Why aren't Falcons sold in America ???

brett7777 · 07-07-2012, 09:26 PM

Sometimes I show photos of my car on an unrelated US forum. Every time I do, the American guys say 'why wasn't that car released here?'
Made me wonder why Ford US never picked up on this & sold the car over there...

MethodX · 07-07-2012, 09:39 PM

They say they want them when they see them on the net or in magazines.
But when they are sold there they find any excuse not to buy them.
Not enough blue steel, looks to European. not tough enough. not enough interior options. looks like a Honda accord... and so on.

But seriously. The parent company thinks it can do best.

Moby Vic · 08-07-2012, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MethodX

They say they want them when they see them on the net or in magazines.
But when they are sold there they find any excuse not to buy them.

When was the Australian Falcon ever offered in the US?

Elks · 08-07-2012, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moby Vic

When was the Australian Falcon ever offered in the US?

Back in the 1960's. It was the donor car for us..

Moby Vic · 08-07-2012, 02:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elks

Back in the 1960's. It was the donor car for us..

1. That wasn't the Australian Falcon.

2. It sold very well in the US throughout the 1960s. But it was an economy car, not a performance car. (Yes, the Sprints were "performance" models, but they paled in comparison to Mustangs, Fairlanes, and Galaxies. And the '70-1/2 Falcon Cobra Jet is an oddity.)

2011G6E · 08-07-2012, 04:26 PM

I've been in contact with a Ford dealer in California that, coincidentally, has the same name as us, and he sent us some dealership stickers and other goodies, one of which is on the back window...certainly made a few people ask questions...

The owner of the dealership said in an email (after I sent him a few pictures of our G6E and details about it), that he loved it, that they could sell hundreds of them.
Then I told him that the RRP of the car (I know, no one pays RRP on any car) was $54,000 with the extras it had fitted, and we had paid $47,000 (before trade-in), and he immediately said "Well...not at that price I couldn't...". Certainly not in a market where you can get a V6 Mustang for less than $25,000, and a hotter V8 one for not much more.

Then again, the Ford Capri convertible was always staggeringly cheaper in the USA that it was sold for here, even though it was built here in Australia...

Holden has done it with the Commodore for many years...no real reason Ford couldn't if they wanted to, especially with the Ecoboost four cylinder now. I do suspect though that Ford Australia is much more heavily influenced by "head office" in the USA than Holden is by General Motors...

FPV GTHO · 08-07-2012, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moby Vic

When was the Australian Falcon ever offered in the US?

Possibly he was referring to the reception the Monaro and Commodore got as the GTO and G8.

TC200six · 07-07-2012, 09:42 PM

There was speculation back in 2007 that the FG would be built in a LHD variant after the Commodore started exporting to North America but it didn't happen

http://www.caradvice.com.au/7463/no-...-falcon-orion/

Plus, the Falcon is too similar (in size) to the Taurus anyway. There may be a few in the US that might want or just merely interested in seeing one, but would it be worth it?

aussie muscle · 09-07-2012, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TC200six

Plus, the Falcon is too similar (in size) to the Taurus

Falcon actually a bit smaller than Taurus
XT Falcon vs MY13 Taurus 3.5v6
Length (mm) 4955 5153
Width (mm) 1868 2159
http://www.topgear.com/au/ford/falcon/spec/ford08pe
http://www.ford.com/cars/taurus/spec...ions/exterior/

While i'd like to see falcon tried over there (as a niche), i can't see it happening.

TC200six · 09-07-2012, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aussie muscle

Falcon actually a bit smaller than Taurus
XT Falcon vs MY13 Taurus 3.5v6
Length (mm) 4955 5153
Width (mm) 1868 2159
http://www.topgear.com/au/ford/falcon/spec/ford08pe
http://www.ford.com/cars/taurus/spec...ions/exterior/

While i'd like to see falcon tried over there (as a niche), i can't see it happening.

I'm aware of the size differences between the Taurus and Falcon. But the Falcon is basicly the same class as eachother.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

The owner of the dealership said in an email (after I sent him a few pictures of our G6E and details about it), that he loved it, that they could sell hundreds of them.
Then I told him that the RRP of the car (I know, no one pays RRP on any car) was $54,000 with the extras it had fitted, and we had paid $47,000 (before trade-in), and he immediately said "Well...not at that price I couldn't...". Certainly not in a market where you can get a V6 Mustang for less than $25,000, and a hotter V8 one for not much more.

I've seen the RRP for new cars over there and if the Falcon was ever exported to NA, an XT should be offered in the low 20k range otherwise they would be asking too much for what it is.

jpd80 · 09-07-2012, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TC200six

I've seen the RRP for new cars over there and if the Falcon was ever exported to NA, an XT should be offered in the low 20k range otherwise they would be asking too much for what it is.

Man, that would be suicide.....

It's also why the whole Falcon export plan fails.

TC200six · 09-07-2012, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpd80

Man, that would be suicide.....

It's also why the whole Falcon export plan fails.

Maybe not quite that low, but if Ford exported the Falcon and actually expected it to sell, anything above 30 grand for the entry level would be too much IMO. Plus, I remember hearing the of G8 being too expensive as well. That's why exporting Aussie Falcons to the US would just not work, unless they were assembled there.

babyf6 · 07-07-2012, 09:43 PM

Makes you think what might have been....

jpd80 · 07-07-2012, 10:01 PM

Chrysler seems to do well selling the Dodge Charger but GM and Ford have definitly gone down the FWD/AWD path.
In a nutshell, Ford NA went with FWD/AWD platforms for their cars, it suits their driving conditions,
especially in the heavily populated northern snow belt states which share the border with Canada..

Any possible future RWD would have to share a lot of parts with the Mustang to make it viable to build,
fingers crossed that Ford sees a nice viable niche for a RWD sedan to complement the Mustang.

lockieoc · 07-07-2012, 10:11 PM

They would cost an arm and a leg compared to other vehicles in the US market. Aussie labor is to expensive.

Franco Cozzo · 07-07-2012, 10:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lockieoc

They would cost an arm and a leg compared to other vehicles in the US market. Aussie labor is to expensive.

They could build it over there?

lockieoc · 07-07-2012, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Damo

They could build it over there?

Yes but then they would need to re produce or ship all the tooling over.
So there is even more costs for them to recover.

CFOUR · 08-07-2012, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Damo

They could build it over there?

You mean mexico?

Bossxr8 · 07-07-2012, 09:56 PM

Not made here syndrome. And its not not ugly enough for US tastes.

Pandemic · 07-07-2012, 10:01 PM

Guess you could say the same thing about the Taurus..?

Tysonv48 · 07-07-2012, 10:10 PM

GM sells the ve as a Pontiac and Vaxhaul vechile so you never know they may later on sell Aussie ford in America

However with ford not currently producing an xr8 I don't think the USA will bring Aussie fg's with an incomplete line

**DJR-351** · 07-07-2012, 10:17 PM

..............because Ford NA doesn’t believe there is a profitable market for them.....no matter what the AUS Falcon enthusiast thinks....

jpd80 · 07-07-2012, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tysonv48

GM sells the ve as a Pontiac and Vaxhaul vechile so you never know they may later on sell Aussie ford in America

However with ford not currently producing an xr8 I don't think the USA will bring Aussie fg's with an incomplete line

Pontiac brand was killed off in 2009, cancellation of G8 cost Holden $200 million in project write downs.

FG LHD was never developed, Falcon top hat does not suit American preferences for higher waist line and bold styling

buickman · 07-07-2012, 11:32 PM

The top half of the US has snow for 5-6 months a year which would be a contributing factor for RWD passenger cars to be out sold by FWD , SUV’s and P/ups for many years and Australia is going the same way with lifestyle utes and small FWD cars now outselling large RWD cars. The FG Ford Falcon is a great car but the sales of the car in LHD form would not warrant development costs for the US market as the new Fusion and Taurus models are light years ahead of the ugly suckers that Ford sold here in the 90’s and they have the Mustang is their RWD performance car .

Kryton · 07-07-2012, 11:41 PM

Could you image what would happen to a Falcon if it were to spend 5-6 months of every year on salted roads?
They rust quick enough here without being near salt.

IDT · 07-07-2012, 11:57 PM

It's just my opinion but I seriously think it's a face saving exercise. If it could be built in LHD, it would be simple enough to have one dealer/distributer in the states run for a year or five and sell them on order through other Ford dealers.
People keep harping on about the Mustang as the HP Hero car in the US but it is still a 2 door and for all the Mustangs I have been in they are super cheap plastic looking interiors that make FG FPV interiors look like a Rolls Royce. They also ride hard compared to FG's.
If FPV could fill what over there is a niche but for us would be an easy double or triple sales it would have to be a good thing. Like everything, its not until some numbers are on dealer lots over there that the popularity of Falcons could be properly assessed. Until then I think the V8SC crowds next year will be the best guide we will see of real interest in Aussie cars.

lockieoc · 08-07-2012, 12:06 AM

Sounds good in theory but think about FoA putting forward a plan to send the FG FPV to the states. How could we convince the yanks it would sell when we show the how "brilliant" sales figures are here in Aus... Do you honestly believe Ford NA would have their cheque books out and pens ready after seeing the numbers?
I would love to see it do well overseas but realistically it just won't work.

Ford_The_Win · 08-07-2012, 12:17 AM

Because the Crown Victoria (aka reverse tardis) and it's derivatives filled that niche in North America (and the middle east) up until last year.

FGX-351 · 08-07-2012, 01:03 AM

Then they start making changes to our car, then we get stuck with ugly bonnet scoops(V3/Z Monaro) because, "The Americans want them".

Or worse yet those ugly protuding bumpers the Americans have on 99.8% of cars on their roads.......Yuck!

With that said i'd love to see it succeed over there if it means a future Falcon for us!

chevypower · 08-07-2012, 08:29 AM

Every time I give my opinion on what the Falcon needs to do well in America, someone on here goes off at me like I just insulted his mother, so I better not. :P

Oh, what the heck....

3.5 EcoBoost, 5.0 V8 GT

RWD and AWD option

8 speed auto

agressive/sporty styling to attract the enthusiast - go directly after the Charger SRT8, If the top model cannot slaughter the SRT8, CTS-V, and M5, then forget it. People will perceive it to be Ford's weakness. In fact, only do sports models. I wouldn't do the G6/E or XT.