Road Test: FPV F6 Typhoon

By Feann Torr - 22/Feb/2006

The showdown between HSV and FPV - two of Australia's most popular home grown performance car tuners - has reached another level as HSV dumps an even chubbier V8 into its range.

But despite the fact that HSV (Holden Special Vehicles) now has a more powerful mechanical heart driving its hero models, FPV (Ford Performance Vehicles) still has an ace up its sleeve, and that's a blown 6-cylinder model.

HSV's last 6-cylinder model was the often-overlooked supercharged XU6 of 1998, and since then it has concentrated on its 8-cylinder models. Which is where the fire-breathing, stump-pulling, and generally mad F6 Typhoon comes in, giving fans of 6-cylinder large performance sedans something to sing about.

And sing they will, because this bad boy is, um, very bad. In a good way. Even though it's not the most expensive model in the FPV range, it's arguably the fastest, with internal testing putting the 0-100km/h figure at under 5.5 seconds, and also making it the quickest Falcon in Ford's history.

All this despite no changes to the engine since the hi-po turbo F6 arrived in early 2004 - though it should be said that a new 6-speed ZF automatic gearbox makes the cut, once the exclusive domain of Jags and Aston Martins - as does a new suit and few electronic aids under the new bodywork.

But will this be enough to keep HSV at bay?

Drive: 4/5

FPV's 6-cylinder sport sedan is a delight to drive: it's quick, has great turn-in, good grip levels and is easy to get in and drive

Speed is a measure that the 'Phoon is very familiar with - and the big Brembo brakes are the perfect salve for its power reserves

The Typhoon, or 'Phoon as it's referred to by the FPV Illuminati, is quite a sight at first glance, showing off smoky 18-inch mags and a restyled-for-2006 bodykit that gives it a visual edge over its more conservative-looking forebear.

Step inside the car and things are equally - but not completely - impressive. The leather seats, for example, are very fine pews indeed with serious lateral bolsters and nice supple leather with good cushioning. The instruments that greet you upon buckling in are easy to read and suitably sporty with FPV logos flying all over the place.

Slot the key into the ignition barrel, push the glowing red starter button and the F6 comes to life with very little fanfare - particularly compared to its lumpy 8-cylinder brethren.

But sounds can be deceiving, as the force-fed Ford Performance Vehicle hits its stride very rapidly, as I quickly found out after leaving the top secret FPV headquarters on Glenbarry Road in Campbellfield.

For something that offers so much interior space, and for something so practical (the whole family can join in on the high octane excitement) the 'Phoon is blasphemously quick.

Right off the mark the F6 begins to huff as the exhaust-driven turbocharger fulfills its computer-controlled destiny. Interestingly, the reports of turbo lag in the manual model seem to have been largely ironed out in the automatic model.

The F6's straight line acceleration is best described as devastating. The rear end squats angrily as you stick the boot in, torque levels rising dangerously quickly as the all-too-obvious front-mounted intercooler works in tandem with the turbo to deliver an incredible 550Nm of torque @ 2000rpm.

At this point the traction control is constantly chastised by the growing forces being transmitted to the rear axle, trying (sometimes in vain) to keep the rear wheels from screeching like a wounded banshee, and the momentum builds like billyo as the tacho needle arcs around its epicentre. It's addictive stuff, I can tell you.

But beyond the short drive from FPV HQ back to the Wombat offices in downtown Melbourne city, the 1805kg 'Phoon is also a very well behaved travelling companion, more than happy to just creep along like a standard XR6T -- or even a standard Falcon for that matter.

A clever suspension tune ensures good levels of ride on even some of Australia's increasingly decrepit roadways; the F6 has the uncanny ability to soak up bumps, despite its sporty intentions. And this becomes more and impressive when you consider how nicely the big Aussie muscle car handles itself through fast corners.

Even though this souped-up Falcon gets uprated suspension, brakes, bodykit, powertrain and interior, it feels just as friendly as any other Falcon in everyday situations, with only a slightly firmer ride that's felt when driving over train tracks and such. Generally speaking however, the ride is quite supple, which should please the entire family who may not always appreciate a compromised ride. The seating position - as with all Falcons - is great, and the tilt/reach adjustable steering wheel combines with the automatic's adjustable pedals and comfy seats to ensure a comfy driving position no matter what your build. Indeed, the F6 can do it all - long distance cruising, short and sharp fangs through the forest and everyday commuting.

The Italian stoppers (Brembo brakes: 355mm x 32mm up front with 4-pot calipers, and 328mm x 26mm rear rotors single piston calipers) provide for reassuring stopping power, yet won't intimidate Nan if she decides to take the wheel, with good pedal modulation that feeds in bite not aggressively, but rather progressively. If you plan on using the 'Phoon on the race track then you may want to upgrade to the even tougher Brembo premium package, which get similar sized discs but much hardier 6-pot calipers and costs another $4,300.

Okay, so we know the 'Phoon is almost as well-mannered as your entry-level XT Falcon in everyday situations, but this is a $60,000 performance car, so how does it perform? In a slightly mangled word: fan-bloody-tastic.

Traffic light duels are a real laugh with the Typhoon. You can toy with people's emotions with this puppy, as the throttle response and gear choice are quite good for a turbocharged vehicle, giving it the ability to charge ahead without searching for the correct gear or waiting for revs to hit the sweet spot. The entire rev is pretty sweet in this instance, but the 6-speed automatic gearbox is also a very clever piece of kit, adapting your ever-changing driving style on the run. 

One of the first things that grabbed me by the gonads was how quickly you can jump back on the throttle exiting a corner in the F6. Much of this can be attributed to Ford's heavy-but-very-clever control blade rear suspension rig, and the whole car feels unnaturally balanced for something so long and relatively chubby. The suspension engineers at FPV (with a bit of help from Prodrive) have done a magnificent job with the F6, as it feels a whole lot lighter than it should when cornering, which inspires the confidence to push deeper into every corner.

If you know a certain section of road well, it's inspiring how nicely the car behaves while cornering under increased throttle inputs. It never feels flustered and though rear end grip can be wanting at times thanks to 550Nm of torque, in general it gets a move on very rapidly. In fact, very rapidly is probably not doing it justice - this thing verges on supersonic.

The steering is quite light, which generally I liked. Perhaps a touch more weight would have made the car feel a little more muscular when you're behind the wheel, but in terms of practicality, it's probably better off this way.

Heading from straight ahead into a turn, the 'Phoon provides fairly linear turn-in and is much more obliging than its V8 siblings due to the lower weight hanging over the front axle. With the FPV tuned suspension the F6 Typhoon is also able to hold its line through a corner well, and doesn't mind being pushed hard through medium radii corners - though it will sometimes protest with the squeals from the outside front and both rear tyres, and sometimes the odd mini fishtail as the traction control duels with the massive torque flow. 

In relation to this, I reckon the standard 18-inch, 245/40 aspect ratio tyres at the rear could be increased in width somewhat, as this would help it achieve even greater rear end grip when blasting out of corners at full throttle, and possibly give the T/C a rest as well. You can opt for larger 19-inch alloy wheels ($2,400), shod with 245/35 ZR19 rubber, which help in this respect.

Once settled into a corner, The 'Phoon's attitude is terrific - it corners with minimal body roll, it tracks faithfully through bends and provides a decent idea of how the road beneath feels, though the light power steering does tend to mask some of the feel and feedback via the front wheels. Rapid changes of direction felt a little bit ponderous and the car's weight shifts around on the suspension, and corrections mid-corner (particularly aiming for a tighter line) can upset its balance a tad, but in general the 'Phoon is a brilliantly capable performance sedan that is surprisingly non-intimidating to drive hard, despite its manic power.

Initially the car felt a little high off the ground from the drivers seat for a sports car, but I must say that the view of the road is very good. Would I buy a Typhoon over an RX-8? Yeah, I reckon I probably would. Not that I've driven the RX-8 as much as the F6, but being squished into the rear of a Japanese coupe is not what I want to put my friends through.

At the end of the day, especially a day that involved testing the vehicle's road holding at the limit, I pity the poor traction control programme that has to deal with the 'Phoon's prodigious amount of torque that slams its way through the driveline so early in the rev range. Kicking the tail out is easier done than said, while the traction control fretfully tries to mollify the kinetic outburst that hits the rear wheels. 550Nm @ 2000rpm? That's more than enough twist to satisfy most rev heads, and for bragging rights it eclipses HSV's 6.0-litre V8 to boot.

In summary, I regard the F6 Typhoon is a terrific drivers car, but with the added bonus of having the kind of practicality that will not only suit, but also impress the whole family. This force-fed FPV is hard to fault on road, and very easy to praise.

Engine: 4.5/5

Engine: Ford F6 270T 4.0-litre turbo straight 6-cylinder

The longitudinally mounted 3984cc turbocharged L6 engine has an aluminium alloy cylinder head and a cast-iron engine block. The valvetrain includes 4-valves per cylinder actuated by chain-driven dual overhead camshafts (DOHC) that feature variable valve timing for more flexibility.  The forced induction system is comprised of a Garret turbocharger and an air-to-air intercooler, and with an 8.8:1 compression ratio the 6-cylinder engine accepts 95 RON and higher octane fuels, and has a 68 litre fuel tank capacity. Fuel consumption: 13.0L/100km (combined cycle) Max Power: 270kW @ 5250rpm Max Torque: 550Nm @ 2000rpm

FPV's recipe for improved performance on the F6 Typhoon - based on the $46,405 Falcon XR6 Turbo - involves a bigger air-to-air intercooler (about twice the size of the XR6T's) and some changes to the Garret turbocharger, which increase boost to 9.3 psi, or 0.64 bar.

A dual entry ram air intake reduces the pressure of the air flowing into the turbo system, while upgraded valve springs and conrods have been added to improve the engine's durability in the face of the intensified combustion process.

The net result of these changes is a boost in power from 245kW to 270kW. Not massive, but the more important figure is torque, which rises from 480Nm to 550Nm, giving the F6 Typhoon an incredible stride during take offs, and a mountainous mid-range punch.

As FPV rightly claims, it's force-fed engine has the "...highest torque output of any production six ever built in Australia and one of the most powerful in the world."

The engine is one of my favourite aspects of the car - and arguably the centrepiece around which everything else is judged - and rightly so. The power kicks in early if you want it to, but the 'Phoon will just as easily chirp up the rear wheels at 50km/h after a slow take off followed by a smooth-but-determined increase of throttle.

Zero to 100km/h times have been claimed as low as 5.4 seconds, and though our testing equipment is far from modern (a sundial and some twine) we put the time at closer to 5.7 seconds, though I should mention that the 'Phoon had about 7000km on the clock, and 7000 journo kays puts quite a bit of wear on the on powertrain.

This engine is very smooth. Coupled with the 6-speed gearbox it makes a mockery of standing starts and though we didn't get a chance to test them, quarter mile sprints would be around the low 14s, if not under, given perfect conditions - and all the while the thing has a very refined feel to it.

Mid-gear roll-ons are exceptional; internal organs become slowly relocated (read: mashed) around ones spinal cord as overtaking maneouvres on the highway become more of naughty pleasure than a gear-shifting chore. The power band is simply phenomenal - 550Nm of peak torque joins the party @ 2000rpm, remaining steady until 4250rpm, and then a scant 1000rpm later peak power of 270kW kicks in, increasing road speed dramatically. This gives you a rich 3250rpm power band wherein acceleration is astonishing, and a whopping 60% of this 3250rpm range is providing peak torque all the while.

In theory, one could purchase a $46,000 XR6 Turbo and spend around $15,000 on it, which would probably give it 'Phoon-besting performance. But the flip side of this theoretical dalliance is that you'd probably void your factory warranty, whereas the FPV Typhoon offers ludicrous performance, all with the backing of the factory. And a neat little turbo boost gauge, I should add.

In the old money, the F6 cranks out 405 ft.lb of torque, which is more than what America's favourite sports car, the Chevy C6  Corvette coupe pumps out (powered by the same 6.0-litre V8 that HSV uses), and is enough beef to break traction at the rear wheels without trying too hard.

The engine can get quite thirsty when pushed for prolonged periods of time, but at the same token if you can manage to drive the 'Phoon with a modicum of civility, it returns pretty good figures. At 100km/h, the engine ticks over at about 1600rpm in sixth gear, which isn't too bad for an automatic transmission.

Exterior: 4/5

FPV has improved the image of its new 2006-model (BF) FPV range, making for a bolder, brasher vehicle

The new FPV bodykit gives the large sedan a more aerodynamic form than its Ford Falcon siblings, and is much more pleasing to the eye as a result. It's closer to the ground, rides on decent-looking 18-inch wheels and gives off a suitably muscular vibe, even if there's no bonnet bulge to speak of.

The front apron gets a new grey insert for the BF model, giving the car a more serious performance look, while at the same time framing the intercooler. New look fog lights also make the cut and small touches like red F6 badge on the sporty looking mesh grille help add a certain mystique to the bawdy sports car. The angular twin-element headlights still look rather good today, having been unchanged since their inception earlier in the decade, providing nice bookends for the sporty grille.

From side-on, the profile of the FPV F6 Typhoon is quite pleasing, (if a little Falcon-ish) as the fluted side skirts give it a hunkered down appearance, and at the rear of the car grey inserts in the lower apron match the front, complete with the same mesh finish from the grille, and a stylised exhaust tip finishes the picture.

With its slinky bodykit, the F6 feels very solid on the road at speed (surprisingly so) but on the flip side there's only 125mm of ground clearance, so the bodywork can scrape heading down the driveway and over the gutter. When the original F6 launched in 2004, there was initially a bit of consternation in the office about it not being different enough from either Falcon or its V8-engined FPV stable mates, but all this has been rectified with the new BF model 'Phoon, whose road presence has been improved significantly.

Interior: 3.5/5

There are a number of aspects of the Typhoon's interior that cannot escape their Falcon heritage - such as the dashboard, switchgear, door handles and centre console - yet the FPV presents a very sporty cabin that aptly augments its emboldened exterior. The turbo and oil pressure gauges are points of different, though they tend to upset the otherwise smooth lines of the dashboard. 

The seats are what catch the eye initially; very large, deep and welcoming bucket seats, with sports contours and big lateral supports to hold bodies in place when cornering. Comfy and practical, I suppose you could say.

The ergonomic interior offers up heaps of room and is great over long distances

Our test model was given the leather treatment (a $2750 option) which ups the tactile and comfort levels on the seats, and adds suede door inserts that lend the interior a touch more elegance and tactile contrast. Faux carbon fibre accents here and there don't look too bad, and fit and finish was quite good, all things considered. We heard a slight creak from the boot region towards the end of our test every now and then, but otherwise build quality seems to be very good.

Just in case you forget what you're driving, there are FPV logos emblazoned on the head rests, speedo and tacho dials, and also on the steering wheel, which again was the fancy optional item, which is suitably chunky and fetches another $950. Blue back-lit dials look great at night, as does the red starter button and drilled alloy pedal, and the general layout of the dash instruments is pretty good. The only qualm I had was that the tachometer (rev counter) doesn't have a redline area to show you when you're getting close to the rev limit.

As far as ergonomics go, the F6 Typhoon is right on the money. Adjustable seats and steering wheel (and pedals for $350) mean that drivers of all sizes, from the condensed to the expanded, can find a comfortable compromise. And for anyone who has never ridden in a large Aussie car, this thing's big - it's got heaps of interior space, enough room for five adults to travel in comfort and boot space is not to be sniffed at either, with 504 litres being enough to swallow a couple of bodyboards, your cricket gear and maybe even a large sack of potatoes on top of that. 

The rear bench is a nice place to be as well, with plenty of leg and shoulder room and a fold-out armrest when 2+2 touring is the name of the game. Head room can become tight in the back with taller passengers, but otherwise you'd be hard pressed to find a roomier vehicle with this sort of performance for sixty large.

There is the argument that says the FPV (and in fairness HSV models too) is not different enough from its donor car, but then you could rebut this by saying that the Falcon was a big, well-made and comfy car in the first place. And to be honest, when I finally got over some of the visual similarities present in the interior, actually sitting in the driving the thing is incredibly comfortable.

Overall: 4/5

Driving the F6 Typhoon is a blast for a number of reasons, and though sheer performance is one of them, the overriding factor for mine was the vehicle's jack-of-all-trades nature.

You can blast through the twisties with nary a care in the world in the F6 - it's surprising how easy it is to extract the FPV's performance potential - but it has also got masses of interior room, comfy seats and a fairly supple ride for when business takes you into town or through the 'burbs. And of course it's a great hooligan mobile, but you didn't hear it from me...

With plenty of gumption through corners and an attention-grabbing powertrain, there's no denying this vehicle's performance capabilities. But more than just a belter of a sports sedan, it's got good road manners, it looks great and is so easy to live with on a day-to-day basis. FPV's best vehicle? In my opinion - yep. Sure is. And good value for money too.

HSV still doesn't have a 6-cylinder performance model, which is a shame, because as the F6 Typhoon proves just how immensely rewarding such a vehicle can be, while at the same time providing the kind of performance that's more than up to the task of bruising the more popular 8-cylinder sports sedans. If you're looking for a hot 6-cylinder sports sedan with the lot - and frankly, even if you're not - you should take one of these bad boys for a test drive.