aiboart

This is copied from an Australian non Ford related car forum, ' Promo airing currently on channel 7 that tomorrow night (Monday) they will run an article exposing speed cameras as costing lives during their news program at 6pm.' Regards, aa

I get about 25K km from the Goodyear F1 Asymetrics. This is possibly slightly better than the factory SP3000's and two sets of Dunlop Sports Maxx. Regards, aa

What the above post said. Goodyear F1 Asymmetric are phenomenal. Transients you wouldn't believe, ultra high sustained G performance, wet performance, dry performance, braking, traction and critically for a road car, completely benign behavior towards the limit everywhere... I will be looking to buy my third set soon. Regards, aa

The PBR's Premium Brakes are simply brilliant as a road car system. Hi fidelity and linear reports to control inputs, great power and thermal capacity. Having said that,I have found the DBA 5000's to be even better. Better fidelity and better linearity, smoother and more solid feel (at low speeds with fine braking inputs and at higher speeds with high braking inputs), with thermal capacity which exceeds any of my needs... and longer disc life. Add the PBR braided lines for a staggering improvement in immediacy and linearity to control inputs which in turn translates to much shorter real world braking distances. Fast application and hi fidelity allows and smooth and (flat) low peak G's when braking that in turn provide higher limits of adhesion for longtitutidnal and lateral maneuvers. Regards, aa

What can you tell us about where the XR6T/F6 platform is headed? Some of the low boost SC V8's seem like much ado about nothing really. Regards, aa

Radial Patches can be placed towards the sidewall of high performance tyres, but not on the actual sidewall itself. This type of patch requires the tyre to be removed from the rim; the patch is applied from the inside of the tyre. A reputable tyre chain will advise you if your tyre is repairable via this, or any other method. The cost of such a repair is minimal considering the labor involved, about $30. Radial patches contain reinforcing materials similar to that used in the belts of high performance tyres. The patches are thus exceedingly strong and flexible. It seems that Radial Patches when applied correctly have no perceptible effect whatsoever, on the balance, performance, compliance or the feel of the tyre. Regards, aa

The Audi TTRS Coupe is the spiritual cousin to to the Ford Focus RS Both cars are based on the Volvo 5 cylinder engine with the same power. Audi 250kW, Ford 240kW, however the Audi has the friction penalty associated with AWD configuration. The Audi has AWD for quick 0-100 times. The Ford has truely revolutionary FWD technology that makes the car possible. Both cars are manuals. By all accounts both cars are a blast to drive and the Focus has mental lateral G limits. Both cars derive from a great FWD platform from a major brand, the Audi from the Golf and the Ford from the Focus. Both cars have similar front seats. The Focus will carry four people in comfort. The Audi looks cool and has extensive use of alloy in front structure. The Focus has a big wing. The Audi has a lifting body [still]... and now a wing to keep it on the road. Now for the big differences. Ford Focus RS AU$60K + ORC AUDI TT RS Coupe The TFSI® engine with 250 kW. The heart of the TT RS. The robust sound of the 5-cylinder power unit exudes unbridled power. Developed especially for this model, it catapults the TT RS Coupé from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds (Roadster: 4.7 seconds). In conjunction with quattro®, the six speed manual transmission ensures a driving sensation just like motor racing. Pure. Charged with emotion. Extremely dynamic. Price Manufacturer's List Price (Inc. GST) $118,503.00 Dealer Deliver Charge (Inc.GST) $3,421.00 Federal Govt Luxury Car Tax (LCT) $19,337.40 NSW State Govt Total Registration $785.00 NSW State Govt Stamp Duty $6,165.00 Vehicle Drive Away Price $148,211.40

Focus RS for OZ Confirmed - SMH Article Link Ford's WRX STI rival coming JEZ SPINKS / SMH August 2, 2010 - 3:25PM Ford Focus RS Focus RS confirmed for Australia. 224kW five-cylinder turbo. $59,990 price tag. Ford Australia will take on Japan's hottest hatches after announcing it will introduce the 224kW Focus RS at the end of the year. The RS was launched in Europe 18 months ago but Ford's local outpost says it has finally managed to create a business case for the powerful three-door that will compete against the likes of the Subaru WRX STI and Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, as well as Volkswagen's Golf R. Ford's hot-hatch will be priced from $59,990 (plus on-road costs) and numbers will be limited to 315. It is based on the current Focus that will be replaced by a new-generation model in 2011. The RS uses a heavily modified version of the Focus XR5 Turbo's (Volvo-sourced) 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo petrol engine, with a bigger turbo and revised exhaust system helping to lift power and torque to 220kW (up 54kW) and 410Nm (up 90Nm) respectively. The engine is mated to a beefier, shorter-shifting version of the XR5 Turbo's six-speed manual gearbox. Unlike its aforementioned rivals, the Focus RS puts its power to the ground through the front wheels only rather than all four wheels, though Ford claims to have virtually eliminated torque steer (forceful tugging on the steering wheel when torque overcomes front tyre grip) with a special front-suspension set-up it calls RevoKnuckle. The RS's front axle also includes a limited-slip differential to help optimise the hotter Focus's handling and traction. The Focus RS gets many other performance enhancements over the Focus XR5 Turbo that was the car's starting point. The RS has wider front and rear tracks (up 40mm), stiffer springs, bigger wheels (19 inches) and brakes, bigger rear stabiliser bar, and steering tuned for sharper responses. Ford claims the Focus RS is significantly quicker than the Focus XR5 Turbo despite being up to 100kg heavier - sprinting from 0-100km/h in less than six seconds and capable of reaching a top speed of 250km/h. The RS certainly looks racier than the XR5 Turbo, with a big roof spoiler and rear diffuser at the rear (both contributing to the car's aerodynamics), deep side skirts, bonnet vents, and those wheelarch-filling 19-inch wheels. Inside, the RS's cabin is colour-matched to the exterior and features body-hugging Recaro sports bucket seats (and heavily bolstered rear seats), brushed-aluminium and carbonfibre-style trim, and three dashtop gauges that include a turbo boost dial. Other standard features for the German-built RS include voice-activated Bluetooth, dual-zone climate control, xenon headlights, rain-sensing wipers, keyless entry and engine start, and an eight-speaker, six-CD Sony audio system with iPod/MP3 compatibility. Three colours are available: 'Ultimate green', 'Performance blue' and 'Frozen white'.

The result will be much the same as the First Home Buyer Scheme. Stimulated demand will spike the price of targeted models, costing the buyer more than the rebate is worth. Political Correctness is a Religion, nothing more or less. Regards, aa

Based on the official decelleration figure on my rego check for my BA XR6T, which was, -1.12G in the wet, the 1,600kph 'Eco Thrust' alternative enegry hybrid driveline (rocket, gas turbine, recipricating engine) will use 114-115km stopping distance for a Bembo only decelleration without the aid of downforce However, steel tyres may reduce the decelleration rate quite a lot, especially on concrete and in the wet. In such conditions allowing 350km stopping distance could be considered prudent. Regards, aa

.... and the historical service life of a well serviced Ferrari engine before major rebuild, in reality is....? (40-50K km?) .... and the historical service life of a typical well serviced XR6T engine before major rebuild in reality is....? (250K++ km?)

If you 'warped' a set of DBA high end discs, may I sugget you consider calling DBA to let them know? There are two possibilities, 1 - DBA had a serious quality lapse and therefore you have a warranty claim. 2 - You had irregular pad transfer which can do a great job of appearing as 'warped discs'. Regards, aa

It is not that the AWD Taurus SHO it is not a good thing, rather, it is about ensuring that Ford gets the $$$ and that Ford clients get value, 1- In the era where (fleet) fuel consumption is a stay in business case for the vehicle manufacturer one questions the wisdom associated with installing a high mass high drag AWD driveline configuration into the mass market fleet. 2- In the era when DSC is a legislated standard and when Agility Control is rolling out across the market, the safety and stability formerly offered by an AWD driveline is no longer relevant. 3 - In an era when product differentiation and margin (not volume alone) is the key to profitability, RWD chassis dynamics offers a significant point of product differentiation, namely, the highest level of driving engagement and satisfaction (now with the safety of DSC modulated control). (For Example. Porsche was involved in a reverse takeover when their attempt to take over the VW-Audi-Lambo-Bentley-Bugatti group was outflanked. The original Porsche takeover was driven by the immense margin driven profitability of the Porsche group.) RWD is also considerably cheaper than high end AWD to design and manufacture. RWD is no longer a commodity product, it is a premium product.

Taurus SHO is a traverse mounted V6 with heavy and pointless fuel sapping 2,200kg high friction AWD driveline with dulled chassis response. This ain't going to do much for the Ford fleet fuel economy is it? The AWD SHO has fuel economy worse than an F6 despite having DI. It is also coarser due to V6 configuration and furthermore has a lower torque plateau. AWD is what people bought in th 1990's for chassis stability before the advent of DSC. DSC/TC and now agility control make AWD useless unless you are running 400kw in a relatively light chassis. AWD is literally a drag in terms of weight and driveline friction. Most AWD are so in name only, they are really FWD with an afterthought coupling for marketing purposes; in general they are just overweight overwrought FWD's, see R32 etc RWD with DSC is the new 4WD Regards, aa

That is great news. The Ford I6 T and the chassis that wraps around it are the Aussie versions of the 911. Though modest in origin, decades of development has seen the development of a design of sublime refinement, flexibility, power, and everyday reliability. There are not too many things out there that can do all that. Any plans for DI for the I6 Turbo, and agility control, and bi-modal exhaust and 8-speed boxes? Regards, aa

From its inception the motor car has always had a perfect recycling record, first cycling as spare parts and then ultimately as scrap metal. Hybrids are different, they do not recycle very well, in fact they are a serious ecological time bomb (as opposed to the make believe 'global warming' scam). A hybrid car battery will be the asbestos building of the future... a nasty toxic 400kg of Li liability. Then again, this type of inanity is probably what one would expect from a car design that is optimized to sit in traffic jams in order to 'save fuel'. Regards, aa

The BF and BA suspension is the same for non R-Spec XR6T and FPV models. The R-Spec suspension has one point of difference with the standard suspension noted above. The difference is in the valve washer stack in what are otherwise standard two piece B series dampers. That is it. You can verify this for yourself. FPV has provided high level detailed public domain discussions as to the exact nature of R-Spec. The washer stack creates a new state of tune for the old style two piece dampers which replicates the damper tunes typically found in monotubes shocks. This digressive damper tune is exceedingly effective in improving the dynamic performance and the refinement of the vehicle, however, the double tube dampers used in the B series are no where near as effective in exacting that tune as monotubes shocks. Whilst FPV sought to use monotubes shocks for the B series R-Spec, twin tube shocks were retained purely for reasons of cost. Once again the is in the FPV public domain discussions. Monotubes shocks are however used throughout the FG range.There are different damper tunes used throughout the FG range. If purchasing an R-Spec or any other B series a thing to note is that the twin tube dampers used in the B-Series, including the R-Spec variants are likely to be worn out by about 40K km. Your choice is then to purchase the replacement OEM R-Spec dampers, or, to fit exceeding high end aftermarket monotubes running a very close analogue of the R-Spec digressive tune as developed by FPV for the B series R-Specs. The high end monotubes will in effect be executing the FPV R-Spec digressive tune, however, the high end monotubes will execute the FPV like digressive tune far better than and B series or even any FG series shock could dare hope. Regards, aa

The new Religion of Political Correctness The push for 'climate change' action and 'Social Justice' is no more than the Religion of Political Correctness seeking to displace the older Christian based religions. The model of control is the same and only the faces have been changed to bring the system up to date. The stories of gods and devils, hell and Armageddon no longer cut it in the age of the internet and the pill, so the new scam has a pseudo scientific facade to give it credibility. Similarly the guilt trip of 'sin' and wealth has been superseded by 'racism' and carbon footprint'. The old religions had a clergy holed up in effectively taxpayer funded monasteries claiming the higher moral ground based on something called, 'God's Will'. Of course, 'God's Will', was whatever the clergy decided it should be from moment to moment. The new Religion of Political Correctness has a clergy holed up in the taxpayer funded, so called 'Social Science' (ROFL) departments of the public universities. These departments claim the higher moral ground based on something called, 'Social Justice'. Of course, 'Social Justice', is whatever the new 'Social Science' (ROFL) department clergy say it is at the moment. There other parallels between the old Christian religion and the new Religion of Political Correctness are startling, old religion apocalypse new Religion of Political Correctness 'Global Warming'... (or cooling, or Y2K....) old religion sin new Religion of Political Correctness 'carbon emission' old religion Original Sin (sin for some thing you had no part in) new Religion of Political Correctness 'Sorry Day' old religion Indulgence (a paid license to sin) new Religion of Political Correctness Carbon Credit old religion - tithe (religious tax) tithe (a religious income tax) new Religion of Political Correctness carbon tax old religion heathen new Religion of Political Correctness 'Global Warning Denier' old religion pulpit new Religion of Political Correctness ABC, SBS old religion monastery new Religion of Political Correctness 'Social Science' faculty old religion clergy new Religion of Political Correctness Sociologist etc old religion sanctimonious (hypocritical) Bible Basher new Religion of Political Correctness sanctimonious (hypocritical) Greenie old religion gay clergy new Religion of Political Correctness Penny Wong, Bob Brown... The Greens old religion clergy preaching poverty whilst living in palaces new Religion of Political Correctness Greenies preaching hybrids whilst flying around in jets. It goes on, and on.... Regards, aa

There are some telling prices in the market already... Regard, aa

What are you trying to achieve by buying no name mission critical components from e-bay? DBA manufactures probably the best non ceramic rotor available anywhere for production cars. They are also relatively cheap. They are designed and made in Australia for a very discerning world market that includes major OEM's and motorsport. The mechanical and thermal modeling used to design the rotors is innovative and first rate. The materials are first rate. The post processing of the materials is first rate. The QA and QC is first rate. Spend a just a extra little money and buy something brilliant. It will protect you and your family, and, put a smile on your face every time you use the brakes. Regards, aa

The XR's of the BA and BF series did not have grills. Despite some 90K km I am yet to see so much as a stone chip on the IC. The splitter which lies in front and below the IC has however its fare share of minor paint marks. From that I take that the IC is quite well protected from that type of damage by dint of its positioning. There is no doubt that a grill does provide protection from specific types of damage, however, there is also no doubt that this is at the cost of some airflow. I recall somewhere in the FG FPV marketing material that the FG FPV IC was sans grill for that reason. Regards, aa

Which will do interesting things to the pricing of the F6 one imagines. Regards, aa

There was a factory replacement/recall of the rear hoses in the B series several years ago. IIRC hose length was the issue causing rubbing etc. Regards, aa

A Falcon is a Hayabusa, in Japan. Really. Regards, aa

Whilst the cars are delivered stock, sources in government told me that they were led to believe, and they could be mislead, that, enterprising police officers seeking superior performance in the line of duty, have become versed in the art of, '...adding chips to the cars'... Regards, aa