A little ‘Force’ went a long way

Not many people remember these two power-packed Falcons from Ford Performance Vehicles.

Launched in 2007, the Force 6 and Force 8 models were upmarket equivalents of the turbocharged Typhoon and V8-powered GT, minus the overt styling.

They were designed to extend the appeal of Ford Performance Vehicles, blending the ultimate in performance with luxurious interior appointments and subtle exterior styling — built to rival HSV’s Senator Signature.

Instead of a big rear spoiler and loud paint job, you got a restrained, more conservative look – a Fairmont Ghia with the works if you like.

“The Force 6 and Force 8 models are intended to drive a new generation of prestige performance car customers to our business,” FPV boss Sak Ryopponen, said.

“While these new models are the centrepieces of our revised BF MkII range, we have made a host of improvements and value additions to our existing models which continue the evolution of the legendary GT and award-winning F6 variants.”

The Force 8 sat at the top of the FPV tree until the arrival of the GT-E.

Force 6 got the 270kW Turbocharged six while the Force 8 came with the Quad Cam Boss 290kW V8.

Almost $10,000 more than the Typhoon, we got to spend some quality time in the $71,590 Force 6 back in the day.

We clocked up almost 2000km behind the wheel in a week-long Riverina odyssey.

Finished in a chromatic dark green called Deja-vu, it looked almost black in some lighting conditions.

The fast Ford was a great choice for long distance slogs, with plenty of power, comfort and a big boot for luggage.

But with sports suspension and low profile tyres, the ride could be harsh depending on the road surface.

The turbocharged 4.0-litre straight six produced an impressive 270kW of power and 550Nm of torque.

It was available only with the ZF six-speed sequential auto (nothing wrong with that), which came with adjustable driver’s pedals.

Suffice to say the car went like stink and was surprisingly frugal if driven carefully.

It took premium unleaded at a minimum and with fuel economy, officially rated at 13.0L/100km.

This dropped to a low of 9.6L after about 600km of steady driving.

Interestingly, at the time, we tried some E10 ethanol enhanced fuel in the Force 6 which was a bit of a novelty at the time.

Subsequent economy, however, was 11.2L/100km, dropping briefly to 11.1L.

It showed that you use more of the stuff and that it didn’t really justify the 10c a litre that we saved at the bowser.

For a car that’s going to cost $75,000 by the time it was on the road, we expected a little more in the equipment department.

Force 6 had leather, dual zone air as well as front and side airbags for the driver and front passenger.

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Traction control was fitted but it was not as sophisticated as the dynamic stability control fitted to ordinary Falcons.

Performance was supremely confident, with the ability to overtake at will – when and where you liked.

Lights, including fog lights, provided plenty of illumination for night driving in the country.

Ultra low profile 35 series tyres, fitted with high-performance Dunlop SP Sport Maxx 245/35 ZR19 rubber, made a din like rain on a tin roof on coarse bitumen.

Although the Force 6 and Force 8 have been overshadowed by the more popular F6 and GT models, they are probably very collectable by virtue of their smaller production numbers.

Around 63 Force 6 and about 132 Force 8 cars are thought to have been produced.