FORD Australia badly needs the XR series Falcons. The XR6 and XR8 are the bearers of the company's hopes to project a more dynamic image, to convince potential buyers that Ford is a progressive, aggressive company that understands and expresses something of the Australian psyche. The latest, 220kW version of the XR8 does a pretty good job of doing that, with a wonderfully rorty, partly hand-built 5.0-litre V8 providing astounding performance and a well-sorted, fully independent suspension giving the sort of handling loved by purists. And does Ford charge any more for the 220kW V8? No.
The Road to Recovery podcast series

EL Falcon XR8
Released: September 1996
Ended: August 1998
Family Tree: FalconTHE XR8 has long been Ford's flagship performance model, with the EL XR8 making way for the all-new AU XR8 in September 1998. Its 185kW Windsor V8 was one of the few items carried over to AU, though for the AUII of April 2000 the XR8 scored a 200kW Tickford engine, which then became a 220kW unit in May 2001.
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