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Street Machine XR6T/XR8 Comparo

19K views 152 replies 58 participants last post by  laminge 
#1 ·
Has anybody else read the XR6T and XR8 comparo in the latest Street Machine issue? XR6 gets a good review, here are some qoutes.

'We tried some roll on experiments, running the cars level to 60kph in 3rd gear, then flattening the go-fast pedal to see who hits 110kph first. The signs were bad for traditional values, with the turbo pulling away convincingly on each occasion.'

'As we refine our launch techniques , both cars run a series of 14.5-second passes at around 100mph. It is the XR6 that sets the best time, with a 14.2@97.5 mph.'

'It might sound like sacrilege, but Ford simply gave the little brother more muscle and less weight, and that combo is going to win every time.'

Something else that was interesting were the dyno results, with both cars having identical power figures of 205kw at the rear wheels.

Rob
 
#4 ·
Then again, who did Ford think they were going to fool if the power was going to be the same? It's not like people weren't going to dyno these cars.....
 
#8 ·
Does it really matter who wins. I mean they are both Fords, its great that people have to choose between a hot turbo six and thumping 5.4 QOHC V8. As long as its a Ford who cares. Me I am rapped, I love how Ford are getting all this attention. I see shite loads of turbos everyday, i mean today in 2hrs at the gym i saw 4 of them, they look sweet. Thats a lot. On Saturday night I saw an XR8 (charcoal color) at st kilda pier. It looked great, the guy strated it up and it sounded SWEEEET Everyone has their own choice of car and Ford has provided us with it, not just different names of cars with the same engines. If i had the choice personally I would take the XR8. I like V8's and will always. The turbo is amazing but doesn't do it for me. Great work Ford....just wished I had a little more money!!
 
#9 ·
snavy said:
no substitution for cubic inches hey? This just throws everything out the door!
Chuck 6psi (supercharger) at the V8 and it would be a different story. How does the n/a 4.0lt XR6 go against the n/a 5.4lt XR8?

That aside, you've got to be impressed with the numbers, both power and track, that the XR6 Turbo is putting out. :thup:
 
#10 ·
I must admit I really don't understand what the people in Product Planning & Marketing think they're doing.
They invest countless millions of dollars into a racing category called V8 Supercars, then go arse about and intentionally make a turbocharged 6 the hero car of the range. Absolute bollocks as far as I'm concerned.

On a more personal level, having purchased one of these excellent BA XR8's, I'm more than slightly pissed off at just what Product Planning & Marketing have done. Anyone with half a clue would've learned from the debacle that was T-Series, that if you're going to have people spend $55k+ on performance cars, you don't go & introduce a car that has the exact same power & out performs these so called hero cars & cost $6k less than the XR8! Oh & don't get me started on the FPV Turbo.. GT buyers will be furious.. :fa::evil2::beatup:

Ford Motor... you are doing absolutely nothing to inspire confidence in the performance buying public. Yes these cars are excellent to drive, & there is a great option as to which ones to buy, however, if someone can walk into a dealership & spend $6k less than ohh lets say... me! & walk out the a car that performs better then that my dear Motor Company, is what's commonly called a crock of shit.
Performance cars should be on a sliding scale. The more you are forking out, the better your car should perform (in a straight line & the twisty bits).

Now, as I have already stated, there is an excellent range of performance cars available in the BA Falcon range so on that count, PP & Marketing have actually done something right for a change, however the pricing of these vehicles is an absolute crock & something needs to be done about it post haste..
 
#11 ·
Chuck,
Both Ford and Holden have done this kind marketing for years in the past, to protect the V8 flagship they have deliberately made the kw's conservative on paper and specification levels slightly lower on the 6 cylinder models.

Remember the days of EBII-EF the XR6 was undoubtfully quicker and time anywhere but power was advertised slightly less.
Even Holden was responsible when the s/c3.8L rolled out in 1996 it blew the doors of the 5ltr sister and what did they advertise? 171kw vs 179kw. Holden will face the same scenario with there new HFV6 turbo engines.

From looking in history i don't think by making the "Half Dozen" fleet quicker dented any sales of the XR8. Though yes i 100% understand why your pissed off.
I think general consenses is even amongst XR6-T buyers is that the XR8 is still the flagship and i have no doubt that it will reflect this in the used car market.
All i'm saying is that it's abit silly to purposly make the 6's slower, when clearly they have a market to compete in like the Japanese performance cars.

But on the up side of the Boss 260 XR8 i still see room for easy improvement. Just like the EL2 from the EL1 the BAII XR8 could adopt a 3.45:1 diff, better exhaust and computer re-tune and i'm sure it will even things up between the XR6-T and XR8.
 
#12 ·
XR_Strider_GuY said:
From looking in history i don't think by making the "Half Dozen" fleet quicker dented any sales of the XR8. Though yes i 100% understand why your pissed off.
Like you Gaz I don't think that the 6T is denting sales of the XR8.. it's just the fact that it's $6k cheaper for better performance that shits me up the wall.

XR_Strider_GuY said:
All i'm saying is that it's abit silly to purposly make the 6's slower, when clearly they have a market to compete in like the Japanese performance cars.
Agreed again mate. I know that's the exact reason as to why the 6T was developed. To take some shine off the Jap turbos. In that respect the 6T is doing it's job marvelously.

But again (I know I'm begining to harp now), why the hell should someone have to pay $6k more for the XR8 when the 6T is faster?

XR_Strider_GuY said:
But on the up side of the Boss 260 XR8 i still see room for easy improvement. Just like the EL2 from the EL1 the BAII XR8 could adopt a 3.45:1 diff, better exhaust and computer re-tune and i'm sure it will even things up between the XR6-T and XR8.
Agreed again mate! :HAHA: Only problem from my perspective is that any improvements made to the BAII XR8 help me f.uck all. I'm out $6k for a car that's slower than the SS & XR6T.

I still say that the XR6T & the XR8 are extremely good cars & not for one minute am I saying that the 6T sucks, but sheesh.. $6k is a fair hit in the arse.
 
#13 ·
I am inclined to agree with FM on this one.
The relative positioning of a vehicle in the marketplace is based on perceived or real value.
Manufacturers provide this "value" in one of three ways:

1. Vehicle size - as a general rule of thumb a bigger vehicle will attract a price premium in the marketplace as in the Fairlane/LTD combination.

2. The addition of desirable features such as the fruit that is generally given to Fairmont Ghia and similar vehicles.

3. Performance enhancements - the bigger engine, wheels etc. path.

Now the lines can be blurred by market forces but the perception in the public eye as to what represents value is the final arbiter. It is part of the reason why the Mondeo and Taurus bombed here - they were both priced above Falcon and didn't offer value for money in the eyes of Joe Public (not to mention that the Taurus was just pig ugly). I predict that the ST170 Focus will suffer a similar fate but I'm happy to be wrong.

When you atart talking performance vehicles the lines become a bit clearer.
If it goes faster - it can cost more.
If it has more fruit it can cost more.
If it looks substantially different it can cost more.
If it is built in limited numbers it can cost more.

However the gap between the XR6T and XR8 pricing does not reflect any of the above. The turbo -
Goes faster and costs less.
Has the same fruit (basically).
Looks much the same (apart from the bulge).
Is built in normal production numbers.

Even the jump up to GT/GT-p doesn't necessarily reflect the value equation properly - especially in the GT.

The turbo is almost identical in performance.
The equipment levels are only marginally higher in the GT.
Whatever FPV might like us to believe the visuals aren't substantially different.
There are no unique colours or other differentiators and the GT is
built in production (albeit smaller) numbers.

So what does this mean?

There will always be a market that loves their 8's - I'm one of them. No doubt we will continue to lay down our hard earned to put our bums in these seats. Furthermore we will see how the public rates the cars perceived value in 3-4 years time when we come to get our trade in valuations and find that the turbo owners are holding 5-10% retained value above ours and off a lower base too - if that happens I can at least say that this will be the last time for me. That is (of course) assuming that the Product Planning people don't repeat their T-Series stunt and hand the Boss290 or 260 down the line with BA2 along with the other things that attract a premium price now. Fat chance.
Sooner or later getting raped and pillaged starts to get tiresome.

Cheers
Russ
 
#15 ·
Whilst it is becoming clear that the Turbo 6 out performs the 8 on paper, utilizing this performance still rests with the driver. This however doesn't change the fact that there shouldn't be a comparison. If you buy an 8, you should be able to assume it will be miles better than the 6 in the same range. What will a XRT be like with a mere $1500 chip? ..... unbeatable unless more money is forked out to modify the 8 - this doesn't seem right??

Have a think Ford - $6k for a bulge and a note ........ is it worth it???

XR6T & XR8 - love them both but the wallet dictates (less money for the same performance is hard to overlook)
 
#16 ·
Come on you guys lets just celebrate that we now have two fabulous performance Falcons to choose from.

The XR8 has the hornier looks (buldge)
The XR8 sounds better
The XR8 allows you to say you drive a V8

If that's not worth 6 grand to you then buy the XR6T and know it goes just as good. If it is then stop harping on about it.

Your all well informed enough about the range to know what goes and what doesn't. Don't blame Ford for pricing them competitively - there's a whole market to compete against not just other models in the range.

Your the ones that sign on the bottom line - make your choice!
 
#17 ·
I don't think the XR6T should go up in price just the XR8 is over here when it should be here. Imo Ford didn't do enough research or just didn't use their heads and got slack on the 5.4. It's a great engine but having the Turbo just throws mud in it's face and should have had a healthy margin over it's little XR6 **** (It blows:wnc: )
 
#18 ·
FM said:
Agreed again mate! :HAHA: Only problem from my perspective is that any improvements made to the BAII XR8 help me f.uck all. I'm out $6k for a car that's slower than the SS & XR6T.

Well who's fault is that??? u bought the car, u love the car, don't whinge if its slower, because it was your decision. I too find it annoying that for 6k more u get a slower car, but then who ever buys the car has made up there mind because they like the way the car feels. I don't mean to have a go at u FM, just, u seem to of put yourself in a situation. U tried to tell us the XR8 was 2 car lengths ahead of the 6T before it came out, which was utter crap. And now u know the truth u are complaining. U bought the car, be happy with what u have, some of us wish to own these sorts of cars, and all u can do is complain!
 
#20 ·
RAPTOR said:
Come on you guys lets just celebrate that we now have two fabulous performance Falcons to choose from.
The XR8 has the hornier looks (buldge)
The XR8 sounds better
The XR8 allows you to say you drive a V8
If that's not worth 6 grand to you then buy the XR6T and know it goes just as good. If it is then stop harping on about it.
Your all well informed enough about the range to know what goes and what doesn't. Don't blame Ford for pricing them competitively - there's a whole market to compete against not just other models in the range.
Your the ones that sign on the bottom line - make your choice!
I couldn't agree more with this post.
We finally get a decent engine from Ford in the V8 (instead of that POS underpowered Windsor), and a nicely revamped I6. With whatever Ford you buy, you can't lose, the I6 for decent performance at a fantastic price, the T6 for a rocket ship on a budget, the XR8 for the image conscious who need the performance and want to tow the family boat, and then the GT for the real petrol heads.
They all have a spot in the marketplace, no question.

They are all deceptively quick, and excellent value for money, the minor differences in acceleration between the T6 and XR8 are academic and not even worth discussing. They are also aimed at different people.

Stop whinging about it, buy the one you can afford or prefer, and enjoy it for what it is.

Rick.
 
#21 ·
I will tell you guys this much. The XR8 is slower but i would still have it cause I hate the T5.(absolutely hate it) If the Turbo had the Tremec, and a $6k price advantage I wouldnt look twice at the 8
 
#22 ·
Chuck, I'm sure you've driven the turbo before you decided to buy your XR8, what were your expectaions about boh of them?

My mate works at Ford dealer, I fanged both cars for 3 times , manuals and autos both. There is a thread at XR6Turbo.com about 8 vs 6T and they all felt the same: Only for the start, the V8 is able to pull nicely without having to rev 4000 in normal street conditions that could cost you your license if you burn out. Many XR6T divers are complaining about the pre-boost lack of torque and they're waiting for the car to loosen up, ain't gonna happen, it's a simply IL6 before the turbo kicks in.

I believe the car mags will learn to get better times from the 5.4 engine eventually, won't be long..
 
#26 ·
it blows my mind to see people complaining about both cars.ive just bought a xr6t(like whoop te doo)finally ford bring out are car to match holden if not beat them,and all some people can do is put crap on the xr6t because it is a bit faster(wow who cares)then the v8 which is a great engine.my reason for buying the turbo is my reason and no one elses,same for the xr8 boss.cant we just stand back for a minute and admire the workmanship and beauty of both cars.like people get over it i have.
 
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