So where's the Falcon replacement?

[Sprintey]

Kia Stinger if you want RWD

Mazda 6 if you want well built FWD with very little issues and real demand at resale time

VF2 Commodore until close if you want RWD and V8/performance

[GXL078]

Originally Posted by MAGPIE

Who promised you a Falcon replacement

Wheels Magazine for the last 20+ years. Remember the Taurus. And that other newer Taurus, etc,etc.

[X-AHH]

It would have been nice if these were available in OZ but it's not to be apparently.

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/auto/2...sport/preview/

[Ford17]

Originally Posted by Stefan

45mm width difference in width between large Family car and small hatch back s stuff all really...

30 years ago Falcon was a lot larger than Cortina and monstrous compared to an Escort...

Loaded the dimensions of the Falcon/Cortina/Escort from 1981 or so into Excel, and the difference in the numbers is visible:

[Sabantien]

Originally Posted by GXL078

Wheels Magazine for the last 20+ years. Remember the Taurus. And that other newer Taurus, etc,etc.

Pretty sure Wheels Magazine don't run Ford.

Ford have said there is no replacement.

But the reality is, there's three replacements.

If you want a comfortable family car, Mondeo.
If you want a tow car, Ranger.
If you want a performance car, Mustang.

If you want something that does all three, well, there's always Kia.

[TER2BO]

Originally Posted by xahh

It would have been nice if these were available in OZ but it's not to be apparently.

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/auto/2...sport/preview/

Now that is some car the Fusion Sport V6. We could really do with that one here in Aus.
And as someone posted on that site why ins't that motor offerred in a Mustang . Maybe they had too many Eco Boost 4's to get rid of. Or this V6 would make some of their V8's look sad.

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by Stefan

Nothing wrong with Mondeo, (unless you want to tow stuff I guess)

We have one in the family, it's large comfy, gets along nicely

Only problem is when compared to my Typhoon

There are no rattles, no diff clunk, no suspension clunks, no brake shudder.

Typhoon has 70K on the ODO on the third set of brake rotors.

Mondeo has 87K on the ODO, original brakes.


Only cars that have ever suffered from constant brake shudder is me EL, BA, Terry and BF all way under 100K on the ODO.....drives me insane.

G'day , MY AU ll has just under 200,000 clicks...zero brake shudder and they're the original rotors, no rattles ,no suspension noise other than an occasional squeak from the sway bar rubbers if the weather is dry for a time and a tiny dash squeak on unsealed roads..My BA Fairmont that made way for my FG XR6 , rattled in the rear suspension and several interior squeaks , beaut engine and drivetrain though until the centre bearing pooped itself..Quick fix though.Brakes wore average good with little to no shudder .As much as the BA's are pretty good cars , the AU's in my opinion are better in a few key areas..and they ride better too I think having owned both with similar average kilometres on them for their age..
..The XR6 has only 68,000 on her..No brake issues yet or rattles either...I'm bloody blessed or lucky with my current birds...Cheers Rod.

[Rallye Sport]

Mondeo's are a useful car... Their engines make great donors for old Escort's and Cortina's

[roddy1960]

G'day..No problems generally with Mondeo on the reviews and vids I've looked at.. I don't know anyone who has bought one and only seen a few around..
My problem is that us Aussies like something that excites the senses from the blue oval crowd..We're kinda used to it via factory GT , Tickford , FPV and XR 6's and 8's over the decades..
Mondeo seems to lack big time in that regard as good as the Ecotech 2.0 litre is. Is there any reason why at the very least a 2.3 litre Ecotech couldn't be an option..The Focus RS has it...so does the Mustang..
I've had a gander at the Fusion from the USA with the 2.7 litre V6 TT that is supposedly a bit faster 0-60 mph than the Stang GT and line ball with it to 100mph and is AWD or FWD and has a 2.5 and 2.0 litre option and several trim levels. .. No wonder they sold well over 300,000 last year and it crucified the stablemate Taurus by a wide margin.
Our tiny , tiny market , no RHD plans for Fusion because the Mondeo essentially is Fusion for RHD countries.. Sadly we have no choice (yet) to the somewhat limiting Euro spec Mondeo/Fusion offerings..Even more sad , Euro drivers seem to prefer smaller engines,unlike us OZ hoons, so for the moment our big four door banger is going to be a whopping Ecoboost 2.0 methinks..
or wait to try and get a Focus RS rocketship somehow..2.3 litres ,257 Kw and 440 Nm..pretty tasty menu there..
Imagine a Mondy with a 2.7 TT AWD Ecoboost...Yeah , yeah...Cheers Rod

[XR6TCraig]

Originally Posted by bbbero

Traded our 2015 WRX, ended up being too small with a baby capsule/seat in it, plus wanted something that gave me the option to tow the boat if I went to the coast with family!

Can you even fit towbar to the new rex to tow a trailer? I can understand not wanting to tow a boat a few hundred klms, but is the option there to get a tow bar fitted?

[bangm001]

But everyone is buying smaller cars HAHAHA! My wifes mazda 6 isnt much smaller than the falcon in the shed either..
Does the "world" really want front wheel drive or is there no viable cheap alternative...

[bernbo]

Originally Posted by bbbero

Traded our 2015 WRX, ended up being too small with a baby capsule/seat in it, plus wanted something that gave me the option to tow the boat if I went to the coast with family! Looked at the G6ET, and from a family car point of view, safety aids blah blah, the Calais had it all over the G6et. plus the LS3 does have that V8 noise!
its the wifes daily!! I honestly preferred the STi for fun factor, but the baby won that battle!

My fgx g6et ended up being my daily as the wife said no ute cause you cant pick up the kids. I looked at the holden but I just couldnt do it, the head said yes but the heart said no. I got the g6et for basically the price of a new rex or golf gti so bigger and faster and heaps cheaper to maintain.

[Junkyard-Dog]

Originally Posted by Trevor 57

World platform, Falcon wasn't, Mondeo is

We have the diesel Mondeo's (wagons) at work, not a bad car, prefer the real wheel drive Falcon, but the Mondeo is OK

And surprisingly I prefer the Hyundai I30 diesel over the Focus Diesel - just a personal preference - we also have both of these at work

The Mondeo isn't a direct replacement for the Falcon though.

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by bangm001

But everyone is buying smaller cars HAHAHA! My wifes mazda 6 isnt much smaller than the falcon in the shed either..
Does the "world" really want front wheel drive or is there no viable cheap alternative...

FWD with a transaxle and sideways means car makers can make the gearbox a tad cheaper but the configuration allows a shorter bonnet, theoretically leaving more space for the cabin on the same wheel base as the equivalent legnth rwd. It also means they can remove the sole from both the car and Driver easier to help take over the world...Bar the 5 second aurion, when's the last time you've seen a Camry driver smile due to sheer driving pleasure?

[danzvtil]

Originally Posted by .:4:.

FWD with a transaxle and sideways means car makers can make the gearbox a tad cheaper but the configuration allows a shorter bonnet, theoretically leaving more space for the cabin on the same wheel base as the equivalent legnth rwd. It also means they can remove the sole from both the car and Driver easier to help take over the world...Bar the 5 second aurion, when's the last time you've seen a Camry driver smile due to sheer driving pleasure?

The camry driver smiles when they go to trade it in, its actually still worth something, and they've never messed around getting it fixed under warranty.

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by danzvtil

The camry driver smiles when they go to trade it in, its actually still worth something, and they've never messed around getting it fixed under warranty.

Thats a smile about the destination not the drive...

[Stefan]

Originally Posted by Ford17

Loaded the dimensions of the Falcon/Cortina/Escort from 1981 or so into Excel, and the difference in the numbers is visible:

image

You're a good man

Confirms what I see in the car parks....Focus obviously missing a boot..but they look as big a Falcon...

Mondeo I knew first hand is on par and the wagon is very versatile.

But this applies to most manufacturers these days.

[Ford17]

Originally Posted by Stefan

You're a good man

Confirms what I see in the car parks....Focus obviously missing a boot..but they look as big a Falcon...

Mondeo I knew first hand is on par and the wagon is very versatile.

But this applies to most manufacturers these days.

Indeed - cars are progressively getting wider.

I actually track car widths for the sole purpose of finding suitable car options for the wife, which will easily fit in the garage next to my Falcon.
Each time the replacement process comes around, the narrow-enough options become less and less.

Falcon size (particularly width) is becoming the new normal.

Edit: When the Mondeo was on the wish-list, I recall being a little shocked to find how wide it was. Hence the relevance of all this to the topic at hand.

[paulie]

Originally Posted by xahh

Mondeo is the same size as my XR8.

The mondeo looks the same as the xr8...........

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by GXL078

Falcon production finished months ago and we are now well into 2017 so what is Ford doing? Living off the success of the Mustang? C'mon real people need a four door.

Here:

http://www.chrysler.com.au/300c

[MethodX]

karma says some of you don't deserve one.

[bbbero]

Originally Posted by Bevsta007

So really you chose the Calais over the Falcon anyway. regardless of the Mondeo. Your next car may have to be a 300C.

I guess so, but this was only 4 weeks ago!! so there was no new G6ET, there were still a couple normal G6E and XR6s, but the boss (Mrs) really didn't like them after sitting in and driving a LS3 Calais!!!

[bbbero]

Originally Posted by XR6TCraig

Can you even fit towbar to the new rex to tow a trailer? I can understand not wanting to tow a boat a few hundred klms, but is the option there to get a tow bar fitted?

It is possible, there are aftermarket options, but because there is no provision for one from factory, apparently it needed to be engineered etc..
and I just didn't want the risk!! I have a 2014 Navara that I use for towing duties, but its nice now having the option to tow a 2ton boat/trailer with the Calais. sometimes we would go to the coast not thinking Id take the boat out and take the rex, then conditions would perfect for a fish, but I couldn't tow the boat to the ramp!!!

[2011G6E]

Originally Posted by Junkyard-Dog

Why would they bother to make a direct replacement for a car that wasn't selling anyway?

Best statement of the thread right there...

VOLUME sells cars, not sentimentality, not doing it just for a dwindling number of buyers, not appealing to a tiny number of enthusiasts...95% of whom have never and will never buy a brand new car. I've even comments right here on this forum saying things like "But I can't afford a brand new car...what are my options going to be in five or ten years time if they aren't making Falcons??"...because car makers really worry about the choices of second hand buyers in a decades time...

It's gone. Move on. Appreciate what is there and choose to suit your actual needs. That's the way the buying public has gone, and that's why "large RWD sedan" is no longer the vehicle of choice for the majority. People no longer buy on emotion alone, they buy on need, and make far more detailed choices these days than "Daddy had one and his daddy had one so I'll have to buy one too". That's why small to medium SUV's and twin cab utes have become so popular. They suit what people need, filling a space that was never there before in the car market.

[Trump]

Originally Posted by Franco Cozzo

Here:

http://www.chrysler.com.au/300srt

Fixed

[X-AHH]

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

Best statement of the thread right there...

VOLUME sells cars, not sentimentality, not doing it just for a dwindling number of buyers, not appealing to a tiny number of enthusiasts...95% of whom have never and will never buy a brand new car. I've even comments right here on this forum saying things like "But I can't afford a brand new car...what are my options going to be in five or ten years time if they aren't making Falcons??"...because car makers really worry about the choices of second hand buyers in a decades time...

It's gone. Move on. Appreciate what is there and choose to suit your actual needs. That's the way the buying public has gone, and that's why "large RWD sedan" is no longer the vehicle of choice for the majority. People no longer buy on emotion alone, they buy on need, and make far more detailed choices these days than "Daddy had one and his daddy had one so I'll have to buy one too". That's why small to medium SUV's and twin cab utes have become so popular. They suit what people need, filling a space that was never there before in the car market.

This was posted on that duplicated thread but I'm going to add it here since it seems relevant.

I bought the MD Mondeo Titanium for my wife in preference to the G6E 2.0T.

The lack of RWD was more than compensated for by the huge luggage space and improved safety/technical/luxury features and overall build quality. I would encourage anyone who has an interest in the G6E to also do a comparison with the Mondeo.

Since the Australian automotive industry will all be gone within a 12 month period IMHO, it will probably take a few years before things settle down and we get a feel for what will be the norm for vehicles available for sale in this country. I'm fairly sure there will be a quite a bit of trial and error from the manufacturers until they work out what sells and what doesn't.

[DJM83]

Originally Posted by MethodX

karma says some of you don't deserve one.

Not enough bought, not enough second handies to share around. Vicious cycle that is coming to an end.

[PooDog]

Originally Posted by paulie

The mondeo looks the same as the xr8...........

[NX74205]

Originally Posted by xahh

I would encourage anyone who has an interest in the G6E to also do a comparison with the Mondeo.

Agreed. In the Falcon, it feels very familiar - feels like home, particularly when you start the engine and you hear the familiar sound of the 4.0-litre six. But objectively, the Mondeo is the better car in every way that matters.

There's only one feature I can think of that the G6E has but the Mondeo lacked - a digital speedo (which is now fixed by the introduction of SYNC 3 in the Mondeo), but there are many, many more features available in the Mondeo that aren't even available as an option on the G6E. The Mondeo is better built, quieter and more refined than the G6E could ever hope to be.

[paulie]

If you cant see it then.....

So many people that arent car nuts keep saying.
oh such n such got one of those new fords.
Thinking its an xr8.

Yet its a mondeo.

The mondeo, focus, fiesta and fgx all share the same front grill setup.
Ford gave up on different looks and said.
yep that will do. Just make it smaller for the focus.
Make it bigger for the falcon.....