Goes like a V8, uses fuel like a 4
I had an alternator go on me as I was heading towards the Gold Coast.
The starter died on Christmas day.
My Falcon was way quicker than my VK Commodore.
It was faster off the mark than a Suburu WRX ,which I dragged on Brisbane - I beat him in the end.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 14th September, 2003
A really nice car to drive. You won't even think you're moving. Great first car
Well the only problem I have had is the head gasket went, but that was due to the last owner not re-torquing the head.
And I found, & most XF owners will also find, that the water doesn't drain all that well off the car e.g. it's rusty around the doors, but this is mostly due to people leaving the car under trees, where leaves can block the drain (easy to fix).
Torque! Really good strong torque. You will find that the XF has lots of good torque, which makes passing cars easy. e.g. I put my foot down on the open road, and I hit 100 so quick it wasn't funny.
It's very good on fuel, depending if you put your foot down.
When towing, the car behaves like it has no boat/trailer on the back, due to the power. Let's make this short; this car has more power than the new VHS (Holden), which is an V8. This thing can pass it in seconds; not bad for an 1986 6 cyl carby model with no Holley; just the standard Webber carby.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 4th March, 2003
Great buy!
Door handles break, this is with all XF's.
Windscreen squirter gets blocked constantly.
My car is lowered, so the exhaust hits speeds bumps and needs replacing about every 18 months.
Uses a fair amount of petrol.
Very reliable, engine doesn't die.
Very comfortable to drive, lots of room, smooth on the road.
Has a lot of guts, however it does use a lot of petrol to achieve this.
Handles very well, very smooth to drive, can tow anything, excellent engine.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 2nd August, 2002
Cheap reliable and practical friend!
Nothing has really gone wrong with the car. Only fixing or replacing things as they get old.
One thing that really bugs me about the car though is the door handles... they keep breaking, I believe this is a problem with XE to XF.
I am replacing the ball joints today and I have put in new shocks and had some gearbox work done.
The guy who fixed the gearbox somehow caused a leak to develop from the sump.. stripped screw or something...haven't had it fixed yet.
The motor is throwing up oil into the air filter, probably needs new rings, but it still has considerable power and when I do the motor work it will be the first I have done on this car. Not bad for the kms on it.
The car has a lot of power and is incredibly reliable. It has never broken down.
The interior is in good condition as is the body and panels of the car.
Has power steering and handles very well. Very easy to maneovre in small spaces despite being a large car.
I have not changed the factory appearance at all and it still looks quite good. I don't think I would bother with modifications as they are not important to me unless they give better performance, fuel economy and comfort.
I must say that the front seats are not very comfortable with no lower back support.
Oil light comes on even though there is plenty of oil in the motor and some of the wiring is a bit iffy. Hasn't caught on fire, but would be worth rewiring.
Would prefer to give this car an overhaul than buy a new more modern car.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 25th April, 2002
The ultimate machine
I blew up 5 diff's from doing too many burn outs, donuts etc.
The dash kept catching fire round about 5 times due to faulty wiring which meant I have to rewire the whole car.
Thermostate broke and the car kept overheating.
Bent a wheel smashing into a gutter.
Had to get the gear box rebuilt.
And then it got crashed.
The car beat almost every Holden it went up against.
I love this car, it was wicked.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 31st January, 2002
4th Feb 2002, 19:38
Sounds like it's made for fun!!...
5.8L?? that's not original is it? If not, when you did the engine swap, what else did you change?? I mean, if you keep blowing dif's etc, mebbe an upgraded version should be installed... A bulletproof 9" locker mebbe? :-)