EL Falcon Predator - Unleashing the Beast!

The six with more power than the EL GT!

(Back to EL Falcon Showcars.)

Introduction:

Built by Tickford in 1997 for the 1998 show season (Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane Motor Shows) the Predator was constructed to showcase the potential available within Ford's 4.0 litre SOHC six cylinder range.  Designed to to lift the sales of second hand base Falcons (hence based upon a Futura instead of an XR6) - which were selling very slowly at the time - all parts used in the build had to be readily available throught the aftermarket which makes this vehicle especially relevant to our readers.

Fitted with an aftermarket supercharger kit, this amazing Falcon features a host of interesting detailing items including carbon fibre engine dress up pieces and a full custom interior.  Based interestingly on a Gli, there's no denying the bang for your buck should you choose to follow the same route!  And unlike most specialty show cars, this one's a runner as the journo's discovered as they rocked up in droves to have a crack at the 230kW six.

Engine:

Surprisingly, no modifications were needed to the main engine components - with most mods limited to those required for fitment of the supercharger or dress up purposes only.  Even the compression ratio is able to be retained at a heady 9.35:1 due to LPG's relatively high octane rating of 110 RON* (compared to ULP's 92 RON / premium unleaded 96 RON).  Going Single Fuel LPG has many advantages, and being able to place the gas tank where the petrol tank used to go is only one of them.   Others include the opportunity to fit a larger gas tank than normal (or even dual gas tanks) to achieve a higher range, reclamation of the Falcon's 60/40 split fold rear seat access (most gas installations block this) and the ability to tune the engine for optimum performance on gas without having to compromise due to the need to run petrol.  A further benefit is in increased reliability and reduced service costs due to reduced complexity and not having to have the injectors cleaned after not running on petrol for some time!

Project Manager: Eric Houghton.
 
Engine Specs:

• EL XR6 4.0 litre SOHC straight six.
• Power outputs:
• 230kW @ 4900rpm.
• 468Nm @ 4100rpm.
• Cross flow alloy head.
• Serpentine accessories drive belt.
• C.A.P.A (Centrifugal Air Pumps Australia) 'SVO' Powerdyne Supercharger.
• Gas Research throttle body.
• Tickford-tuned gas converter.
• Large capacity remote mounted oil cooler.
• V8 radiator for extra cooling capacity.
• Carbon fibre upper intake manifold cover.
• Carbon fibre trim panel b/w headlights and radiator support panel.
• Carbon fibre intake ducting combined with custom polished cast alloy sections.
• Braided stainless steel hoses where ever possible.
• Body coloured power steering pump.
• Custom body coloured radiator over flow bottle cover with 'Predator' painted on top.
• Polished factory rocker cover.

*Rating in 1997.  Unfortunately, the quality of LPG today is not guaranteed with the mixture of Butane / Propane being changed to suit increased profits for the already rich oil companies.  So in the famous words of a certain yellow three-fingered funny, "The old grey mare - she ain't what she used to be!"

Driveline:

• BTR 4-speed electronically controlled automatic transmission - specially built to Tickford specifications to handle the high torque outputs.
• Dana 'glass graphite' driveshaft.
• BTR Hydratrak rear axil with XR ratio (3.45:1).

Exhaust:

• Twin 2 1/4" pipes.
• HPC coated Genie Extractors.
• Twin 3" catalytic converters.
• Dual 3 1/2" tail pipes into 4" chrome tips each side.

Suspension:

• Tickford tuned spring package.
• Koni adjustable shock absorbers with adjustable spring seat height.

Wheels & Tyres:

• 18" x 8 1/2" Speedline front alloy wheels.
• Dunlop W10 235/40/18's on the front.
• Dunlop W10 265/35/18's on the back.

Brakes:

• Front: TVE (Tickford Vehicle Engineering) twin spot calipers mounted on GT cross drilled discs supplied by Disc Brakes Australia.
• GT Falcon flexible brake lines.

Exterior: Paint and Panel done by F1 Panels in Fawkner, Melbourne. Colour - 'Orange Copper'. All badges shaved and holes filled. PIA spotlights mounted in the front bumper air intake. Tickford designed & constructed chrome mesh grill with chrome surround. Chrome mesh lower air intake grill. 'Gold' window tint by 'Car Tint' (one of the few parts of this car that I think looks...crap!) Motorcycle 'quick action' chrome fuel filler and filled original fuel filler door. Body coloured mirrors. Side body protection mouldings deleted. Side body pressings smoothed (recesses for above). 'Predator' decals on lower rear doors.

Interior:

• Interior built by by Bob Roman of Auto Tek (under the direction of the Ford styling department), who just happens to be the Momo / Recaro distributor for Australia!  (Now that's a handy hobby to have up your sleeve isn't it?)
• Recaro front seats.
• Front and rear seats trimmed in 'Kawashima' velour and 'Eagle Ottawa' leather.
• Instrument Panel, doors and trim panels in charcoal.
• Fairmont Ghia chrome interior door handles.
• Rear parcel shift re-trimmed in suede with Alpine speaker module.
• White / Orange instruments.
• Momo steering wheel.

We are always on the look out for photos taken of this car while it was still on the show circuit at the time - so please feel free to send in any you have and we will display them giving you the credit for your fine photographic talent!  The EL 'Predator' is currently on display in the Ford Discovery Center, Geelong.