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If our 'cousins' at car-buff magazines Wheels and MOTOR are right (and there's no indication that they're pushing a furphy), we are about to witness the biggest changing of the guard in the local power war in Ford and Holden history.

Holden and its performance division Holden Special Vehicles are about to find themselves in the uncomfortable position of being on the ropes. It will be an unfamiliar feeling for the Lion, whose V8s have roared loudly and proudly for the better part of the past three decades with a distinct power and performance advantage.

Not since the mighty Falcon GTHO Phase III in 1971 has Ford properly had the upper hand. But the tide is well and truly about to turn.

In case you missed the latest covers of Wheels and MOTOR, Ford Performance Vehicles is about to unleash a supercharged V8 that won't just eclipse the power of the finest from General Motors, it will likely knock it into another ballpark.

It's little wonder the news has leaked six months ahead of the car's anticipated June launch (when new emissions regulations will render Ford's old 5.4-litre redundant as the company ushers in an all-new supercharged 5.0-litre).The Ford guys have been waiting for this moment for almost 40 years.

It is a big call to get so excited about a car that no-one outside Ford has driven yet, but the numbers paint a very clear picture. The estimated power from the new supercharged V8 is 325kW. That may equal the HSV GTS, but it's a fair bet that FPV is down-playing this number and the real figure is much higher.

Then there's the small matter of a rather large torque number. The estimated 600Nm of torque (the maximum the ZF six-speed auto can handle) should deliver a level of performance we've not ever seen in a volume-selling, locally made performance car. HSV's W427 7.0-litre V8 engine developed 640Nm but only 137 units were built.

Given that Ford has this week announced 1971 Bathurst winner Allan Moffat as a brand ambassador, it's pretty safe to speculate that the GTHO will make a comeback in its 40th anniversary year next year. We're tipping Ford will push the power numbers to around 375kW and 650Nm (the maximum grunt the six-speed manual can handle). This will truly be a collector's item.

Both FPV and HSV have tried over the years to build cars that can take on the Germans, but the new generation GT is likely to be the closest yet to becoming Australia's answer to the AMG Mercedes. A 0 to 100 km/h time in the mid to high four second bracket is a distinct possibility -- and not just in the hands of Ford engineers. Even hack journos should be able to get good times out of the new supercharged FPV GT.

What's not been widely reported is that FPV has found so much power that it has designed wider rear wheels (9.5 inch wide to match those on the latest HSVs) to put more rubber on the pavement.

The new engine is lighter than the old 5.4 donk, so it should be a better balanced car. Here's hoping Ford engineers haven't underdamped the suspension like they have on every vehicle to wear an FPV badge so far. Then, finally, the Holden versus Ford fun can truly begin.

If we really are nearing the end of an era of V8 performance cars and petrol, I couldn't think of a better way to go. The next couple of years are going to be fantastic for Australian performance car fans -- because HSV isn't going to take this lying down.

HSV upper echelons say that the company does not regard FPV as a real rival. It will say that its records show that few people cross the floor from one brand to the other and such rivalry only exists in the minds of the media and the fans -- but not buyers. But if HSV is attracting new and presumably less loyal people to its brand (because they are keen to try new cars) then there is in fact an increasing risk some HSV customers may walk into an FPV showroom to take one of these new supercharged Falcons for a test drive. Who knows, they may just be impressed enough to place a deposit on a car?

Perhaps that's why HSV is playing with a couple of supercharged engines from the ZR1 Corvette and the Cadillac CTS-V? Okay, we don't know it for a fact, but we firmly believe the supercharged 6.2-litre V8 engines are already here and about to be fitted to engineering mules.

HSV will no doubt respond to this FPV arrival, but it will take at least two years to complete development.

HSV has already begun talking about performance cars not just being about straight-line speed and 0 to 100km/h times. This is very true. HSV also rightly says performance cars are also about how a car looks, handles, stops, feels and sounds.

The funny thing, though, is that this is exactly what FPV's predecessor, Tickford Engineering, used to say to us pesky journos when trying to distract us from Ford's power deficit. Oh, how the tune has changed.

So FPV will be kicking its heels in the air for at least the next two years.
By which time FPV will have been able to celebrate the Falcon's 50th anniversary in style this year -- before celebrating the 40th anniversary of the GTHO next year.

And amid all the celebrations HSV will remind us all that it is not in a power war with FPV. A torque war? Now, that's a different matter….

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