It is a reliable, OK car
Ball joints and tie rod ends at 296000.
Head gasket at 159000.
My Falcon ain't any run of the mill Falcon. It has Kenworth mud flaps and lights along the front, as well as along the back.
It is plastered with stickers.
It ain't the fastest car I have driven.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 5th January, 2006
Reliable, Comfortable and Practical Vehicle!
The car had a leak in the power steering lines - nothing a new hose didn't fix.
Also, the wiring under the hood is a bit dodgy eg. the engine sometimes won't turn off if the headlights are still on (at least I won't forget to turn off my headlights and get a flat battery!) and fuses keep blowing, even though I replaced all the wiring behind the dash.
The T-Bar Auto shift doesn't quite line up with the numbers on the plate in the centre console - all the positions are there, but it can be hard to locate certain positions and even harder to describe it to people when I lend the ute to them.
Recently, the diff has been showing signs of wear, which will probably need replacing soon.
For a while I had trouble opening the doors (and went through several door handles) until I aligned the doors better. They now open up with less effort, but are still not aligned properly - despite my best efforts.
The paint, while not terrible, has its share of scrapes, scratches and is in places peeling off. Being a good straight body however, with no dents and very minimal rust, makes it ready for a respray when funds permit.
I have found out that the spare wheel compartment is not designed to accommodate 235 tyres as jamming one in there has eventually caused it to drop down and almost fall off.
I am very happy with my ute. I've owned it for almost 6 months and have not experienced any trouble with it regarding reliability. It'll start 1st time every day.
The 4.1 engine has all the power you need - I considered putting a 302 V8 in it, but I couldn't justify the need to improve on the 6 cylinders' sufficient performance. It's no high-powered performance car, but the power, acceleration and kickdown is there when you need it.
The fuel economy is excellent. My ute has a reconditioned 4.1 carb out of an XF and so runs on unleaded fuel. A lot of old carby Falcons of similar age to mine are rough and shaky, but mine has been finely tuned to run as smooth as silk - as smooth as my Dad's 4.0 efi EB Falcon.
My ute looks very classy with a ZJ Fairlane nose, and since I've had it I have installed electric windows, electric mirrors and electric seats to add a bit more comfort to my daily driver.
It had already been converted to a 2-seater from a bench seat before I got it, which is great with the comfort of the Fairlane buckets, but it can be inconvenient if more than 1 passenger wants to travel in the ute.
There is plenty of room in the back for carrying big loads, but for security, I have bolted in a large toolbox in the back which takes up a lot of space, reducing the carrying capacity, but is necessary to bring my tools with me.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 17th August, 2004
Cheap Car if you find a good one
After one year of owning the car the transmission blew up. It was slipping in all gears and ended up getting it towed. After installation of a reconditioned transmission everything was fine until it hesitated to go into reverse after 11 months luckily it was replaced under warranty.
The Drivers door handle broke (very common in these cars). Easily rectified by drilling a screw through the handle as replacement parts genuine and Chinese import are both faulty.
The Liquid Petroleum Gas system used to get air leaks which made the car stall, but the system was an after market installation.
Rust became present in both quarter panels near the rear window and in the boot.
The Air conditioner compressor broke twice the first time a second hand unit was used and the second time a new after market one was used (recommended).
The windscreen wiper motor broke away from the wiper arms.
The front seat wore loose and the seat back was able to be rocked.
There was an oil leak at the main seal which was repaired twice when the transmission was changed, but soon returned.
The power steering pump blew up and was replaced with a $90 XF pump as found on the 1984-1987 falcons no problems after that.
These cars are really cheap now and not because they are generally bad, but because there are far more people selling them as there is people buying them.
The car is fast once your moving its not really quick off the mark.
The suspension on the car is fairly basic and old fashioned. They tend to struggle for rear grip especially when cornering
I would not buy another falcon as the Japanese cars offer better reliability and build quality.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 31st July, 2004