Noddy's AU2 Falcon XR6 VCT:

So what does Noddy buy when he wants to trade in his little red convertible? - A big Blue Ford of course! Dressed in Ford's new colour 'Narooma Blue', Noddy has sent in the 'in the build' photo's of his pride and joy as well - made possible by Ford's new on-the-line cameras with pictures now available to every new Falcon, Fairlane or LTD customer of their brand spanking new car being built.

Starting us off is a photo of Noddy's XR6 at conception on the "Main Framing Line" with robots adding the crucial first pieces to it's naked floor pan and front sub-chassis / firewall assembly. In this particular photo the body side pressings are about to be loaded onto the assembly which will then be moved via the blue painted transfer / fixture mechanism to the next station for the next robots to do their job. Hanging on the right front corner is the build sheet that tells the robots & humans alike what this car is to become and what pieces to add to it with Fairlanes, LTD's, utes & wagons all being built on the same line. Don't like robots taking human jobs? - You can thank previous Governments for reducing our import tariffs for that...

Here the car is a little further down the line after all welding processes have been completed, the paint shop visited for that vibrant blue hue and many small assembly items already completed. The doors which have been on the car for painting are removed prior to this photo to allow easy operator access as well as protecting them from damage during the assembly process. These are put on a conveyor to be assembled elsewhere and arrive shortly after as fully complete doors featuring their locking & window winder mechanisms as well as final door trims.

This photo was taken just after the instrument cluster and carpet was installed. The wiring looms, radio, windscreen and doors are also added at this stage. The Ford assemblers check the entire interior and the vehicle then passes onto the "Hi-line" (so named due to the new elevation of the vehicle) where the engine, petrol tank, axles and underbody components are fitted.

Here's Noddy's nearly completed AU2 XR6 Falcon on the 'Hi-line' just about to receive it's drive line (IRS, auto, VCT I6). Note the lack of body kit or spoilers - these will be added at Tickford later. All engines (even Tickford modified ones) are added at this stage with only the new T3 TE50 & TS50 5.6 litre strokers being removed to get the full treatment later on. Here the vehicle is about to be lowered over the drive train components as they are lifted to a more work friendly height. The yellow frame holding the body shell is called a 'clam shell' so if you hear anybody talking about one of these in a car factory you'll be able to smile and tell them you know what they are talking about!

Here the car goes through it's final checks before leaving Ford's Broadmeadows (Melbourne) based assembly line. The car is started and driven over a 'rolling road' including a dynometer to pick up any final last minute quality problems before being delivered to Tickford by truck (barely just over the road from the Ford factory). You will notice Noddy's XR6 is without it's front bumper / headlights & is wearing extremely daggy looking black steel wheels - all part of the kit that will be removed and fitted correctly once it arrives at Tickford...

Finally, with the nose cone and head lights attached Noddy's much more complete looking XR6 is given it's first headlight adjustment. Still to be fitted in this photo are the 17" wheels and body kit. So the question must be asked - how do you run in such a beautiful new car????

Which of course leads us to the second part of our story...how about drive it on a round trip from Geelong to Darwin and back! That's right - with just 120km on the clock and loaded with luggage, kids and Girlfriend this XR got the drive of it's life as evidenced by the photos.

Kitted out to the max, this particular XR6 not only featured all the usual XR6 goodies, but came with the 'VCT' pack that included Independent Rear Suspension, rear power windows, upgraded stereo system, 4.0 litre 172 kW VCT motor and 17" wheels standard. Noddy chose to add the in-dash 6-stacker, body kit and auto to all of this creating an extremely luscious and desirable six cylinder powered Aussie classic. So how many k's did Noddy's XR do in just over 15 days? Try 8400 for getting over those run-in blues. Kinda enough to make you want to go again isn't it? Then there's those speed unlimited Northern Territory outback roads....hmmmm. Makes you wonder why more Ford fans don't do this trip...!

Noddy's AU2 XR6 VCT: