Who would buy a 4cy and/or a diesel Falcon?

[bobthebilda]

But what sort of price are Ford going to be able to command for a 4 cylinder Falcon. The larger parts of the segments are basically your 4 cylinder small cars for low $20ks, your medium 4 cylinders for high $20ks and your large 6 cilinders for mid to high $30ks. Is a 4 cylinder Falcon going to fall into a no mans land at 4 cylinder large for mid 30's, or will Ford have to make it harder for themselves and try and slot it into a the high 20's bracket.

[Gobes32]

Originally Posted by jlef5

I would buy a diesel falcon IF it was in a ute. Something that looks good and still really good to tow with. I would love to see a rtv ute with a turbo diesel and maybe even have 4x4 as an option.

Essentially you just described a Ranger. I know it's not the same body, etc, but the odds of Ford funding a diesel RTV when the Rnager is already available are very, very slim............

[XR Martin]

Ranger will end up outselling the whole Falcon range by this time next year anyway.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by bobthebilda

But what sort of price are Ford going to be able to command for a 4 cylinder Falcon. The larger parts of the segments are basically your 4 cylinder small cars for low $20ks, your medium 4 cylinders for high $20ks and your large 6 cilinders for mid to high $30ks. Is a 4 cylinder Falcon going to fall into a no mans land at 4 cylinder large for mid 30's, or will Ford have to make it harder for themselves and try and slot it into a the high 20's bracket.

looking at camrys on carsales, they are listed at $30k and up depending on model. not sure what the actual new price they sell for is. carsales tends to be a bit inflated. i would guess they will try to slot it alongside camry.

[2011G6E]

I think there is an uncomfortable fact that a lot of people are ignoring...the elephant in the corner that no one wants to talk about.

Forums like this, and others for different makes of cars, are run by enthusiasts...people who are genuinely interested and involved in thier cars. We love the sound, we love the details of engine design and mechanical engineering that went into our cars. I'm still enjoying going out to the garage where our new G6E lives, and pouring over the engine, checking over little details, lying down and looking a the suspension details and independant rear end and figuring out how it all works. Hell, when we were new car shopping a lot of salesman seemed surprised that i wanted to have a poke around under the bonnet and look underneath the car at the suspension and underbody details. It was quite obvious that, beyond checking the oil (maybe...) most owners would be flat out finding how to open thier bonnet between services.

However, the vast...and I mean truly vast...majority of people who go into a car dealership to buy a vehicle look at only a few points: Price, color, safety features, fuel economy...then comes little things like options and comfort details (seats, stereo, etc).
To be blunt, the huge majority of buyers couldn't care less about the "aural pleasure" of the engine, they don't care and won't even look at what the suspension underpinnings are and how well it handles...as long as it is comfortable and reasonably quiet and safe and steers nice and easily and can be parked without bother. They won't be concerned at outright horsepower...as long as it overtakes OK, and even then most people won't ask how well it does that.

That is why a diesel or four cylinder (of suitable power) Falcon will walk off the showroom floor in droves. A lot of people still like the idea of "a big car", but with fuel prices biting once again, and the spectre of a carbon tax on the horizon raising fuel prices even more, people will jump at the chance to buy a truly economical (to run and own) "big car".

When we owned a four cylinder 1980 VC Commodore from about 1984 to 1987, they were thought to be a great idea. You had the size and style of the Commodore, but paid cheap rego and it used less fuel than a six. The only giveaway externally was the 13" wheels and smaller (Torana) five-stud bolt pattern. Much sought after were SL's with air conditioning. Ours was an SL but didn't have air, and even in 1984 they were selling for pretty much the price they sold new in 1980. People wanted them, and were prepared to pay for them.
if they knew they were going to be towing big stuff, they bought a V8 Commodore. If they wanted to carry heavy loads, they bought a six. But if they just wanted a large family car with good comfort and adequate performance, they would save money and buy a Commodore Four.

The Falcon will sell very well, in either four cylinder or diesel form.

[2011G6E]

I guess what I'm saying is that while it's nice for a company to build the occasional "dream cars", that's not where their bread and butter (and profitable earnings figures) come from.

And if they're losing money or finding times tough, the smaller number less profitable vehicles in the lineup are the first to go. Tens of thousands of people might like the idea of owning such a car...but only tens of people, if that, will ever actually lay down money for one.