Turbo Fairmont Ghia

[PDIDDY]

Originally Posted by Franks

The F6 is too expensive and it's not about comparing spec for spec with an XR6 Turbo or Typhoon or F6.

I agree with the idea of this thread. Why not have the turbo as an option on the Fairmont and Fairmont Ghia. Simple as that.

In the days of the Vl Commodore you could order a Calais Turbo (In fact the Turbo was available accross the range).

Mate, how much do you think a Turbo Fairmont Ghia would be? They won't exactly GIVE them away. If you want the mumbo, spend the dough.

[mowog]

Originally Posted by Franks

Not everone wants an XR.

Some people actually want a Fairmont/Fairmont Ghia and the difference is the Fairmont trim has more sound deadening and nicer higher spec trim.

Not everyone wants the XR look. You can tick all the boxes you like. The XR's are built on a Futura base, The Fairmonts are a higher spec base to begin with and have many more cool luxury features.

I just did a check on the Ford site the main difference would be the 8 way power seats. Other than that there is bugga all in it.

The big plus on the XR6 Turbos is they seem to have a better retained value.

[PDIDDY]

Originally Posted by flappist

The hardest thing to do in life is see from others points of view. If some of our members were is charge then the Falcon GTHO would have a 500kw V10 and be made of titanium, weigh 800kg and come factory fitted with a cage and wheelie bar. This would be the only model, but would come in wagon and ute variants and lots of stripes and colours. It would not sell well but would beat all Holdens over the 400m and the mutants would be able to dribble down the pub how back before they went broke, Ford made the fastest car in Australia......

...

Bravo!!! :king:

[Redrum]

I would like to see a Fairmont Ghia with the option of a Turbo I6. One of the things that I liked about the EL Fairmont Ghia was the fact it had a HP motor, even if it was 2kws less than XR6 and slightly sportier suspension. As the Turbo is a much bigger difference than the HP, should only be an option, for those that don't want one. I cannot see it being to hard in developing in relation to costs.

[Franks]

I can understand Ford probably havent offered the Turbo as an option on the Fairmont range from a business plan point of view.

But as a limited run it sure would be nice to make the range so much more robust.

If the sales were there. I still say some people would pay to have a Fairmont Turbo and the price spec difference with an optioned XR might not be a big deal to them. Some people prefer the Fairmont look to the XR look.

Retained value however, now that was a good argument as we all know the XR's do have it.

But maybe if they created a Turbo Fairmont it could make a new niche in retained value next to the XR6T ? Or maybe not ?

[mowog]

Originally Posted by Franks

Retained value however, now that was a good argument as we all know the XR's do have it.

But maybe if they created a Turbo Fairmont it could make a new niche in retained value next to the XR6T ? Or maybe not ?

I dont know that a Turbo Fairmont would perform as well in retained value. The XR's do because the younger guys want them. The market for the Fairmont is the older guy who is more likely to buy new anyway. Which goes some way to explain why they dont have a good retained value now.

I have voted on this issue with my money by ordering an XR6 Turbo (Ute) with the Luxury Pack...

Now why dont they do a Fairmont Ghia Ute....? :

[merlin]

Originally Posted by mowog

I just did a check on the Ford site the main difference would be the 8 way power seats. Other than that there is bugga all in it.

The big plus on the XR6 Turbos is they seem to have a better retained value.

Fairmont Ghia hsa a very different looking interior though - especially the black piano finish dash. Also to me the leather seats seemed much better than the XR leather.

[mowog]

Originally Posted by merlin

Fairmont Ghia hsa a very different looking interior though - especially the black piano finish dash. Also to me the leather seats seemed much better than the XR leather.

The choice in Leather yup I would like a lighter leather in my Ute but its not to be.. The black piano finish I dont like it and it looks like it would be a bugga to keep clean compared to the matt finish.

If someone truley wanted this then they could always by a Ghia and an XR6 Turbo and do a drive train swap. Then sell the XR 6 with the Ghia drive train.

Almost anything is possible if you have the money.

[Polyal]

Originally Posted by flappist

The point I am trying to make is that there is a bigger picture. Ford do a huge amount of research into model development and make what they think will sell in large enough numbers to make a profit.

Im not going to quote all of that, but I completely understand the testing and development side of it more than you know. Which is exactly why I crap on about the fact that there is no good reason why it cant be done.

Ford should be doing everything they can to get sales. They already have done all the R&D for a Turbo manual/auto Ghia. How? Technically its just a XR6T. The only difference is the front bumper, which would effect cooling, but thats easy to get around.

As for the manual issue, the I6T + T56 combo is that good that in the last BFYB they have both versions in the same category; that says enough doesn't.

I dont care about a GTHO, its not even needed, but when there are easy fixes for Fords somewhat aging line up then why the heck not do it.

[Gobes32]

I apologize for starting a thread and taking so long to get back to it. A few people have ran away with the idea and i just want to clarify my initial idea. A turbo ghia would be exactly that, A BF Series 2 Fairmont Ghia with a turbo bolted on and applicable brake package. NO BODYKIT!!! For the love of god! I want an inconspicous ghia that smokes @&$@ heads in Commodores. They will never know what hit them. My second car was a VL Calais Turbo : I paid 11,000 for my clean, original and no mods example. I was 19 and had the most stock car of all my friends and the slowest! But people respected the engineering and collectability of the car. Not everyone wants 20in wheels and a Batmobile wing. I am only 24 but i would buy a Ghia turbo over an XR6 Turbo. Something unique. A BMW 330i is a quick luxury vehicle but you would not know until its 400mtrs up the road and you are looking for second. Theres a nice little joy in owning a sleeper luxury vehicle.

[Iphido]

Diffrences between Ghia and Option XR6T

-Leather seats are diffrent, luxury pack comes with zero inserts so only half leather
-Power seat with 3 position memory
-Fairlane soft seat backs (BFII)
-A selection of non XR colours
-Less noisy tyres
-Lots of little things like glove box, interior colours, wood trims, Dash (BF II ghia dash I like better than XR dash)
-Diffrent bonnet and headlights, Diffrent fog lights

At the end of the day the Fairmont Ghia is a cruiser. There are numerous things that are diffrent to show its a luxury cruiser.

You have to tick a lot of XR options to get near it. Extra airbags, reverse sensors, luxury pack, and your still some options short etc etc.

For the XR driver, thats fine, but not for a Ghia driver. The Ghia is already pretty thin on standard equipment, reducing even further puts it into another lower class.

Plus the whole concept of a Ghia turbo is the complete package. Optioning the crap out of a XR, then adding another 30+ small modifications, then swapping bonet, bumpers, painting, etc loses the origional idea.

Some people don't want a XR. They want a Ghia.

You can get a SS engine in a Calais (infact thats one of the Calais strong points). But anything exciting engine wise for a Ghia is a no-no.

They don't understand

[Franks]

Finally !! Acosta32 & Iphido you guys get it and so does Merlin !

Maybe some people have trouble accepting oher people's points of view. A BFII Fairmont Ghia with the 245kw Turbo engine. No WIngs or XR go fast plastic stuff.

But the power is there when you want it. The rest of the time it's an entirely polished luxury cruiser. Great interior and heaps of bling.

Sometimes you just want to smile to yourself and know you have one excellent ride and you don't feel the need to shout it out like an XR does.

Great thread this, although it looks like some are dead set died in the wool XR fans that think any other badge apart from XR, GT, Typhoon or Force is somehow a sorry thing. (No Offence to all the XT owners that have done fantastic build ups !)

[Tles]

My two bits - not for the first time I acknowledge.

Ford Sports Luxury Range should be

Fairmont Ghia 6 & 8 plus Fairmont Ghia 6T (turbo)
Fairlane G8 & Fairlane G6T (turbo)
Territory Ghia Turbo

All with similar Euro sports spec like Audi, Merc, BMW Executive expresses.
And like Subaru GT and Mazda 6MPS - leading to Force6 & Force8

Keep the Fairmont as a Luxury spec Falcon variant like Fairlane Ghia, Territory Ghia with hopeful improvements of/to diesel, LPG, Towing and cruising options. Enhanced role rather than the orphan it was becoming with Futura and XT getting better specs.

XRs should remain the Sports Performance variants with obvious racing links. Leading to GT, Typhoon


What I love most about my wheels is that they can be whatever I want them to be from one second to the next and bag again - Family hack, mum's taxi, Consumate cruiser, kick up heels and mumbo, mountain pass, doddle around town or traffic jam in comfort and ease, or dress up and party time luxury.

Fairmont Ghia & Fairlane Ghia Turbos and V8s with a more obvious performance styling like the new BFII would tick all the right boxes for a lot more people and drag 35-50year olds back into the showroom away from Audi, BMW, Lexus Subaru, VW, etc.

Retained value equals used buyers wanting what you've got. 3-7 years down the track these will be what near new buyers want and need plus stylish package too.

[Franks]

Well said Caseterritory !

Is anyone from Ford reading this ? So many strong arguments here and logical.

I challenge Tom Gorman to get on the forums and demonstrate why even a limited run of Fairmont Turbo's isn't worth a go Would they not become instant classics and therefore retain a higher resale like the XR range ?.

Mr Gorman, if you want more sales and tap into a demographic that I suspect is dwindling why not have a think about the subject matter on this thread.

[Boss 290]

a fairmont ghia turbo would be great and would give the calais some better competion. i say leave it auto but.

[pHaT`eL]

Scrap the 3V, make either the 6T or Boss available as an option on EVERY Falcon model, that way if people still want just a basic 6, they can have it, even on LPG!
For those who have a little extra cash to spend and would like a bit more power, let them have it!

[bf tubs]

my dad had the ba ghia he then bort the turbo cause of the "power" but now he wants his ghia back cause he misses the features of the ghia, but this one will be an 8 ,point is he wont miss that second over the 1/4 in the real word but he does miss the luxuries ,im sure fords research dept have heard this plenty of times from people like him and ound the market non profitable

[LeadFoot81]

Ford went the Territory Ghia as a halo model for that range, and i thinks its given the Territory a luxury/sports/euro image. I cant figure why they wouldnt do the ghia with a turbo. Maybe they finally when the Orion comes out.
I remember before the BA (AV as it was referred to back then) articles speculating that the Ghia would get a low boost xr6t engine. Ah well.

[mowog]

This has been an interesting thread.. I am not a hard core XR fan I have a Territory Ghia (which is light on gear compared to the Fairmont Ghia) as well. I can see that Fairmont Ghia Turbo would be a good thing but for me I like a performance car to be a little RAW others want performance and refinement and it seems Ford has failed to see it.

The other option for the Ghia fans is a visit to Cappa for a blower to be installed...

[merlin]

Originally Posted by mowog

I can see that Fairmont Ghia Turbo would be a good thing but for me I like a performance car to be a little RAW others want performance and refinement and it seems Ford has failed to see it.

Yeah I agree - I think it depends on your situation. If it was 2 years ago I also would have bought a "raw" performance car. Now times have changed and I'm doing a lot of time in the car - say 3 hours a day for work - so I want comfort AND performance - Ghia turbo would be perfect.

Originally Posted by mowog

The other option for the Ghia fans is a visit to Cappa for a blower to be installed...

Unfortunatley not an option for me as it would be a novated lease and also I wouldnt want to drive a new Ford without warranty

[Gobes32]

It would be good to have a hero car in the Ford range. Something to get people in showrooms and have them talking about Fords instead of VE's and Aurions.

my dad had the ba ghia he then bort the turbo cause of the "power" but now he wants his ghia back cause he misses the features of the ghia, but this one will be an 8 ,point is he wont miss that second over the 1/4 in the real word but he does miss the luxuries ,im sure fords research dept have heard this plenty of times from people like him and ound the market non profitable

I am almost positive it is more profitable to put a locally built six in a car than an imported v8.

[Abacus]

There absolutely should be a Ghia Turbo. No reason for there not to be one. Every reason in the world for it to be there.

I drive an AU Ghia V8, and I'm still ****ed that Ford stick a 175kw windsor in it while the XRs were getting 220kw. You pay extra for the Ghia badge, why can't you get the best engine, even as an option?

Today, the top Ghia is the 230kw V8. Why on earth hasn't it got the XR8 motor, at least as an option. An XR6T will eat a 3 valve V8 for breakfast.

And fitting the Turbo motor should be a no brainer. It should just be there.

As has been said above, you can option the XR with luxuries, but its not the same. At the end of the day you have a hot Futura with luxo items stuck on. You don't get the hidden things that make the Ghia more comfortable and refined, like the extra sound deadening.

I don't know what the split is between XT/Futura/XR6 and XR6T for private buyers, but I imagine the T gets a pretty solid chunk. Giving Fairmont owners a T would probably generate at least the same amount of interest in the brand, and stop people looking elsewhere for their combined performance and luxury hit.

[Eaturbo]

They should do an XT turbo no wait an RTV ute turbo no turbo LPG no no no a turbo LTD, point being it doesn't matter what they do some of you will never be happy

[janek]

Originally Posted by flappist

So, if Ford made a manual turbo Ghia all you guys would each buy one?

A new one that is, not a 3rd hand 100,000km old one five years from now......

being the owner of an AU ghia, i'd say yes.

If they brought out a new turbo ghia in manual, with everything i'd expect from a ghia, my car would be for sale tomorrow, and i'd be harassing the bank on monday. People love luxury. I'd be sad to see the au go, but it'd be well worth it

[janek]

Originally Posted by M14A-Mclaren

Get a turbo put on it, and buy a XR6T turbo badge and put it on. Problem solved.

spend another 15k and blow your warranty... better off with the force6 then

[Iphido]

XR6T buyer may be happy to modify, edit, adjust, supercharge haul entire engines out and do a full rebuild. They are often tinkers and love playing with their toy.

Ghia buyers are a little beyond that. They might have a short lease or a higher frequency of changing cars. So I have $50-$60k to spend, what I really want is a Ghia, but the I6 and V8 are fairly equal in performance terms and I want something a little spicier.

Force 6 shares more with a F6 Typhoon than it does with a Ghia. It still has the gaudy body kit, Xr headlights, its a FPV, sporty suspension, lower ride hight, lower profile tyres, its expensive. It would be great if you were thinking of optioning up a F6 and wanted something diffrent. But not a real option if stepping up front a Ghia.

Force 6 is not going to tap into the same market as a Turbo Ghia. Ford doesn't seem to understand they are diffrent markets.

But Ford won't make a Fairmont Ghia Turbo. Nup no matter how much we whine.

I would say not in the next 5 years. I spoke to Ford HQ directly. They said it would never happen due to marketing issues, thats the offical answer. Doesn't matter how much cash, or how important or how much I would like a Fairmont Ghia Turbo it won't happen. This was back in BA series I when it was entirely feasable to develop one. They are not interested in developing one.

I honestly think Ford may eventually drop the luxury market altogether. I think BFII is a last ditch attempt before they start making plans to wind down the Ghia nameplate. With the LWB cars dead, and ownership of Jaguar there is no great reason for it to be made from their (FOMOCO US HQ) point of view. Once Territory Ghia varients volume slow down they would have a even stronger argument.

I suggest everyone that wants a stuble luxury performance car to look else where. Holden, Chrysler, BMW, Merc, Audi, Subaru. With tarrifs comming down more of the imported crowd will tap into this ignored market.

[Gobes32]

They should do an XT turbo no wait an RTV ute turbo no turbo LPG no no no a turbo LTD, point being it doesn't matter what they do some of you will never be happy

Very Funny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My idea was ONE CAR!!!!!!!!!! A BF Series 2 Fairmont Ghia with six speed auto and the relevant brakes/diff ratio etc. It was never complicated and was very easy to implement. The biggest cost would be marketing. The fact remains that ford are sitting on a 4 year old design and plan to for another 18 months. And due to development costs etc i don't blame them. However, my idea costs them bugger all and would bring some focus back to the Ford Stable.

[XR Martin]

There were manual Fairmonts after EAII, I know of theres atleast a handful of factory V8 manual EBI Fairmonts/Ghias about. There was one for sale a little while ago in the ACT, pity it was fairly rough and needed some mechanical work.

[Polyal]

Originally Posted by Eaturbo

They should do an XT turbo no wait an RTV ute turbo no turbo LPG no no no a turbo LTD, point being it doesn't matter what they do some of you will never be happy

And realistically thats a possibility to, why the heck not, give the customer what they want. Whats that saying, build it and they will come?

Or some people will sit back and lap up whatever Ford spits out no questions asked....

[MITCHAY]

How much harder would it be to have an option for the 6T engine? It couldn't be that difficult could it?

It would be good for them to take advantage of an opportunity.