101

Proof?

Originally Posted by Zastava_101

There are talks that the Falcon will be replaced with a FWD Taurus in 2016, when the next generation Taurus is due.

My aunt has been living in Australia since 2003; the Falcon was her first car after moving there. She replaced it with a Holden Commodore in the meantime

Originally Posted by HSE2

....It’s not my fault - so whose fault is it?

Our media has been the subject of much debate in 2012. The Government has proposed all sorts of changes, the Greens want to go further. We see it as an attack on speech but underlining it all is a belief that the media matters and has considerable influence.

Sounds reasonable does it not? If it weren’t the case then there would be no need for the industry at all. We could all just make our own minds up and the opinions of others simply wouldn’t matter.
People come to blogs to learn about problems in the first part and perhaps be up to date on what the future might hold. The internet age has transformed the way we gain information. It’s an instant access to everything that is happening and to opinions that matter by choice. It’s a very powerful tool magnified by the ability of smart phones to house social media outlets.

If we look at the evolution of the media we can see that the hardcopy, once a month subscription, is struggling as we turn to the electronic age. Further, these same sources have also embraced the social side of our world. Research has shown that we now rarely pay complete attention to TV shows for example with many of us either on the PC in the living room or iPad or smart phone. The way we live and are influence has been altered forever.
The way we consumer has changed too. We can buy off eBay straight to our door cheaper than dealing with our local centres. We have an abundance of information and research tools available to us in which to make choices.

In this country we also have standards of advertising, the tools available to companies to gain our attention but funny enough our media seems to be exempt from such standards. It sells to get people fired up, to get a reaction but where is the line between influence and responsibility?

Now before you say the media don’t dictate change, they report on it, let me share three stories.

Recently, I received a text message that read

“ Hi Ian, just found out my company has decided not to continue to buy falcons. I have asked and been told that they have read the falcon is being phased out and don’t wish to have a product in the fleet that is being terminated as was the case with the 380.”

Second instance.
All ford day 2009.
“That’s a nice GT you have there mate!” Reply “yeah thanks, it was important for me to get a GT before they disappear” Me? “Well this is the last RWD falcon so it’s the last GT. “I did my research so I have got something special”

Third situation.

"Company has changed out of falcon Utes for rangers. When the question was asked as to why by employees, management said they had been made aware that the current Ute is the last so again they didn’t want to be stuck with a dead product”

In each of these situations the media played a part. The job of the media is to report the news but in most cases that gets blurred into opinion pieces just like this one.

At some point in all our lives we will be subjected to a situation where we are accused of being at fault. It could have substance, it might be erroneous but with each occasion if one is a professional the appropriated action would be to question how one was being seen. If the comments are frequent and similar then it’s likely there is a case you don’t want to acknowledge.

To say people don’t like to see the facts is ignorant of what the objections are. I have elected to post this here for a simple reason. It does away with some preamble. It does away with the qualification to comment and the justification of argument.

When Joshua suggests we are the problem he is right. We are, but not like he has promoted in his defence.
To say, “Against my better judgment I have purchased 5 Australian cars in the last 10 years” while commendable it’s a pure deflection. My counter would be to say that I have spent 170k with Ford Aust since 2006 and indirectly responsible for a further 300k with Ford since 2002. So what? It means nothing. I have achieved nothing. What matters is what I do today and tomorrow. It’s what I intend to do, how I intend to influence that will define my place in this fight.

While watching twitter I noticed Joshua retweeted certain posts. They pretty much had the same message. The companies don’t listen, they have lost touch, and there are better options available for less money.
This message was repeated or as the case might have been pre-empted by Joshua in his reply on the car guide.
Here is the thing. Australians are horrible consumers backed by ineffectual government policy that likes to state a situation but yet won’t do anything to change it. Change comes from challenge.
Joshua has stated some facts in the name of numbers so let’s keep that going. Next to China Australian consumers have the most choice when it comes to cars. Over 60 brands and over 100 models from which to choose so its not just our dollar.

Ford don’t listen, Ford don’t have a product for me.
Ford act with ecoboost, Ford act with LPI. Ford act with Diesel territory so where is the proof that the companies aren’t listening. Ford offer the flexibility of a split fold rear seat, 5 star crash ratings, comfort and now economy benefits but Australians say “nup not for me”
Now I say this Josh because you are not the average consumer. You know that our industry piggy backs on the parent companies, that our market can not be the industry leader of other countries yet we are afforded the greatest choice in terms of the total market place. One ford addresses global trends and decreases reaction times to consumer trends but yet we line up ecoboost and find a way of saying it’s a partly wasted 42 million of taxpayers money. It’s just not accurate, not in real terms. It's a wasted 42 million by association to a scheme but at the same time it’s the best Falcon? How does that work? Most readers won't bother with the semantics of the message you are trying to deliver. They will break it down to the simplest version and not see the specifics of what the issue really is and to be honest you didn't really present those specifics very well. I like to see definition in my negativity reports.

VF has been delayed. It has focused on weight savings, efficiency and technology. Ford will do the same for 2014. Telling consumers or insinuating to consumers that tax payers money has been wasted because the product has come up short with some government requirements tells only one side of the story in my humble opinion.
Is it not the primary function of the automotive media to report on the merits of the product first and foremost. Is ecoboost an improvement over the standard Falcon?
You insinuated that Ford don’t want to spend money to make the car pass but yet turn and say people support the lower cost options. Does it not stand to reason that certification to higher standards above the compliancy act will invoke increased costs? Then does it not stand to reason that passing those costs on is a vital part of company profitability, the very essence which is shaping our long term viability.

I had no issue with the original story. The follow up seems to be able to be read with more venom. The choice of headlines and the depiction of the product as a lemon was unfortunate but instrumental in causing opinions to be formed. I trust that read is no longer in question.
Me personally I don’t know what you gained by doing the article. I would not have done it like that yet I feel I could have told the story of the manufacturers wanting out of the GVG. That’s two attempts at the same subject matter and I have more questions than answers.

What we have in social media or the age I have described above is a small window of attention. Once you put a message out there if it’s wrong or in error it takes a lot of work and money to undo it. I have put to Ford that for every marketing dollar Ford spend spreading the word about falcon and ecoboost it’s being eroded by irresponsible media representation that extends to blogs and forums.

You have to believe you have the power to influence Joshua otherwise your entire profession is just a little bit pointless. Sales not stories are the fault you say but where does the impact of research come into the sales equation? You say it’s important for people to be informed yet suggest you have little impact on the negative side. It’s an extraordinary mindset to hold.

This forum was at the front of contacting local governments for comment on local support. Their comments can be read here _>http://www.falconforums.com.au/showt...ents-have-said
NSW was used as an example of how tax payers dollars had funded a car that failed by half a star. The article used ambivalent language to make the point. We, thanks to our effort in this area, already know which states have a bad attitude or great attitude.

NSW is used as an example of a failure so presumably there are states where the ecoboost must pass? It was not clearly defined in the article. If so is this not an issue that lends support to what the locals have said when used in the context of Government support?
How does WA fare here? They have a pretty average mindset to local support so do they have this excuse? What about Tasmania. A member caught a Govt registered ecoboost falcon on camera last week Does the falcon comply there or are they risking missing their targets as suggested?
Someone please tell me what am I meant to take away from the article. As a consumer, as a tax payer seeing this sort of allegation what am I meant to conclude other than more information please. How is that a measure of good journalism?
The next thing that sort of struck me was that the engine that passes in NSW with 15 points is the only local engine Falcon with the Inline 6- gas. The engine we have sole control over is the best! We then support the notion we are not doing /don’t listen or can’t be bothered by re-tweeting comments that need correcting not endorsement.
It seems to be an incredible nearly ill-informed position that you could hold the power to inform on one hand yet not influence detrimentally. That would be a truly unique disposition because sales not stories at some point become stories influencing sales. We hear that Australian manufacturers haven’t moved with the shift in consumer requirements, yet is it possible our media with their self absorbed rhetoric are equally prehistoric. Is it so inconceivable that prolonged and saturated points have an effect on those that read those stories. I am a seasoned consumer and they influence me. On one hand I am left wondering of the age of some of these scribes and their audience because the notion of accountability and responsibility appears to have left stage right.

Ford is spending money to strengthen its own brand and that of the Falcon.
We have seen through-out 2012 that Ford have listened. Did you see the Ford stand at the Sydney motor show Josh? All those import companies were put to shame. Ford understands the importance of getting people behind the wheel, to have positive exposure to the product and brand and bit by bit is building a better company and product.

The end result. The ecoboost falcon has widely been regarded as the best Falcon in its 51 years. Now I am not sure how a global engine ends up missing a state requirement but I would like to hear the totality of the states and how much they vary. I am not saying it’s not news and I have nothing against the reality of the numbers. Adults recognise that people come to their own conclusions but adults also realise that a part is played by exposure to the research conducted. Marketing- media all work on the principle of exposure driving influence. If you can’t reach people, you are ineffective. That’s not an absolution to do the best job we can and it’s never ok to say I have done my part yesterday, someone else can do theirs today.

What we ended up with is a repeat article that allowed some clown to detrimentally tarnish the product. You might not want to recognise that fact Joshua but it’s the truth. People looking at Fords increased marketing presence with Ecoboost could have seen that image and not understood the complete nature of the article due to a horrific choice of title. That to Ford represents a problem. Potentially you have influenced customers and that’s the way you should be approaching your job. It’s just not news. You are promoting influence, and today unlike the AU era you have a much greater instant reach.
You mention the difficulty in getting Ford stories and the difference in the companies, something we as fans are only too aware of. It’s frustrating for us too but perhaps this might be playing a part in our media reacting the way they appear to react at times. There seems to be a readable tone of resentment towards the company. Every time I get to visit ford or talk to anyone at Ford I ask why our media hate you so much. You might counter that you don’t, then I say why is it ford seem to be on the end of mistakes starting with the fragrance of lemon?

A further point.

From a consistency standpoint, its Ford refusal to comment on the future that has concluded in a bad news prognosis’s for the Falcon brand and the company’s manufacturing in this country. That’s fair enough. You have the global decline of the large car, Ford cancelling the small car line, strong dollar and a no comment policy so surely the only conclusion has to be gone for all money.

What is less clear is that we know Holden have committed to two product lines and it’s now suggested that the second line is not commodore. If that were Ford then the headlines would be “we told you so” or an effort equivalent to what we have seen of the last couple of days, but its Holden so there is no sensationalistic headline and really no comment in the body of the articles at all other then to suggest the replacement product. What we know for sure is that Holden have made that choice. They had to attract co investment so if the topic is news and given Holden are so easy to talk to, how is this not monumental?

I mean to say, we as a forum group are sitting here reading these articles thinking, "did they just say what I think they said", collectively we come to the conclusion they did and there is absolute silence from you guys. You guys are off to Detroit; how about some consistency. Ask GM what the second line is to get us through to 2022 then come back and tell us how easy they are to talk to.


Each year come Detroit Auto show our media is on the Falcon is dead bandwagon. Asking the same questions, reporting parts of answers to suit a headline. This must be that obligation to reveal the facts, to better inform the population of the continued demise. It’s appropriate because someone somewhere might have missed last weeks article where obscurely out of nowhere falcons demise got a run. How come we can't simply have from our media that Ford are making the best falcon ever get out there and buy it. That’s also a fact! Lets try that and let the future take care of itself.

It is true to say you are not responsible for a trend but it also equally incorrect to say you don’t have influence. You call it flattering; I call it selling yourself short. If you didn’t have the ability to influence you would not be supplied with cars to review, you simply wouldn’t have a job. What might be up for debate is the amount of influence you might hold and I would argue that it’s variable.

The headlines of your articles are important and I think even with the redo this latest effort is boarder line. The suggestion is that 42 million has been wasted because the states have a requirement that the product fails to meet. But the article never stipulates which states that applies to. We are left to assume. We are told they are free to go outside the guide but risk not meeting their own targets but we are not told if any states do that. In fact other than what we have on this site there is no mention of what the states issue towards the GVG might be.

You ask a question about what level of tax payer funding is actually responsible. On this site we have looked at that too. I have access to documentation that presents numbers in a revealing light, and indeed where Australia sits in relation to other developed countries.
The GVG also no longer takes into account the impact of external influences like the carbon tax on manufactures as a company. Our government tells us its ok for these companies to pass on the extra costs yet people like you report to us that Australians and gravitating towards products on a cost basis.

It’s unfortunate that you felt you had to tell your life story as a mechanism for defence and justification. In short it simply doesn’t matter what your background is because like us all we are judged on what we have in front of us today. In the end only you know if you are happy with your reporting, if you are doing everything you can to be responsible to the news in the spirit it’s intended.

My friends and I started this forum because we felt there wasn’t enough accountability in more mainstream forums. Sometimes imagery and headlines are enough to shake the attention that everyone fights for. I contend that the choice of headline and picture editing was not in anyone’s best interests. It was not fair to the product, the company or consumer. It had the power to leave people with an impression or perception that will indeed need to be challenged and I personally think that makes a bad situation worse. You on some level must have agreed because it was altered. It was immature, careless, reckless and damaging. As a community we have real stories of real peoples influence. That’s the world we live in.
The numbers are news, not convinced on the need to be repetitive but hey that’s also the world we live in. Under the headline of news we have the option to promote the strengths of a product and with ecoboost even if its misses out by half a star in NSW I would put to you that 42 million dollars has not been wasted when by most accounts its resulted in the power of a six for the economy of a four. It has allowed for better handling, reduction in frontal mass all with no refinement compromise.

A product that has received very positive press gets depicted as a lemon in all this. Now you tell me who should feel more aggrieved? How you felt Joshua, to write all that personal stuff, is basically how Ford would feel every day. They have to deal with consumers that say one thing then do something else and a media that says they are impartial but suggest support of yesteryear was against better judgment.
Supporting Australian workers is never a bad thing. Valuing the Australian way of life is never a judgment call. We can’t continue to take our high wages and gravitate to lower cost options under the guise of people/companies not listening or being out of touch because mate I am here to tell you our industries aren’t the only ones not listening. Allegedly of course!

Originally Posted by Zastava_101

End Of Road For Holden Commodore, Ford Falcon By 2016



http://wot.motortrend.com/end-of-roa...#axzz2Jmr8eVIU