Ba Falcon Utes - Any Feedback?

[philbey]

So my old man's on his 5th falcon, I'm no stranger to them. But I've been planning on buying a commUTEer for a while so I can give the ke16 some TLC. Originally a jap built diesel was the plan (Rodeo most likely) but the idea of a Falcon dedicated LPG ute came up. And the XR6 is a nice looking car at least, and should be cheap to run.

 

But I swore I'd never own a Falcon. I hate them.

 

so does anyone have some good objective feedback on BA Mark II falcons, particularly utes. Problems, issues, what to expect etc?? Worked on many, driven one into the ground, all that sort of stuff?

 

I might hate them but not based on much fact. I just hate them.

 

Let me know your thoughts.

[ke70dave]

ive never worked on one.

 

but i think we had one of these at work, was definately a BA. was a style side one (not alluminium tray)

 

nice to drive appart from the fact there is a MASSIVE blind spot where you usually do shoulder checks. was the very first thing i noticed when i drove it. and I'm the kind of driver that shoulder checks at every opportunity (i use mirrors too, but prefer to shoulder check) and it was VERY frustrating.

 

though i assume this is a problem with most utes.

 

also didnt seem that powerful, stupid automatic changed gears real slow. and the electronic throttle seemed to be rather disconnected from what the engine was actually doing....

 

edit: drove a brand new XR6 recenetly (do they do a ute version?) now that was a nice car to drive.

Edited August 24, 2010 by ke70dave

[B.L.Z.BUB]

I have a BA sedan.

 

Typical thing that go:

 

Handbrake stretches.

Front rotors are shit.

Windows get slow going up and down, mine may just need a lube.

Mines full LPG so you lose some power off the line but it's just a family cruiser for me.

 

Apart from that mines been fine. Comfortable.

Just wait for everyone to rip into them though.

I never wanted one but mine was an insane deal, couldn't pass it up and don' t regret it one bit.

 

EDIT ^^^ yeah the blind spot in the ute is a C%&T

Edited August 24, 2010 by blzbub666

[Des]

I have a BA sedan.

 

Typical thing that go:

 

Handbrake stretches.

Front rotors are shit.

Windows get slow going up and down, mine may just need a lube.

Mines full LPG so you lose some power off the line but it's just a family cruiser for me.

 

Apart from that mines been fine. Comfortable.

Just wait for everyone to rip into them though.

I never wanted one but mine was an insane deal, couldn't pass it up and don' t regret it one bit.

 

EDIT ^^^ yeah the blind spot in the ute is a C%&T

Hand brake adjustment can turn in to a prick of a job if you adjust it too much.

After market rotors are better than factory, Factory warped easily.

Lube the windows with silicone spray other wise the cables get tight and fray and f@$k the motor.

LPG can be a major problem if it isnt serviced regularly.

 

Service the auto as soon as you get it. Ford don't have a service interval for it and they can fail down the track, Some go for ever without a service and some don't.

Ball joints and sway bar link pins can wear quickly.

Take it to ford and ask what a PCM reflash is worth and if yours has the latest software.

[B.L.Z.BUB]

All those are on the things to do list. Just gotta find some money.

At least for an engine service, everything else is stuff I can do.

[TWF#14]

Why wuold you get a sport car running on LPG???? Anyways my brother has a BA puresuit suit he loves it drives awesome easy to service and lots of powerr :)

[Des]

Oh and fit a external tranny cooler.

[Toy-Yoda[RL]]

Why wuold you get a sport car running on LPG???? Anyways my brother has a BA puresuit suit he loves it drives awesome easy to service and lots of powerr :)

Sports car :)

 

On topic, should serve you well as long as it was maintained well by the previous owner, and regardless of what anyone says, ford being ford, get a manual, it's less trouble, and brace the firewall where the clutch cable goes through.

Edited August 24, 2010 by Toy-Yoda

[GJM85]

As Des said the auto are shit... get a manual. Tough manual gearbox :)

The exaust systems rust out real quick as well. I know a couple of people who've had their mufflers rust right off. Driving my bosses trayback, you can't see the car behind you if it's closer than 100m.

Edited August 24, 2010 by GJM85

[curly]

I have an 06 rtv that has done 310000ks so i think i can report on this, it weighs over 2 tonne in everyday use, fuel use is 6.5kp litre or $9 per 100k all around town so about as good as a new corolla, repairs so far, 1 set of front wheel bearings, 2 sets of front discs,1 cat, 3 sets of spark plugs, 5 sets of front pads, oil and filter every 15000k and auto service every 80000k, 2 headlight bulbs and one numbert plate bulbs, a set of sway bar bushes and sway bar links, i also pulled the ball joint boots of from new and put good grease in them, its just getting a noise in the diff but apart from that everything is perfect and it still drives good, overall a great car

[Redwarf]

^^^^^^

 

That's a good run in the big scheme of things. Goes to prove with a regularly maintained car, you'll only ever replace the consumables.

[SLW42]

Do it get the falcon look after it they wont let you down, i used to say falcons are gay and i wouldn't own one but look at what my last car was, a manual ef falcon it went hard i only ever replaced standard brakes with slotted items and better pads, and a set of coilpacks, get a manual ba falcon cause the falcon auto's are just straight shithouse, the ba should have a t56 which are very strong and they love boost :) a guy in brisbane has a ba manual box in his turbo ed falcon and it hasn't broken and wont in a hurry, i've heard that the diffs in the ba's are pretty shithouse too, but at the end of the day your choice

[MRMOPARMAN]

they are a good car, much better workhorse than the equivelent commodores imho.

 

they do have a few things to watch out for:

 

they chew out diff bearings fairly regularly

window regs fail

warped brakes (shit factory rotors)

bonnet latch fails and takes out fuse box (series 1)

cat converters fail regularly

upper balljoint slop (ford introduced a tolerance to "fix" it)

 

if you plan on towing anything more than 1 tonne. get the auto. the gearboxes ARENT that strong, 5th gear in paticular. so the autos shift slow. they are still reliable and lazy :) i don't know where everyones getting the idea they are unreliable. service them properly and they go forever.. much better auto than the commodores!

 

you will need to learn to drive it like a truck, as mentioned before they have a very bulky pillar. use your mirrors (and adjust them properly) and you'll get used to it very quickly.

[Macca k]

from what i have seen the markII's are quite good and reliable, but if you are looking at an xr6, get a manual, they take a beating much better, i have a mate who has one, a year of full thrashing and it still drives fine (he really thrashes it) but if you look after it and maintain it, it will be a reliable car

and their consumption isnt too bad for a 4L

[SLW42]

Btr's fail at life there only good for standard cars as soon as you put a little poke through them they let go and do all kinds off bad shit, ford have used the btr all the way from eb series 2 right up to ba model falcons and there still gay