[Falc'man]

Originally Posted by galaxy xr8

I don't believe Ford introduced the I6T as a mean's of combating the LS1, it was a mean's of attracting a new generation/bread or market that would have otherwised been looking at the likes of a WRX or EVO, alot like why they Ford and FPV introduced themselves into the world of drifting at some event's.
They were trying to take a slice of pie from the Rice brigade, as at the time the WRX and EVO were all the craze.
It did steal sales from their sibling's the XR8 but it was a very strong market that they wanted to follow, I don't believe it was more so because of the LS1.

I honestly don't know what Ford's actual intentions were, that could have been it. The other story is the Ford engineers wanted this from way before BA to spearhead Ford's performance models. Sanity prevailed and we ended up with both that and the Boss. You can't not have a V8 in the line-up, they learnt that from the 80's.

Originally Posted by galaxy xr8

Why did Holden act with the Gen III ?
Why did holden up their power stakes ?
It goes both way's mate.

Doesn't that prove the point; they were the FIRST to act. THEY initiated the power surge. Up until that point both were on par and nothing offered from either manufacturer was overly game-breaking. They all had 185kW or less. The VT SS could be optioned with a 195kW HSV spec motor. Other than that there was nothing happening unless we start talking about the VS GTS-R, VT1 GTS, and Group A SS before them. They were all considered as top dogs. Ford sat on their hands with 185kW and then Holden slaps them in the face with 220kW in a povo pack Commodore.

Originally Posted by galaxy xr8

A lot of people like to look at the number's game and play the number's game, Ford and Holden have been leap frogging each other since the fight started between the two.
So just because a vehicle is "badged" as a higher number, it automatically mean's it's quicker does it ?.

Where were you when the Gen 3 was released? It smashed anything Ford had to offer. The only saving grace for the 185kW Windsor was that it head better bottom end torque but, rightly or wrongly, that hardly won it any bragging rights because what really won the comparos was the 5.7's top end power, and the overall consensus was the Gen 3 was the be all and end all during that era, according to all the motoring critics.
Due to this fact alone Ford decided to act. They gave us 220kW XR8, which proved it better than the SS. Not because it handled better, it always did, but because it now offered power to match the SS. Same story with T-Series VS the Clubsport/R8.

Originally Posted by galaxy xr8

Really bewteen the two rival's when we compare 0-100 and 0-400 times, there really isn't much in it, is there, so much so that on any given day one might topple the other and vice versa,

The 185kW Windsor didn't stand a chance in the eyes of the journos against the Gen 3. It was more than several tenths slower. And consequently that is where the battle is run and won, in the hands of the press. They're the critics. They have the greatest influence in how people perceive the products that are tested. And, sales proved this.

Originally Posted by galaxy xr8

but when you talk about over all performance it's a different ball game, the Falcon has it over the Commodore, but like all pub talk crap all people like to hear about and read is the fast fiqures, 0-100 and 0-400, so thats all we can do, I have posted some link's now whether people choose to read them or not, I don't care but they are data that is easily sourced from this discusion.
The question was asked.

I agree with you 100% on this. In fact I would rather just sit in any Windsor and just hear it idle than drive a Gen 3.
The AU XR8 were was a better handling car than the VTSS. In fact it was superior.

Don't get me wrong, the whole debate is about when - in the history of our local performance vehicles - was the moment that instigated a plethora of great, affordable performance cars. What was the game-changer? What changed the face?
Today you have that face, which includes the following;
You have 270kW XR6T and SS', both under $50K.. How much was the 185kW XR8?
You have 315kW "XR8" GS. Under $60k. How much did people pay for 300kW of C4B GTS?
You have 317kW, 325kW HSVs.
And you have a "335kW" GT (which was a waste of 40 million development dollars, FPV should have focused on suspension instead).
This is what the face is today.
How did all this come about? In other words, who through the first real punch? It wasn't Ford by getting back into the V8 scene with the EB.
It wasn't the XR GT that shaped today's face, not for Ford, anyway, because they rejected their own heritage in '82.
I maybe looking at it the wrong way but when I look back at it all Ford only got their act together when they figured out what a simple crate motor could do for Holden. Just my view of it.