Hi guys, kinda made up my mind that i want one, was looking at a AuII or AuIII xr6 falcon. Most are around the 200km mark now and are 10 year plus in age, but seem well build cars and alot of car for aound the 6k asking price for a good one. Any advice or experiance the people have had with them and what to look out for would be great. Cheers!
unbeatabull,
Jun 3, 5:26am
The AUII & III are definately the better ones to get, they have the upgraded front brake setup and other small enhancements.
Generally they are a pretty reliable vehicle. They aren't holding much value though and tbh they look pretty butt ugly. But you won't have many problems with them.
franc123,
Jun 3, 7:49am
some have been plagued with rust problems, especially if water has been getting into the boot, the lids can rust out completely across the bottom below the number plate and even up the sides beside the taillights. The areas on the quarter panels below the bottom corners of the back window can rot too. Its not common but you need to check. Check that all power windows and heater system etc work properly too and get the trans fluid/coolant/diff fluid condition looked at, these are good indicators of how well its REALLY been serviced. A brown gungy coolant header tank is not a good sign, look for this on the drivers side in any engine bay pic's in the listings. You want to see a clear tank with clean green coolant in it. Also check for any cracked or holed headlights on XR's they still use glass lights unlike the rest of that model and these are surprisingly expensive to replace.
chris_051,
Jun 3, 12:19pm
Safe buy, my AU3 XR6 had 650k on it original engine and box when I sold it and still going strong today. If you get an auto bypass the in radiator cooler and fit an external cooler.
jason18,
Jun 3, 3:55pm
I have a 99 AU Rust up top of back windows. Its the wagon. Oil sensor keeps randomly beeping when hot. Mine reguarly tows a 1.8ton Cherry Picker. Has huge amount of billboards loaded in. It just keeps on going. You get use to the looks
brokebloke1,
Jun 3, 4:18pm
we have a AU2 XR6 and love it, its just done 158000kms and have had the transmission flushed ( big improvement on the way it drives) its cheaper to run than our old car ( 1800 gdi galant ) esp on open road, only things ive spent money on it are, trans flush ,new sparkplugs and leads and usual oil/filter changes every 10000 kms
craig04,
Jun 3, 4:47pm
What did it cost to flush the trans out of interest!
unbeatabull,
Jun 3, 4:52pm
AUII & III are actually 15,000k intervals :) AUI and everything before are 10,000k.
Trans flush, depending on if you do it with a machine where it flushes the whole trans out, about 1hr labour and 12-15L of Oil if its done properly, your looking over $200. Otherway is to remove the pan, drain the fluid, replace filter and gasket and then fill up again, this way only uses about 5L of fluid, but has a bit of cost in parts. Ideally you would want to do both, but at work we generally alternate between the two. It's due every 90,000k, along with Diff Oil, Fuel Filter.
zane,
Jun 3, 5:03pm
hey thanks guys for the advice, sounds like a good car to go for. wasent too keen on the looks when they first came out but after ten years its grown on me :). sounds like rust is the biggest issue so ill be sure to check that. Zane
joanie32,
Jun 3, 6:01pm
Mine has just clicked 100,000km and we have had since 30ks. Its a AUII and has only had exhaust replaced (as it hardly used) and rotorsskimmed. Good economy, cumfy and awesome handling. I put mine on 17" factory wheels, stiffer bushes and a set of extractors. Made a big difference.
craig04,
Jun 3, 6:19pm
You'll love it. I've got a series 3. The looks grew on me. They have a bit of character. It comfortable, goes well and pretty good on the gas (especially on the open road). Go for it!
unbeatabull,
Jun 3, 6:35pm
The header tanks generally get that colour just due to age, being a type of plastic and going from Hot to Cold regularly doesn't help. So long as the coolant is still nice and Green theres nothing to be worried about.
Theres plenty of performance options available in NZ and Aus if you choose to go that route as well, a good set of extractors and free flow intake helps these quite a bit. We used to fit bigger Throttle Body's as well but not sure if they still make them.
stusowry,
Jun 3, 6:48pm
I have a AU XR8, and I got it because of its look. First Falcon I have liked in years.
craig04,
Jun 3, 6:49pm
I'd love an AU3 XR8 manual. How much does it drink!
chris_051,
Jun 3, 9:19pm
That is great buying, a lot of car for the money, doesn't have the VCT red top engine which seems to drink a bit more than the standard model (i put this down to the VCT Fairmonts/Fairlanes/XR6s having slighter shorter gearing and heavier IRS). My 5 spd AU would return 8.5l/100km on a trip and my AU Futura would do 7.6. The XR6 will be worth more/wont depreciate from what they are now as opposed to the other models apart from XR8.
brokebloke1,
Jun 3, 10:48pm
we just got our transmission flushed( on friday ) cost was $156.00, cheap insurance as the oil was dirty as . car performs much better now I was told by a mechinc who works at a ford dealership to steer clear of the VCT motor even in oz they had problems just go for the std Falcon motor true and tested
unbeatabull,
Jun 3, 10:52pm
They only had problems with poor servicing when the oil galleries/soleniod controlling the VCT would get gunked up and stop it working correctly. If serviced regularly it shouldn't be a problem. The VCT engines do have a considerable more amount of power + economy.
brokebloke1,
Jun 3, 11:46pm
172kwVCT over 164kwnot alot more power where the xr8 had 185kws spec taken from Ford data sheets
unbeatabull,
Jun 4, 12:02am
Well by your reckoning then the XR8 doesn't have much more power then the VCT 6!
8kw Is quite a bit if you jump out of one and into the other, certainly noticeable.
gunhand,
Jun 4, 1:30am
Ive have an AUII XR6 Cobra (only a few add on bits by the dealers made it a Cobra) and have had no issues at all.Had 129000kms on it and now 135100kms. Things I find with it are, Power window switches are temprimental, Bit slow to defrost compared with Jap cars, Has an unuseual creak when going over some bumps when cold, just the car settling not a suspension thing and common, has an annoying rattle in center control panel but only does it for a short time then disapears again for weeks, the rubber on the back door shut can be knocked off, also common with all models plus BA on, on the wrong day water will get in when you open doors in the rain and dribble onto window control area. All those are minor things really and quirks with all them I think.If you find a good on chances are it will be fine. Rust can be an issue but check under parcel tray and where the hinges for boot go into the body, there not well covered/painted in those areas at all. I have a VCT version, no issues there. On the good side, its cheap to run, comfortable, good heater when up to temp, handles well, seats 5 with ease, plenty of power if thats ya thing, they look fine to me, holding there value quite well considering there age. Parts are cheapish and heaps on TM. I got a ball joint for $31 trade. if you get a wheel alignment done take it somewhere who knows what there looking at. I was told by a chain store tyre place mine had a solid rear axle and no adjustment, that was after he looked under it, Hmmmm even I can see the adjusters LOL. Check tyre wear on insides of tread. Drive a few and see what difference there is between a good one and a abused one.
chris_051,
Jun 4, 4:46am
What a load of crap they only problem you'd get is if the solenoid is weeping oil, I've had 3 high mileages VCT motors, XR6 650,000km, Fairlane, 570,000 and another fairlane at 400k, all original untouched motors power and torque figures make the old V8s look like a waste of time. Plenty of fairlane taxis doing the rounds in NZ and Aussie.
unbeatabull,
Jun 4, 4:49am
I'm curious about the W/A thing . I assume yours being the Cobra it was actually a IRS rear end! Cause they do come out with a solid beam and they aren't adjustable.
gunhand,
Jun 4, 4:55am
You can clearly see the adjusting rods, two on each side.I know there are a few different variants in the range. Mines an 2001, VCT, full leather on 17sand 30mm lower than standard (apparently) also has the Momo steering wheel and shifter as well as a few plastic bits added on the body kit.
unbeatabull,
Jun 4, 5:25am
Is yours IRS or Solid Beam!
gunhand,
Jun 4, 5:28am
Hey I no mechanical excpert lol. As far as i know it is IRS. Looking under it there two beams that run to a center mount, if that makes sence. Certainly dosnt look like solid rear end to me.
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