Clues to the Falcon
12 January 2007
Paul Gover
The Ford Interceptor has an oversized body with a small glasshouse and low roof to give it a heavy, functional look
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Strip the cartoon character cues from the Ford Interceptor concept and the style direction of the next Ford Falcon starts to emerge.
Ford is adding more aggression to its future models and the Detroit car is a pointer to the potential in the 2008 Falcon.
"This car shows what you can do with a strong rear-wheel-drive architecture, like the Falcon," the executive director of Ford design in North America, Peter Horbury, says.
"It's tough. It makes a statement."
That is exactly what Ford Australia will need when the next Falcon goes up against the VE Commodore.
No one is suggesting the Interceptor will be copied by the design team at Ford Australia, which has already completed almost all the Falcon work, but the same influences could easily be at work at Campbellfield.
"In terms of presence, the Interceptor style would work for Australia," the design director at Ford-owned Jaguar, Ian Callum, says.
Callum knows all about Australian tastes and home-grown muscle. He was the chief designer for Holden Special Vehicles before joining the British luxury brand and did some of the most outrageous body and wheel work seen on a Commodore.
He believes the Interceptor is too extreme for production, but likes the influences.
"I see no reason why it could not work. It would certainly be a departure for Falcon," Callum says.
"I know the Australian car culture likes strong, brutal images. It's a pretty aggressive-looking car. It could work.
"It is more towards Australian taste than the a European design. I like it, by the way."
The Interceptor has an oversized body with a small glasshouse and the same grille treatment used on last year's F-Series Super Chief concept.
It has a very high beltline with a low roof to give it a heavy, functional look.
LThe mechanical package under the Interceptor is surprisingly similar to the Falcon and comes from the Mustang, complete with a 5.0-litre V8 engine, six-speed manual gearbox and rear-wheel drive.
It has been stretched to compete with the Chrysler 300, an American prestige sedan.
"Our customer target for this powerful, masculine sedan was a man with a family," Horbury says. "He's essentially a good guy, but a bit mischievous. He loves power and performance."
Even so, Ford has given the Interceptor some green credentials with tuning that allows it to run on E-85 ethanol fuel.
And it moves ahead on the safety front with Ford's patented four-point seatbelts, which it describes as a "belt-and-braces" approach.
Other neat tweaks include headrests that fold down from the roof and four individual bucket seats trimmed in super-soft belt leather.
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