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!

Sometimes pulling to the left when stopping is simply due to the camber on the road falling towards the gutter. On some roads it is worse than others and all cars will pull slightly to the left when this is the case.

I have had a few drives of various T's, and XR-8's, and don't find the bonnet to hinder vision from a judgement point of view, but reckon it looks horn from behind the wheel. I would not consider buying a car without driving it beforehand, and doing a lot of research about the good and bad points, which is why I like this forum, becasue you get great feedback about peoples experiences with the cars.

Still haven't decided yet, plus I'm waiting on a few things to fall into place before putting my order in. With delivery time still at a few months, and with the brake shudder issues and a few other problem things people seem to be suffering, I'm actually thinking of putting off ordering 'til later in the year when these things sort themselves out. But I still like the look of the XR-8 bonnet so it's probably 60/40 at the moment that we will get it.

The functionality would come of you wanted to use larger diametre intercooler piping and get rid of the flat pancake style crossover on top of the engine. I haven't done the exact measurements to see how and exactly where the XR-8 bonnet increases the area, but by looking at it, it would be pretty much where you need it.

Sorry I didn't realise there was a maximum contribution % allowed Anyway, promise I won't post any more.

Don't know about the cost, but if the bonnet is $1,500 retail, then it's going to be up over that somewhere I guess. But then it is no dearer than 18" alloys or sunroof or leather seats, none of which I want or need so looking at it that way it's no dearer than options others might choose.

Like I mentioned earlier, I really don't care what other people think as far as letting it infuence my decision, I simply posted this poll out of curiosity to see peoples opinions. What I find intersting is the poll on Performanceforums has the exact opposite result to in here. Don't like the XR-8 bonnet anyway. 7 votes, 6.09% Do think an XR-8 bonnet on an XR-6 Turbo is ok. 74 votes, 64.35% Think that an XR-6 Turbo with an XR-8 bonnet is a bit of a toss! 34 votes, 29.57% Total: 115 votes 100% It's funny too reading through the two different forums, because the views on here are much stronger and the people against it are far more derogatory in their comments. I guess you guys are slightly more passionate than the average car enthusiest who appreciates a wider variety of cars. To me fitting a lumpy bonnet is no different than fitting 18" wheels, leather trim, scuff plates or sports steering wheels etc, which like the bonnet, are purely for looks and add no performance to the car whatsoever. But they put a smile on your dial, make you happy and help you to enjoy your toy.

Nah, it might just encourage me to get one anyway. I don't mind going against the grain.

I don't know, I kinda like the idea of having an XR-6 Turbo pretending to be slower than it actually is! Nah no sensitivity here, my ego doesn't need stroking by the kind of car I drive.

You are right - the xr8 bonnet does have some exclusivity to it - TO THE XR8!! You guys are very sensitive about this aren't you. As to the exclusivity, the bonnet is on the XR-8, GT, GT-P and Pursuit Ute, to be precise. :D

I guess there are two ways of looking at it. You can have the same bonnet as an XR-8 which has a look of power and some exclusivity to it, or you can have the same bonnet as every BA taxi driving around :D By the way, I didn't start this to cause any arguments, I was simply curious to see how people in here thought. Interestingly, there is the same poll over at performanceforums.com ( http://board.performanceforums.com/forums/...readid=67149060 ), but the results are almost totally the opposite of what we have here. Very interesting.

I just don't see it that way, because the examples you have given are for making the budget action model appear to be the performance model. The XR-6 Turbo is as quick as the XR-8, so it's certainly not pretending to be faster than it is. It's not to pretend to have an XR-8, because lets face it, if you can afford one you can afford the other!

Define rice? Is adding 18" wheels rice? Is adding a colour coded MOMO wheel rice? I think rice has become "anything I don't personally like".

Personally I like the look of the XR-8 bonnet, it gives the car a much tougher look, but oater driving both cars and for what I want to do with the car, the XR-6 Turbo is a better choice for me. I don't see that it is necessarily trying to make the car something it isn't either. If the performance, handling and equipment level of the XR-6 Turbo was far inferior to the XR-8 then I can see it would be a bit of a wank. But the XR-6 Turbo is equal to the XR-8 in all of those areas so I think it is a little different ot those who try to make an Exec spec car look like a top of the range model. My 2c worth anyway.

Well, it looks like Ford is definitely trying to keep the XR-8 as the top dog. I rang some Ford spare parts dept's just out of curiosity on the price of an XR-6 and XR-8 bonnet, thinking how much difference could there be?, seeing as how they are the same size, except one has a big pressed lump in it. Well, the XR-6 bonnet is $369.27 retail, and the XR-8 bonnet is $1,563.71! Wonder how they justify a difference of $1,194.44? Does anyone know if these prices are the same as when the vehicles were released or have Ford recently raised the price of the XR-8 bonnet?