Ford XR8 Sprint 2016 Review

So where do we start? Maybe at the finish, because that's what we are dealing with here.

The FG X Falcon XR8 Sprint is the last in a long line of V8 rear-wheel drive sports sedans to be designed, engineered, developed and manufactured in Australia by Ford. It went on-sale in May priced at $59,990 (plus ORCs) for the six-speed manual and $62,190 (plus ORCs) for the six-speed auto. Most of the 750 examples built have sold already.

Launched at the same time was a $54,990 (plus ORCs) XR6 Turbo Sprint and most of the 500 examples of the blown 4.0-litre 'six' have been snapped up too.

In October the Broadmeadows factory that has manufactured Falcons since 1960 will shut down as the deconstruction of the Australian automotive industry enters its grim, final stages. One of the oldest nameplates in global motoring will cease to be.

It's impossible not to feel sad about that. I've been testing Falcons since the mid-1990s and met – and admired – many of the engineers and designers who have developed them. It's not because of them that Falcon dies. They have consistently done more than reasonably possible with less resources than believable.

It's a theme which the XR8 Sprint captures and continues. There was a deep desire within Ford Australia to make the last Falcon a really good car, not just a sticker kit. That's been done with a budget the development department over in the USA would probably look on as lunch money.

The most important work when it comes to the XR8 Sprint has been related to the chassis. The Sprint's underpinnings are a development of the R-SPEC settings for the double wishbone (front) / and multi-link (rear) debuted by FPV in 2012; and upgraded with the GT-F in 2014. There are new geometries and spring rates, re-valved ZF Sachs monotube dampers and staggered Pirelli P Zero tyres instead of the traditional Dunlop Super Maxx rubber.

Under the bonnet, the supercharged Miami V8 has been tuned to deliver 345kW at 5570rpm and 575Nm between 2220-6250rpm. A ten-second transient overboost function lifts those two figures to 400kW and 650Nm. That number ensures it officially sits below the 351kW GT-F in terms of kilowatts, which Ford previously guaranteed would be the most powerful Falcon.

There has also been effort made to give the Sprint a distinct look. There's no big wings or Super Roos. Instead Sprint is the new 'black'. There's a twice-painted black roof, black wing mirrors, headlight bezels, quad exhaust outlets, lip spoiler and black alloy wheels – a first for Ford Australia. The Brembo brake calipers – six pots up the front – are painted in gold.

There's also a new front foglamp surround that required new tooling to manufacture, which is impressive considering the short model run, the timeframe and the lack of money available.

Inside there are 'Sprint' badges on the leather/suede front seats and in the instrument cluster, while Ford's dipped into the parts bin for what it calls a 'unique interior feature combination', including dual-zone climate control, high series audio system, a unique shifter assembly and surround, and an electro-chromatic mirror.

Also standard are six airbags, a reversing camera, parking sensors, SYNC 2 voice control connectivity, sat-nav, part-powered driver and passenger seat adjustment, cruise control and a full-sized spare tyre.

Speaking of tyres, they are so often the under-rated key to extracting the best ride and handling from a car. The swap to P Zero 245/35R19 fronts and 265/35R19 rears was made because the Ford crew were after more launch and cornering grip, the latter allowing them to then soften the car off slightly in search of a more balanced Grand Tourer feel.

It's certainly worked. The XR8 Sprint still feels board-stiff at low speeds where it grumbles over bumps and holes in the road, but once up and rolling beyond 70-80km/h superb rebound damping comes into play. This thing really does flow imperviously over rough bits of road at speed and then squats with great surety in any corner that requires a bit of commitment. That's local tuning touch and understanding right there.

Sure, the XR8 Sprint does tend to feel a bit high and heavy in the tightest of hairpins, which is understandable considering there is a fair bit of weight onboard and a lot of that over the front axle. So there's some familiarity to the experience, but there is less understeer, more control and more communication than ever before.

The re-tuned hydraulic-assisted steering remains at the lighter end of the spectrum and may not be to all tastes, but the way it peels back to centre friction-free, and with certainty, is a marvellous trait of modern Falcons.

The main downside of the dynamic package is the road noise generated by the Pirellis, which is excessive on coarse surfaces.

Now to the engine. What a ripper. I never drove a GT-F but if it's better than this thing then it's very special indeed. Our XR8 Sprint came mated with the optional six-speed auto, which on any winding road was pretty much set and forget in third gear and let the torque do the work, rushing from the teens to beyond 6000rpm, all the while accompanied by that addictive supercharger whine.

What's missing are shift paddles, which would add an extra level of connection to the experience.

Ford says you should be able to bang out endless launch-control-managed 4.5sec 0-100km/h times in the XR8 Sprint, and the one time I had a chance to do just that in controlled circumstances I came up with a hand-timed 4.7sec effort. Easy.

The other key figure is fuel consumption; which Ford puts at 14.0L/100km for the XR8 Sprint auto on recommended 95 RON premium fuel. We actually undercut that at 12.8L/100km (on 98 RON PULP), which reflects a lot of low-rev freeway running between the interesting bits.

And the interesting bits are really intoxicating because of the way the drivetrain and chassis work so well together. We encountered a lot of wet-weather running in our week with the XR8 Sprint, but even then it proved surefooted and involving, encouraging you to explore its character rather than scaring you off. Yep it will slip when provoked, but there's also a lot of grip here. In the dry it's simply outstanding.

Complaints? Nothing more than the normal stuff. The seating position is too high, the steering wheel is too low; the controls are a combination of mostly old – that reflects the fact the interior of this car dates clearly back to the FG-series of 2007 – and a few new bits that are tied in with the SYNC 2 functions. There are no adjustable rear headrests or door pockets and the boot is a combination weird angles.

But I still like the way the digital trip computer between the gauges can be so easily tailored to your personal specifications, the big and comfy front seats and interior space for four Aussie adults.

But mostly, it's impossible not to love the accessible, excessive value-for-money performance the XR8 Sprint delivers. The last Falcon is the best Falcon? It seems so.

I'm so sad there won't be another.

2016 Ford Falcon XR8 Sprint pricing and specifications:
Price: $62,190 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 5.0-litre eight-cylinder supercharged petrol
Output: 345kW/575Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 14.0L/100km (ADR combined)
CO2: 333g/km (ADR combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star (ANCAP)

Also consider:
Ford Falcon XR6 Sprint (from $54,990)
Holden Commodore SS-V Redline (from $54,490)
HSV ClubSport R8 LSA (from $80,990)