The Falcon XR8, with its distinctive power bulge in the bonnet, delivers a new level of responsiveness and refinement to the Australian performance car market. The latest edition to Ford’s rich performance car heritage is powered by a 5.4-litre V8 boasting quad camshafts, four valves per cylinder, high flow cylinder heads and stainless steel extractors.

The Boss 260 engine, which develops 260kW of power at 5250rpm and 500Nm of torque at 4250rpm, is produced on the only V8 engine assembly line in Australia. Ford Performance Vehicles builds each Boss engine from bare blocks and heads, adding a wide range of local upgrades and internals on a new $1.5 million assembly track.

The Boss 260 is mated to a Tremec T3650 five-speed manual gearbox designed to handle high torque applications, linked to a 3.23 axle ratio.

The XR8 package also includes sports suspension, unique front-end styling with a distinctive power bulge, a bodykit, fog lamps, dual horns and a unique chrome-tipped exhaust outlet. It also has, as standard, 17-inch, five-spoke alloy wheels shod with Dunlop SP3000 235/45 ZR17 tyres. An optional 18-inch, five-spoke alloy with Dunlop SP9000 245/40 ZR18 tyres is also available.

Inside, the Falcon XR8 comes complete with sports seats, a sports instrument cluster with blue backlighting and a leather steering wheel.

The Falcon XR8 also features a number of standard safety features including traction control, ABS and limited slip differential. Side airbags are a $500 option, while a $2950 premium brake package is also available. The premium brake package includes unique discs and callipers. The front discs are 325mm in diameter and 32mm thick, compared to 298mm and 28mm on the standard Falcon. Both front and rear discs are grooved.