FG XR6 TURBO 10,000 km feedback

[pah]

Hi all,

Here's some feedback for those who might be looking at an FG XR6T. I've had the car for just under 11,000 kms now. I sold the VY SV8 in Feb this year.

MY MAJOR disappointment is the drivetrain clunks and Ford's response. Mal Wood Auto (Warwick Qld) says he can address this by shimming the gearbox for $950. If that's possible, I would have preferred Ford to do it under warranty. The car is booked in for a warranty check for a rear end noise. I have been informed that the diff bush is one of the first things worth checking. Wholesale Suspensions at Penrith suggest a Superpro heavy duty bush. I do not intend to buy another Ford.

The UP-SIDE? The car has great torque. Around town fuel economy is a tad better than the Gen III VY. 12 L / 100 kms around Sydney. Open road economy seems to be about the same as the Gen III - 8.5 L/ 100 km's.



PAH

[HSV Manta]

Is yours an auto or manual??

The auto in mine is a far superior example than the one in my SSV. They are MILES apart.

An yeah..the turbo is awesome off the mark. a tad quicker than the SS but the SS does it with less fuss..

[Evman]

Good to hear that the ol' LS1 can match the 6T for highway economy. Pity about the warrenty issues but the VE isn't a shining star either in that area I'm afraid!

[MrT]

I have had my fg for 1000 kms and couldnt be happier. Tge auto is wonderful and tge pace this thing has suprised me... Didnt expect it to feel so much faster than my SSV.. i miss the old girl as i had massive plans but in the 10 months i had it she was off the road 4 times for warranty work and that left me no confidence in carrying out any major mods. That coupled with the fact they either cost wsy to much or become a major compromise to extract a good amount of power..

[Souljah]

MY MAJOR disappointment is the drivetrain clunks and Ford's response. Mal Wood Auto (Warwick Qld) says he can address this by shimming the gearbox for $950. If that's possible, I would have preferred Ford to do it under warranty. The car is booked in for a warranty check for a rear end noise. I have been informed that the diff bush is one of the first things worth checking. Wholesale Suspensions at Penrith suggest a Superpro heavy duty bush. I do not intend to buy another Ford.
Because Holdens don't have any drivetrain lash do they?

[pah]

Hi Guys,

Mine's the M6.

Quality? I wish the local guys could improve in that area. How many motorists buy imported for this very reason? How close was I to buying a WRX this time? I'd sent my number plates to the RTA closest to the Subaru dealership. If the next WRX goes Direct Injection, the local guys won't see me for a lack of tyre smoke.

I have to agree. The economy of modern cars is pretty impressive. The best I had out of my Gen III on an open road run was . . . 7.95 L / 100 kms! The dashboard readout said 8.0 and I took photos of that. That was on a run up the Hume on cruise control and with a noticeable tail wind. My economy figures are always a tad better on the Hume because the dual lanes enable passing on cruise control. Anything in the 8L /100 is pretty impressive. My old 202 LJ GTR would never come anywhere near that figure. It never bettered 26 mpg and it weighed around 1100kg.

The 8.5L figure in the XR6T was achieved on a run from Coffs back to Sydney. Stating the obvious I know, but speed impacts upon economy. After a fill and trip computer zero, I hit miles of road work 80 km/h speed zone. The car was doing 7.2 L/100 kms.




PAH

[Spoolin]

Sounds like this is a very common problem in the performance range of Falcons dating back a few years. I believe Ford should upgrade the rear diff bush to something a little more appropriate for the performnace range, I'm sure a stiffer bush wouldn't introduce too much more cabim noise or vibration, no more than low profile 18's or 19's do.

This is a very cool vid I found the other night of a BF MK2 XR6 Turbo

Worn diff bush XR6 Turbo on Vimeo

Sorry for some reason I can't seem to post links.

[pah]

Sounds like this is a very common problem in the performance range of Falcons dating back a few years. I believe Ford should upgrade the rear diff bush to something a little more appropriate for the performnace range, I'm sure a stiffer bush wouldn't introduce too much more cabim noise or vibration, no more than low profile 18's or 19's do.

Hi Spoolin,

Wholesale Suspensions have a diff bush they can sell me now. When they heard I have NVH concerns, they suggested I wait till mid November for a slightly softer bush. I hope to get one more Ford bush this week. That should tide me over till the Penrith crowd have the softer bush.

My VY M6 had no noise when new. A few rattles appeared after the first gearbox oil change. Maranos fixed this with a thicker oil. Mainlube? This oil had to be warmed up a bit to enable a nice 1st to 2nd change.



PAH

[Jarhead]

Hey Pah,

Your troubles with the M6 are not new. The driveline shunt was quite common in my last car (Bf GTP). I had the diff fixed 3 times under warranty and the gearbox/driveline shunt in 1st gear (low speeds) was not worthy of a $80k car.

When I sold it I drove the ZF auto GT and F6 and was tuely amazed at the difference. I decided to try something different (hence HSV R8) and went the auto without a test drive. All I will say is that it is nothing like the Ford. Where the Holden has the edge in engine capcity/performance, it sadly lags in transmission quaility.

If you get a chance to get a Mal Woods upgrade I would do it. A client of mine has a F6 with a Mal Woods shifter, flywheel and clutch. Compared to the T56 from the factory it would make a Ford engineer cry. At $2.5K it isn't cheap but it is BULLETPROOF!

I know the Holden manual is no gem either. What sh$ts me (and what should annoy the motoring public) is the lack of forward progress with 'known issues'. Ford, for example, have had issues with the M6 since 2004. The same achillies heel with the diff leaks and driveline shunt are evident on their cars 3models and 5 years later. I cannot think of another industry where this kind of thing goes on without threat of legal repercusions.

[pah]

Hey Pah,

Your troubles with the M6 are not new. The driveline shunt was quite common in my last car (Bf GTP). I had the diff fixed 3 times under warranty and the gearbox/driveline shunt in 1st gear (low speeds) was not worthy of a $80k car.

When I sold it I drove the ZF auto GT and F6 and was tuely amazed at the difference. I decided to try something different (hence HSV R8) and went the auto without a test drive. All I will say is that it is nothing like the Ford. Where the Holden has the edge in engine capcity/performance, it sadly lags in transmission quaility.

If you get a chance to get a Mal Woods upgrade I would do it. A client of mine has a F6 with a Mal Woods shifter, flywheel and clutch. Compared to the T56 from the factory it would make a Ford engineer cry. At $2.5K it isn't cheap but it is BULLETPROOF!

I know the Holden manual is no gem either. What sh$ts me (and what should annoy the motoring public) is the lack of forward progress with 'known issues'. Ford, for example, have had issues with the M6 since 2004. The same achillies heel with the diff leaks and driveline shunt are evident on their cars 3models and 5 years later. I cannot think of another industry where this kind of thing goes on without threat of legal repercusions.


Yes mate. I plan to take my business elsewhere from now on. I expect higher levels of quality than that offered by the locally made USA owned products.

Maybe we ought to be emailing Kevin Rudd to lobby for greater levels of consumer protection?




PAH

[73.RSR]

I have an FG XR6 turbo Sedan also, I put up with the VE SSV Ute for 10 months (14,000k's) but due to continual electrical & transmission problems I traded it.
Lost quite a bit of money but couldn't be happier with the Ford, the low rpm torque smashes the ute and handling is so much better.
I have been a Holden man all my life but I think I have converted for good, my last 2 Holdens spent most of the time in the dealership and my last 2 Fords (BF Typhoon & FG XR6 Turbo) have been faultless........not to mention the ZF box which is years ahead of that 6L80E....
I also switched to Castrol Magnetic on my 5,000k service which improved the sound at start up and general driving, my best run is 735km's from a tank on the freeway and that isn't taking it easy.
Pity about the adjustment for the steering wheel as that is my only gripe so far.

[toey]

one of my work mates has one of these and it was real nice car to drive when it was standard.

best bang for your buck is getting it tuned, they fly after that considering its only a tune.

he has had the car 9 months and its now putting down 370rwkw. cai, fmic, injectors, bigger turbo after stock on shat itself after 6000km. now running 16 pound and loving it and is mental to drive.

if i wasnt a holden man threw and threw id consider getting one

[Jarhead]

Yes mate. I plan to take my business elsewhere from now on. I expect higher levels of quality than that offered by the locally made USA owned products.

Maybe we ought to be emailing Kevin Rudd to lobby for greater levels of consumer protection?




PAH

Frankly the car manufacturers are not held accountable for their product. If it was a safety issue it would be sorted before the next model got off the ground. When it comes to quality its a bit like Russian Roulette. After 3 months of ownership (Bf GTP) I had literally dozens of stone chips on the front spoiler. When I mentioned it to the service department they said I must have followed a gravel truck. I later found that early model BA's had a similar issue. When I said the gearbox sounds like the bearings rattle at low speeds the service manager grinned and said "its a feature, not a fault". I was embarrassed to take people for a drive it got so bad.

Since getting the R8 I have found that a lot of the little quibles I'm experiencing have been know to Holden/HSV for a numbe of years.

[Spoolin]

if i wasnt a holden man threw and threw id consider getting one

What is it, the fear of changing, is it the ridicule of family and friends? I don't understand why you would like another product but refuse to buy it because of brand loyalty.

[toey]

What is it, the fear of changing, is it the ridicule of family and friends? I don't understand why you would like another product but refuse to buy it because of brand loyalty.

because at the end im a v8 man and a t6 just wont sound right no matter what you do to it. sure its performance is great but thats only a small part that makes up a car and that alone wont make me buy one the more i think about it.

as i also said its still a ford no matter how you butter it up and brand loyalty is everything, it the aussie way you are either a ford or holden man, (or jap crap which is a whole other story) and bathurst and v8 supercars was formed on this loyalty and where would they be without it

[Spoolin]

Toey, fair enough mate, I just find it interesting what makes people tick. I agree also that performance isn't everything, that is why I had a real hard time choosing between the XR8 and T6, the 8 certainly has a coolness factor but certainly wasn't enough to tip me over the edge....Couldn't bare the fact if I lined up any other stock Aussie 8 that the T6 would chop me.

I do beg to differ on brand loyalty, I'm well and truly over that, if something is good it's good no matter what badge or label it wears, I don't have to prove anything to anyone. I'm Aussie through and through and have very little interest in V8 supercars and the fact remains the manufacurers had every other competing vehicle banned when they out perfomed the local product, re-introduce the Skylines, BMW's and Mercs and you'd get my interest.

But neither of us are right or wrong, we're both different.

[Grinded]

I think the majority of aussie blokes in particular suffer from the whole brand loyalty thing. Myself being one of them. Starting to grow out of it to a degree, especially now I have other things to consider than what my mates will say if I rock up in a car with the "oppositions" badge on it..

People have said that they have had lots of problems with the VE. That started putting me off looking at the sportwagon. Then I thought of all the little problems I had with my BA XR8, BFII Typhoon, and little problems that have started happening with the FG.

I'm really starting to believe it doesn't matter what brand of car you drive, you are always going to have an issue with it. How big or small is obviously random, atleast to an extent. Driving machinery worth anywhere between $1-30+ million, you would expect that you would get a good run out of them for the money, but no.

Take a fleet of trucks for instance, all built at the same time, same series etc etc, they all have different faults at different times. Common faults between them are rectified over time usually though, if its a relatively easy (cheap) fix, or if it is a safety issue.

Go and buy an american car and bring it over here and drive it around alot of our roads over here, then you will know what it is like to have a car with problems. I think a lot of people don't realise how lucky we are in aus to have cars such as the falcon and commodore available to us.

So now, instead of asking how a car goes, if its faster etc than its rival, I gotta ask how well it is put together, does it get rattles through it over X amount of km's, how easy is it to get in and out of when loading kids, how much leg room, how much storage etc etc.

Sure I love my fast cars, but especially with the police presence on the roads now, I can't speed anymore, the only place I really need the power for what driving I do now, is to get around road trains and traffic on the highway quickly. I obviously want a bucket load of power, but want goes on the bottom of the list now..

My 2 cents..

[planetdavo]

I'm Aussie through and through and have very little interest in V8 supercars and the fact remains the manufacurers had every other competing vehicle banned when they out perfomed the local product, re-introduce the Skylines, BMW's and Mercs and you'd get my interest.
The imported product had considerably more international market to sell their product to, enabling those manufacturers to pump massively more money into the development of Group A road and race cars.
It was purely about the locals being unable to spend anywhere near the same amount of money. Holden and Ford's local product never had a chance. Ford didn't even bother trying with a local car (obviously no V8 in the Falcon then). Group A died anyway overseas. It was simply a too expensive form of motorsport to be sustainable.

[Spoolin]

Dunno about that Daveo, I think it had more to do about the actual level of the Aussie companies development at the time, remeber VN was the first injected 8 built by GMH in 89 it just wasn't as advanced, less to do with racing money. I think if Nissan was allowed to race the R35 it would been dejavu, give it as many penalties as you like it would still win.

Anyway back OT, was talking to a mate who has now travelled 20,000k in his F6, the only issue he had was his front tyres chopped out after 15,000K's. These were replaced after warranty, apprently a faulty batch.

[macca_779]

Dunno about that Daveo, I think it had more to do about the actual level of the Aussie companies development at the time, remeber VN was the first injected 8 built by GMH in 89 it just wasn't as advanced, less to do with racing money. I think if Nissan was allowed to race the R35 it would been dejavu, give it as many penalties as you like it would still win.

Anyway back OT, was talking to a mate who has now travelled 20,000k in his F6, the only issue he had was his front tyres chopped out after 15,000K's. These were replaced after warranty, apprently a faulty batch.

Actually the VL GRP A was the first injected Aussie V8. Not a bad jigger for its time either. But certainly no where near as strong or as potentially powerful as an RB26 which is still an all time great engine 20 years later

[lyle]

am i believing this or did i just imagine reading a holden v ford debate at the top of the page that ended in a handshake and not a 10 page shit fight

[LS1VZ]

People are civilized here. I'm currently trying to decide between a VZ SS ute and a BA MKII XR6 turbo ute. I'm leaning more towards the Holden.

Holden Pros:
Sounds better than F6t
Looks a lot nicer
The growl of a V8 gets me wet

Ford Pros:
With simple mods it can be pushing 300rwkw
Cheaper on fuel (only off boost) but I'm 22, I don't care about fuel


The Ford would be cheaper to buy, but that's really it ... the only reason I've taken an interest in the F6t's is the speed. But honestly I just can't stand the look of them. My mate is gonna buy an F6t soon but he's doing it because he LIKES the look if the F6t... Sure the Typhoons and GT's look alright but Holden's styling is so much better imo.

[VXSS346]

am i believing this or did i just imagine reading a holden v ford debate at the top of the page that ended in a handshake and not a 10 page shit fight

Its because 'vecommo' is not here to post. :lol:
Suddenly its a lot more mature. :idea:

:dance:

[MrT]

Take both for a drive... I had a BA with a T56 pushing 340s atw. Sold that bought an SSV 08... Loved it but only kept it for 10 months before getting an FG turbo. Youre right the holden kooks much better and sounds great but for me thats where it ended. Much nicer to drive is the ford and feels much swifter. With very few mods they get that much better.

[lollymanv8]

because at the end im a v8 man and a t6 just wont sound right no matter what you do to it. sure its performance is great but thats only a small part that makes up a car and that alone wont make me buy one the more i think about it.

True. There is something in the 6 litre v8 sound that makes it addictive! And it's power delivery is linear and progressive and IMO that makes it easier to live with daily. I've driven an fg turbo for an extended period and when on full/over boost, fun doesn't come much better! But on wet road, it's a real handful. Infact quite dangerous if you're not careful because all 533nm is right there from just 2000rpm!

[BNGTO]

I've driven an fg turbo for an extended period and when on full/over boost, fun doesn't come much better! But on wet road, it's a real handful. Infact quite dangerous if you're not careful because all 533nm is right there from just 2000rpm!

What I would be most concerned about, but the V8's have enough to cause a bit of trouble also I guess.

How is the grip on the XR6t? I have two friends with them and both say it's pretty hard to get them away hard without spinning the wheels. Would have been an interesting engine in something like an Adventra.

[Grinded]

I don't find the grip too bad, but even with the ZF box with traction control on she starts breaking a bit. Even without loading it up, you can get off the mark reasonably clean, until she comes under boost and thr torque wants to play the game with it.. but that's part of the fun factor imo.

[jrckelley]

I've have had a FG xr6T ute m6 for 13 months and 80,000kms. Great car for the reasons previously mentioned, however if I was to buy another ford I would:
a) negotiate my best deal and then ask for another 15% off to loose the warrenty because its not worth .... I would then use this 15% discount to fund the fixing of all the issues.
b)never use ford service
c)*****MOST IMPORTANT****Not take delivery on the car untill I had taken it for a decent test Drive and if it had excesive play in the drive line (clunks) or gearbox rattle etc I wouldn't accept it - actually I would put this in the contract.

I would really like to get a ss ute as my next car, however I get the feeling I would have the same exsperience.

They should bring out a Mal Wood edition that has all thoses pesky issues that have been around for years fixed (I would pay extra for that).

Still an awsome car.

[Spoolin]

As stated, if you walk the T6 off the line it's ok...until it hits boost and the traction control starts working over time. I had only made the comment to two work colleges today, that I wouldn't hand the keys over to the T6 to pretty much anyone if it was wet....They are a handfull even over taking at 50-60Kmh.

[Ellistwo]

I think we get a pretty good deal having a choice of the Falcon and Commodore. What other RWD car could you buy with a ~300kW donk for $50ish k? Bad build cars carry a weighting factor of 100, in other words for every bad example, 100 good news examples are neutralised.

[VY18s]

Go and buy an american car and bring it over here and drive it around alot of our roads over here, then you will know what it is like to have a car with problems. I think a lot of people don't realise how lucky we are in aus to have cars such as the falcon and commodore available to us.



Well said. As much as I like my Holdens, and Commodores in particular I've always said if Holden went under I would jump to the Blue Oval.

I think people give Commodores, and Falcons too much of a bad wrap. They're really not that bad considering how many are produced each year. God knows I would rather drive either than some of the cars I've driven. I tend to leave Holden vs Ford for the V8s. There have been quite a few times where I've often considered buying a Falcon.

[Aus8]

Well said. As much as I like my Holdens, and Commodores in particular I've always said if Holden went under I would jump to the Blue Oval.

I think people give Commodores, and Falcons too much of a bad wrap. They're really not that bad considering how many are produced each year. God knows I would rather drive either than some of the cars I've driven. I tend to leave Holden vs Ford for the V8s. There have been quite a few times where I've often considered buying a Falcon.

I am not brand loyal and will buy whatever is best at the time. I use a simple philosophy which works well for me.

If I want a Auto ill buy a Ford (The ZF A6 really is so much better than the A6 we get).

If I want a manual I prefer the Holden.

If I want a 6 I prefer the Falcon.

If I want a V8 I prefer the Holden V8.

Cant get much more even than that. Those are pretty common views I have found also.

[nang3]

I am not brand loyal and will buy whatever is best at the time. I use a simple philosophy which works well for me.

If I want a Auto ill buy a Ford (The ZF A6 really is so much better than the A6 we get).

If I want a manual I prefer the Holden.

If I want a 6 I prefer the Falcon.

If I want a V8 I prefer the Holden V8.

Cant get much more even than that. Those are pretty common views I have found also.

+ 1 !!

except ill stick with a manual turbo ford... V8 though would be HSV for sure!!

[Spoolin]

I agree to a certain point. eventhough the GM V8 performs better and responds better to mods, IMHO I still prefer teh Falcon as an overall package.

[macca_779]

I am not brand loyal and will buy whatever is best at the time. I use a simple philosophy which works well for me.

If I want a Auto ill buy a Ford (The ZF A6 really is so much better than the A6 we get).

If I want a manual I prefer the Holden.

If I want a 6 I prefer the Falcon.

If I want a V8 I prefer the Holden V8.

Cant get much more even than that. Those are pretty common views I have found also.

This man has worked it out. +1

---------- Post added at 07:22 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:20 PM ----------


I agree to a certain point. eventhough the GM V8 performs better and responds better to mods, IMHO I still prefer teh Falcon as an overall package.

Unless you add FI to the Holden V8 the Ford 6T represents far better bang for buck and power potential.

[lollymanv8]

I am not brand loyal and will buy whatever is best at the time. I use a simple philosophy which works well for me.

If I want a Auto ill buy a Ford (The ZF A6 really is so much better than the A6 we get).

If I want a manual I prefer the Holden.

If I want a 6 I prefer the Falcon.

If I want a V8 I prefer the Holden V8.

Cant get much more even than that. Those are pretty common views I have found also.
Good approach. The ford i6 is a torquey and bigger engine (4.0L) whereas the smaller (3.6L) holden v6 can rev higher and thus can generate more power.
I'm leaning towards the holden v6 engine as also it's a freshly designed engine with aluminium block and head. On the v8 side, I prefer the holden v8 as it's light, compact and simple to tinker.

The turbo is in a class of it's own IMO. It's tricky to drive but fun though. The jury is still out on my pick between the turbo and the v8 atm.

[pah]

Hi all,

One thing that hurts us all bad is resale value. In my opinion, there are two things that impact heavily upon resale value. 1. Quality and; 2. Economy (in the current environment).


A mate bought a WRX. He modified the car to make heaps more power. He stuffed the clutch. In spite of this, he says that he was helped by the Co. That's the sort of service that impresses me. If he'd left the car a stocker, I doubt that he'd have had any problems at all. Honda ran an advertisement a few years ago. Isn't in nice when things JUST WORK? They HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD for me.

One of the BIG reasons why I bought my first Ford was that I'd decided it was time to bail out of V8's. $1.60 / L or more for PULP put the wind up me. Mainly because I realised that people would drop V8's like hotcakes and their resale would drop. That happened. I can live with fuel prices but poor resale hurts BAD! The XR6T is more fuel efficient than my SV8 but not by much.

Another thing that cheesed me off with the SV8 was pressure plate breakages. I NEVER burned out a clutch plate because I avoided and continue to avoid big revs and clutch slipping. Wrights Clutches sold me a GM Truck clutch conversion and I had no more problems. I DO NOT want to have to sort out these issue on a new car.

Out of the pan and into the fire? I am now doing battle with Ford because I think that my M6 geabox should not rattle and clunk at 10,000 km. NO joy so far.

Have a look at the sales graphs for GMH and Ford. Have they been fading over the last few years? If they're falling, what chance is there of a reasonable resale figure? Demand will have an impact and reputation impacts upon demand.


If we're hit by the EFT, we're about to pay through the nose for energy guzzlers, whether they're fridges, aircons or cars. Choose carefully! 1 or 2 L / 100 kms improvement may not be enough!




PAH

[lollymanv8]

Yes I'd go further to say most large family cars resale value is not good in the current economic climate including the falc and c'dore.

It is inexcusable on the manufacturers part that an almost brand new car suffers gearbox rattles and clunks. I wish you much luck and success. And get out of the fire soon, you'll get sizzled in there...

I think overall, locals reliability and quality is better now but not quite matching the japaneses auto makers atw.

However most japanese cars (ie accord, euro, mazda6, camry, maxima, liberty etc) don't carry that much power and torque out fo the box. Hence less taxing on drivetrain, engine, gearbox, diff, suspensions, body etc and so less likely to suffer breakages, premature wear and tear, rattles, clunks etc. This further amplifies their reliablity, quality and economy. But except for the subie, they are all WWD (wrong wheel drive!).

Statisticsly, in bad times, diminutive cars hold their resale value better. I've a family and am a complete car nut. So my car has got to be large, comfortable, seat 5, a big boot for multiple all-terrain baby strollers and to satisfy the "car nut" part it's got to possess these attributes: RWD, good balance and dynamics, modern multi-link IRS and IFS and importantly stonking v8 or turbo I6 engine. Good fuel economy is a bonus but I'm not too worry about fuel prices.

[MADLS1]

I am not brand loyal and will buy whatever is best at the time. I use a simple philosophy which works well for me.

If I want a Auto ill buy a Ford (The ZF A6 really is so much better than the A6 we get).

If I want a manual I prefer the Holden.

If I want a 6 I prefer the Falcon.

If I want a V8 I prefer the Holden V8.

Cant get much more even than that. Those are pretty common views I have found also.


PERFECT!!!! - 100% with you on this after owning both

[Excellent]

The sad fact is all cars depreciate. If you want to shield yourself from depreciation buy yourself a quality 10 year old car and drive the wheels off it. But then you might run into frequent maintenance/repair issues.

I think both the Ford and Holden products are great for what they offer but where they can both drastically improve is in responding to common complaints with quality fixes. Their dealers are also letting them down badly especially where warranty issues are concerned.

People might think opinions of the cars generally but if the manufacturer won't stand behind the product, it's easy for customers to look to other options.

[GPT]

Its been awhile since I drove one of these ,had one for 2 days recently.Forgot how bad the driveline clunks are and hate to think how these cars will feel with a few kms on them.

The performance in overtaking ie 80-110 is fantastic though.

[fatbob]

Interesting on the breakdown of what seems to be thought as best between holden and ford.
6 and auto - ford
8 and manual - holden
just as a matter of interest - which of those categories generates the most massive sales ? ( its sort of a rhetorical question, as only have to look at numbers in carpoint to get an idea )
so why doesn't that opinion translate to sales ? or does it ?

[Jarhead]

Interesting on the breakdown of what seems to be thought as best between holden and ford.
6 and auto - ford
8 and manual - holden
just as a matter of interest - which of those categories generates the most massive sales ? ( its sort of a rhetorical question, as only have to look at numbers in carpoint to get an idea )
so why doesn't that opinion translate to sales ? or does it ?

Actual numbers don't equate to which is the best car. There are a lot of factors that affect car buying decisions. People will forego performance for comfort/looks brand preference etc.

Classic example is the sales of XR8s. No offence to anyone on here that owns one but pretty much every motoring publication in Aus has bagged the XR8 when comparing it to SS, XR6T. People still buy them so there are other factors involved.

Everytime I drive my car spiritedly I wonder how well it would drive with the ZF box behind the LS3.

[xr6t]

While I do own an xr6T m6 and love it, the sound of that 6.0L V8 is just fantastic, and while the xr6T feels quicker and is more fun to drive, i'd almost give it up for that noise...

Driveline clunks are there, but I have learnt to drive around them, they really dont bother me like they use to. And if any passenger mentions it, I just bury the foot and they are soon way to distracted to care.

The whole Ford V Holden thing has really faded these past few years. Both companies make great products and excell in different areas. To limit your options to one brand simply means you are missing out on the best this country offers.

[Djbarnstar]

Hi all,

One thing that hurts us all bad is resale value. In my opinion, there are two things that impact heavily upon resale value. 1. Quality and; 2. Economy (in the current environment).


A mate bought a WRX. He modified the car to make heaps more power. He stuffed the clutch. In spite of this, he says that he was helped by the Co. That's the sort of service that impresses me. If he'd left the car a stocker, I doubt that he'd have had any problems at all. Honda ran an advertisement a few years ago. Isn't in nice when things JUST WORK? They HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD for me.

One of the BIG reasons why I bought my first Ford was that I'd decided it was time to bail out of V8's. $1.60 / L or more for PULP put the wind up me. Mainly because I realised that people would drop V8's like hotcakes and their resale would drop. That happened. I can live with fuel prices but poor resale hurts BAD! The XR6T is more fuel efficient than my SV8 but not by much.

Another thing that cheesed me off with the SV8 was pressure plate breakages. I NEVER burned out a clutch plate because I avoided and continue to avoid big revs and clutch slipping. Wrights Clutches sold me a GM Truck clutch conversion and I had no more problems. I DO NOT want to have to sort out these issue on a new car.

Out of the pan and into the fire? I am now doing battle with Ford because I think that my M6 geabox should not rattle and clunk at 10,000 km. NO joy so far.

Have a look at the sales graphs for GMH and Ford. Have they been fading over the last few years? If they're falling, what chance is there of a reasonable resale figure? Demand will have an impact and reputation impacts upon demand.


If we're hit by the EFT, we're about to pay through the nose for energy guzzlers, whether they're fridges, aircons or cars. Choose carefully! 1 or 2 L / 100 kms improvement may not be enough!




PAH

I think both the XR6T and the Holden V8's are running at about 48% depreciation in 3 yrs. Sucks to be us..............................................

Go in with wide eyes open.

[Aus8]

While the decision is easier for me with no kids to kart around yet, one of the factors why I went a manual SS ute was its great resale. After 2 years a manual SS ute is worth more than a manual ss sedan which cost 10k more to purchase in the first place!

Look at the prices of VU/VY/VZ/VE SS utes compared to the equivilent sedans. Especially manual versions. When the sedan cost upto 10k more to originally purchase.

I always stay away from those awful colours like Tiger Orange, The awful greens in the VE range etc my opinion of course. Very hard to resale at a decent price in 5 years time. However most people dont buy these cars looking at resale otherwise they probably wouldnt buy them.

On another note it seems this SIDI motor doesnt seem to be as efficient as the great Holden marketing are making it out to be after reading some of these real world reviews. Either way it certainly feels alot better than Alloytec which was marketed as the best thing since sliced bread 5 years ago when it was a pos.


Cheers

Aus8