Dazz

I ended up buying one of the BA flip keys off ford-parts-are-us on ebay, http://myworld.ebay.com.au/ford-parts-are-us/ I got the key cut at a security locksmith place for $25, and coded it as per the instructions provided. It worked perfectly first go so I wouldn't hesitate to get another one now.

As a new owner of an 04 BA XR6T, and not having much experience driving these types of cars before, it's interesting reading the replies in this thread about what works and what doesn't work on these cars. Coming from much smaller and lighter cars, predominately Mazda RX-2's and RX-4's over the last twenty odd years, seat of the pants feel is somewhat vague at the moment due purely to having to brake and turn such a heavy car. Rushing into a corner I'm nowhere near as confident the car will actually stop (pedal feel is not as rock solid as I'm used too, but comparatively much better than a new Late model camira I drove a few months ago), and although I haven't gone even 7/10ths as hard as I would have in my last RX-2 through the twisty bits, I've got an idea of what the cars feels like it needs. To me the front is too soft, not so much in plain stiffness (in road car terms) but slightly in roll and also in wheel alignment, particularly castor. The steering doesn't feel as though there is anywhere near enough castor as self centering is weaker than what I "think" it should be, and regardless of the quality of the tyres they don;t feel like they are being given the chance to work as they should. The rear actually feels the opposite to me, and initially I thought it felt too stiff in roll. It's interesting to hear people talking about removing the rear bar as I wondered if thinking this was me just being unfamiliar with this type of car, or maybe not? I know with my last RX-2 keeping the rear nice and subtle made the car much faster on the road, and even keeping the front end on the softer side of optimum was far better across all types of road surfaces. The car "felt" like it handled better with the stiffer front springs and big front bar, and yet unless the road was billiard table smooth, it skipped and slid across the road through bumpy corners and was much twitchier under hard braking deep into turns. The softer springs and slightly smaller front bar gave more roll, but massive amounts more real world grip. On the track is another matter altogether, especially with really grippy tyres, where you can easily go up in spring rates and bar size, but again only to a point. My gut feeling in getting my XR6T to handle better on the road is good bushes so that the wheels remain as close to the alignment settings as possible, as much castor (within reason) as can be had without causing other problems, and more camber. I dare say once that is done the shocks will be the next thing to feel under damped, and lastly the actual spring rates which can probably go up a little bit, but not too much. Again I have no experience with these particular cars but from past experience going too stiff rarely seems to make a real improvement in actual grip, and often decreases it on bumpy surfaces and especially in the wet where a slightly more subtle setup is preferable. I have no doubt that with sensible settings you can get these cars to handle very respectably, but I doubt you can get a car this big to have go-cart like handling of a much lighter car, physics just won;t let that happen. Handling aside the effortless power these cars produce is very impressive.

I bought a BA XR6T a few weeks ago that had a new set of tyres fitted just prior to me buying the car, Durun F-One's in the std 235-45-17 size. I have to say after spending the weekend running around in the damp conditions, these are about the slipperiest tyres I have even driven on. A quarter throttle off the lights will see the traction control light flickering and the rear tyres turning effortlessly. I know the T has a bit more poke than some cars but this is crazy. Mildly amusing all the same but the wife wasn't too impressed! Funny thing is they don't feel totally dreadful in the dry, no tram lining, no squealing through the turns at moderate speeds and seem quiet enough, but in the wet I'm far from comfortable with them. I'd like to throw a set of 18" BA XR8 wheels on the car anyway so I think I'll wait until I get a set of them and then throw some decent tyres on the 18's. The Falken FK452 and Kuhmo KU31 seem to get good feedback for a reasonably priced trye. My priorities are wet weather grip for the most part as I want a fool proof car for the wife to drive, followed by dry grip, wear, noise and comfort last. I've always driven smaller lighter cars that have been more stiffly sprung with tyre pressures set for performance and not comfort so a little tyre noise and actually feeling the road doesn't bother me in the slightest.

The car came with the two factory keys and remotes so according to the instructions it should all be easy. Like a lot of things though it's always good to know that someone else has actually done it and it works, as there are a lot of shonks out there, so thanks for the reply.

Hi guys, I've recently bought a BA XR6 Turbo, and whilst browsing for tit bits on Ebay came across a set of aftermarket flip keys with remotes to suit the BA models from two different sellers. jezzaxw http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130545751188&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT and ford-parts-are-us http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110714866943&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT Odd thing is both ads have the same contact number and info which seems a little odd. Anyway, the main thing I'd like to know is has anyone bought these keys from either of these sellers, and did they work ok? Also the instructions provided on how to sync the keys and remotes, does this sound right and are that that easy to do? I was reading on another forum there was a group buy on something similar and all the ones to suit the BF models seemed not to be correct. Not knowing too much about these remotes and keys I don't want to be a sucker and buy something that is crap, so any advice would be great. Cheers Darren

Thanks for the replies guys. However, I will not be going through with buying the car. After doing the usual revs check and RTA check, it would appear the car was a repairable write off in 2008 or 2009 interstate, and was reregistered in NSW in 2009. Does this have anything to do with no service history, missing keys and remote, and possibly the speaker issue, who knows. But after consideration I'm not prepared to take a punt on it, so back to the drawing board. Next time I will go with my list of must have log books, must have all keys, and if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!

Hi guys, Well after wanting to buy one for many years, today I put a deposit down on a BAII XR6 Turbo. Car seems to be in pretty good condition overall with a little over 60k on the clock, but like all older cars has a few small niggles. Firstly, is there anyone on the NSW Central Coast (Woy Woy or Gosford/Erina/Entrance etc) that knows these cars well, as I'd like to take it to someone who knows a bit about them for a general service and check over so I know if anything needs attention that a normal mechanic won't pick up. The car has the premium sound package, but only the sub appears to be working. Is this a common or simple problem, or will it need some serious attention? If so, do you go to a Ford dealer or a car radio specialist and if so any recommendations. Alternatively is it worth just poking around, could it be as simple as a loose plug or something on the rear of the unit? I want to fit a decent tow bar so I can tow a car trailer, any suggestions? When I was looking at buying a new BA all those years ago the dealer recommended a Hayman Reese unit, are these still considered a good option? The car does not have the remote central locking unit that goes with your key, is this a matter of getting a new unit from Ford or are there other options? Cheers

The thing that amuses/annoys me is that they keep saying "buy the auto it's a better thing" but continue to road test manual versions! Has there actually been a road test with proper acceleration figures for the auto yet in either Wheels or Motor? From what I read, the XR-8 lost out becasue of it's handling deficit to the XR-6T due to the engine weight over the front wheels, it's dearer price than the T, and that for 10k more you get the GT which is far superior.

One of the guys on Performanceforums, Dynosteve, ran his XR-6 Turbo last Saturday night. In a nut shell ............... "times are in 13.0 @ 113mph with traction problems" "but it should have gone well into the 12's and will do with slicks, anyway I'm planning a couple of other adjustments before the next outing in a couple of weeks, what to come home with an 11" "unfortunatley with wheel spin it was only 2.2 60 foot, you just have to look at the mile an hour to work out what it's capable of" "we didn't bring the 11psi in until 4500rpm as traction was a problem, we ran 8.8lbs first run and left car in drive and ran 13.4 @ 109mph. The reason I raced my car was to prove the kit that we invested alot of money in works and is reliable" You can read the full thread for more info here ...... http://board.performanceforums.com/forums/...readid=67151570

All cars depreciate, that's life. I would expect that the XR-6 Turbo will be one of the stronger resellers in the Falcon range. I was looking on Wednesday at an online auction, and there was a 2002 AU III XR-8, ex police car, with about 45,000k's on it, in good condition, which sold for just over $24,000. They were a $50,000 car. Now THAT is depreciation!