And Then There Were 3...

[Twisted]

Hey guys,

So Ive narrowed the choice for my next car down to 3 options. Will be looking to own the new car by the start of July at the latest, in time for my birthday(a nice present to myself). If people can offer me their experiences and/or opinions on each of the cars I'd really appreciate it. The finalists are:

1- AU2 Fairmont Ghia 5L: Comfortable cruiser with the 5L power. All the gadgets, leather and will get a sunroof. Not much more needed other than lowering, exhaust and a nice set of 18's like Avanti Chile's. Wont accept any colour other than black.

2- AU2 XR8 Ute: A nice sports ute, have my eye on a very good example at the moment, complete with leather and for a very reasonable price. Black too. Ive always wanted a V8 ute done up nice and sleek and sporty. I dont have kids and not planning to go down that path for a few years yet so no worries about seating.

3- T1 TE50: Can be picked up for very reasonable prices lately if you can find them. Very nice cars and would need minimal mods, once again just lowering, exhaust and a nice set of rims.

Tell me what you think guys...

[Marlin_Girl]

go the ute!
go the black ute

not that i'm biased

[cArSiK]

hhmm AU2 Fairmont Ghia 5L gets my vote , thats exactly what i was looking for before i ended up with my XR...they have all the bells and whistles and are DIRT cheap to pickup at the moment....

James

[EFFalcon]

soft spot for a T-Series here... though i'd stretch for a T1 TS50..
2nd option would be the Ghia

[Perana]

any of those in black would be nice IMO!

I agree with EFFalcon though... T1 TS50 in black would be the go for me :P

[Falcon Coupe]

How can you look at two Sedans and a ute ? the first thing you should do is make up you're mind between Sedan and Ute, then look at if you want sports or cruising.

[5speedeb]

is the te50 the 220kw motor? if so thats my pick

[Perana]

Originally Posted by freddys

is the te50 the 220kw motor? if so thats my pick

T1 TE had 200kw motor... only the T1 TS got the 220kw motor

[5speedeb]

Originally Posted by Perana XR8

T1 TE had 200kw motor... only the T1 TS got the 220kw motor

well in that case go id still go for the te50

[InitialD]

Id be going for the TE50 or Ghia IMO as I dont have use for a ute

[mcflux]

Go the Ghia ;)

AU V8s come with all the good stuff attached too, no shitty E7 heads, 55mm MAF, 55mm t/b, HO intake... :

I'd vote 1 for the Ghia, a close 2nd for the TE (I'd replace the Ghia's #1 vote with a TS though), and a distant 3rd for the ute, no offence to ute owners out there!

Depends on what you want it for though...

-Dave-

[JC]

TE and TS in AU1 both came with fairmont spec trim etc (except TE may have not got leather), so not a lot of difference to an AU2 Ghia V8, except that the TE would probably hold its value better. The trade off is that it would still have series 1 brakes, but the TEs may have come out with better than what the XRs got.

My vote is TE, then Ghia, then ute.

[Perana]

The TE wouldve got the Tickford brakes IIRC

[Racecraft]

A few things I considered

1. Nice and lazy Luxo with all the bells and whistles but terrible resale.

2. Looks sporty until you get to a corner. The utes are not really all round performance cars imho BUT if you don't enjoy spirited driving on windy roads or the odd bit of track work the utes look sleek.

3. The series1 TE is a half bred Ghia/XR, good resale but unfortunatley looks alot like a AU2 Forte. Really only appreciated by the die hards.

My personal opinion would be the Ghia but i'd be looking at offloading it after year or two before the 2nd hand G220's destroy the market value even more

So I'd say you are looking at around a low 20k budget?

[Twisted]

Yeah Tibbo, around the low 20's mate. I could stretch for a bit more but would prefer to buy in the low 20's and spend a bit on mods straight off the bat instead of taking ages.

My only issue with the TE apart from finding one is that insurance might be more expensive due to the "TE50" name and also the replacement cost of parts. I know from talking to T2TL50 that ford arent friendly with the prices for T Series parts.

Originally Posted by Falcon Coupe

How can you look at two Sedans and a ute ? the first thing you should do is make up you're mind between Sedan and Ute, then look at if you want sports or cruising.

Simply because im at the stage in my life where i can have any car i want within a price range and they are the cars ive decided i like most. All 3 have their own individual bonus's and drawbacks. Id drive the ute because i like them, id drive the sedan because i like them.

[b2tf]

Brad, in all honesty I'd go for the Ghia. I know you work in Insurance and all but seriously - T anything is going to mean $$$, its also going to increase the risk of some jealous bugger taking a key to the side of your car etc etc. All things that could happen to any car i know, but still something to think about.

The Ghia - Basically an XR with the nice bits. Im sure you know the potential of the engine and drivetrain for mods etc, but the interior, even in stock form - just great. Dead cow, chrome and fake wood, what more could you want?! : e .

[AdzT3-146]

my choices would be
1.TE50
2.XR8 Ute
3.Fairmont Ghia

[XR8GRL]

The ute Brad!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by XRGirl

The ute Brad!!!!!!!

Im with xrgirl, go the yoot!

[philstoj]

lol, mate, i would look for a nice S1 TS50 if i could get it at the right price, and they certainly are cheap these days...
Either that or an XR8 ute :hihi:

[Mechan1k]

mmm ... Black XR ute gets my vote

[FordFan86]

Ghia by a bee's dick over the T1, forget the ute..

[Steffo]

Personally, I'd go for the black AUII XR8 Ute. You get 200kW like the TE50, plus you get the ultra usefulness of a commerical vehicle. You never know when you need to move something, carry something or what have you. The only reason I would ever buy the sedan is if I'm going to race it in some competitive form, or have a family to cart around.

So, my vote is

1. AUII XR8 Ute
2. AU TE50
3. AUII Ghia V8

[smciner1]

Reminds me of back before I got my XB GT. Narrowed the field of an Old School Falcon (tm) down to three. XB Falcon GT Sedan (Apollo Blue, Mulberry or Onyx Black), XC Cobra 351 or an XD Fairmont Ghia ESP 351 (Onyx Black or Hermitage). I went for the GT because it was a cut above your average Falcon and always had a soft soft for XB GTs, oh and no ADR 27A.

I would go the T Series. Nicest of the bunch. Get a manual if you can. Someone else has already taken the brunt of the resale value which works in your favour. Something different and a bit more special than your average XR / Ghia.

[Full Noise]

BlueAU, you have a PM.

Cheers, Danny

[Rodp]

I'd go the T series. I am swayed by the fact I would never buy a Ghia again after paying $35k for one then Ford offering me $4k as a trade 3 years later. Resale on the T or the ute would be much better.

I am a bit biased and would go the Ghia...

[Dave_au]

Definatley get the 98 4 Cyl Camry Conquest, its a chick magnet.

[Twisted]

Ive had a few quotes on the ute.

RACV $1250($700 excess), plus extra for mods but i only pay $60 a year more for the mods I have on my current car.

Shannons $2500, ahhh no!

Just Cars $1558($2050 accident excess, $1250 theft excess), no pay by the month either so not a fan.

GIO, wont touch me because im under 25.

CGU, wont touch me because under 25 even though im staff:(

[philstoj]

lol, dont bother getting a quote for theTseries then!