NOW FOR SALE $4k - Commando's BF - Business Class Frequent F

[t1MMy]

Good pick up Dave. Been thinking along the same lines as you lately, time for something more modern, reliable, safe etc...must be the age :S

[Troutman]

Lovely car, I was looking at them myself when I bought the VT but found it hard to get the exact specs I was after.

LiLPG is worth the extra dollars because of vastly superior fuel economy. The factory LPG Falcon uses nearly 50% more fuel than the 6 speed petrol model (admittedly with a much better tranny), whereas with LiLPG you're looking at about a 10% loss, and in theory better power. That said, I'm not happy with mine as the fuel pump is horribly noisy and apparently nothing can be done about it.

Please note that stability control was only fitted to the Fairmont Ghia at the time, though traction control was standard and ESP may have been optional. I think factory LPG models are only starting to get TCS/ESP this year which is pretty poor form. The 380 never had ESP.

[Sunboost]

My November 2006 BF2 XR6T had DSC on it, so why wouldn't the Fairmont? Or was it an option?

The logo on the bottom of the ICC should be a car getting sideways for DSC, or a single wheel doing a burnout for Traction control lol.

[Commando]

Yes, I've decided on LiLPG for the long-term economy and to add a bit of prestige to the car (am I developing a complex?). I need to look in to finding out when exactly I'm eligable for the rebate as I had the wagon done in about July '07, but didn't actually process the claim until later in the year (December?).

My bad on stability control/ESP (I should look up what it truly means, I thought it meant the distribution of braking force if reefing the wheel while on the picks), I mixed this up with EBD which the BF Futura, VZ Acclaim & 380 had. Anyway I picked this over luxury in an earlier Ghia/Calais because I'd rather have a better chance of avoiding skippy out where I live (and my gf sometimes drives the car), & the newer flagship models were out of my pricerange. I'm very happy to have gotten a Fairmont when I was just aiming for a Futura

Snyper I could send a PM if you want? <3

[SnyperEB]

What you and I talk about Dave we should leave it to private messages!!

[ClassicAU]

a single wheel doing a burnout for Traction control lol.

hahaha, funny you say that, cos my old mans AUIII Ghia had exactly that! It was a little picture of a wheel spinning! The dumb thing is, that car came standard with an LSD!

[Troutman]

Only the VZ Acclaim in that list has ESP, but both Ford and Holden have EBD which I believe compensates for load imbalances during heavy braking. According to Red Book, ESP wasn't an option at the time (it wasn't available on the VZ Exec, too). It's not much different to the present day FG curtain airbags fiasco, where it's only standard on the top Falcons, whereas Holden even equips its base model Cruze with the feature.

For a neat little intro to these features, check this British video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3m24bjkfg0

No harm in filling out the LPG rebate form and seeing if they accept or reject it. Looks like only one system is claimable in every 3 years.

http://www.ausindustry.gov.au/Energyand ... /home.aspx

[Commando]

Looks like I didn't read some things closely enough then (EBD vs ESP) but at least I've found something with better stopping features than a BA-BAII/VX-VY. I'm happier that I'm in a Fairmont vs an Acclaim

Thanks for the specific link Jack, makes perfect sense now. Looks like I'll get the gas done ASAP! Still waiting to hear back about the LI kit.

I had a look before & the button below my ICC screen is Traction Control, not DSC (ESP?). Must be a BF1 vs BF2 thing.

Josh - After checking again, I've only got the 1600kg towpack. Sorry, no tow for you

[Dezza]

Good buy Dave... although I couldn't picture you driving something so modern!

[EFFalcon]

Time for a haircut Mr Pro Fesh A Nalllll

[LTDHO]

It will make an awesome parts car for the next box car!

[pHaT`eL]

Naw, Daves moving on to older (High School) classier women too?

Good pick up mate!!

[Mr_EF_96]

i dunno... Dave's wagon wasnt exactly..... exciting.
even i'd rather drive a BA Fairmont over a 400,000km old EF Wagon

I would deffinently love to own a Bf fairmont over the wagon but the wagon is still going strong and is serving now as a full time family car.

Wish my brakes where half as good as the Bf brakes you would have on yours dave.

[Commando]

OK, time for an update! Probably the only update the car will really have.

I had the Fairmont converted to LILPG this week, & I think it will be great I opted for a cylinder tank instead of a toroidal one, and even though it's only been one day I'm very happy with how it drives so far.

Performance matches petrol except 60-80 feels a *little* slower. Purge time on cold startup is <20 seconds & half that on warm startup. The idle during purge time feels like my old wagon but then it's back to normal after that. It stalled immediately after one of the warm starts (turn key, car starts, car shuts off), but I think this was just a one-off.

The engine bay install looks great, and I'll get a cover for the tank in the boot, but my sole complaint is the gauge on the dash. It's an LED gauge with green & orange LEDs. I'll see at the 1000km run-in service if I can get another one, but to be fair to the installer I didn't ask about what kind of gauge I'd be getting, and I only decided I didn't like it when driving home at night; the green & orange clashed with the rest of the Fairmont's white/red theme. If I can get a replacement gauge with white/red LEDs I'll be 100% happy with the install.

Tank range & fuel economy readings seem a little out (6.0-7.0L/100kms seems optimistic, it was previously getting 7.0-8.0L/100kms on petrol) but this might sort itself out once the system beds in? If not, it's no biggy.

Pics to come over the weekend.

[Commando]

Update on LILPG - 9.5L/100kms for 80% freeway 20% city driving!

Liquid for the win!

[FordFairmont]

Gas for the lose !!!

[KR1STO]

Gas for the lose !!!

nah no way... i love bbq fuel

[needfordspeed]

Gas for the lose !!!

How can you even say that with 9.5L/100km, stupidest thing i've ever fkn heard!

[Rollin]

Needs personalised plates: 53CKS

[ClassicAU]

LOL, YES!!

[Commando]

My gf says they'd be pretty cool to get.

[ClassicAU]

My gf says they'd be pretty cool to get.

What, sex or the number plates?

[Commando]

the latter. The former's been crossed off today's to-do list!

[ClassicAU]

damn it, I miss sex on tap. Anyway, nice car grandpa.

[Commando]

OK, gas install pics uploaded. Excuse the dogfood!

Boot should look 11ty-x better with a false wall, & I'm pretty happy with the engine bay.


^^^ Before


^^^ After

[wicksy]

looks good i didnt even notice it when i first looked,

[bentls]

very nice dave... whens the tape cassette player going in?

[Commando]

Someone's already spotted my early ipod. I just had a look at ipodhistory.com or something like that & it's a 3rd gen 2003 model. 15gb! lol

[NUT347]

Update your sig Dave!

[ClassicAU]

Nice dude, it barely looks any different under the hood! Did you end up talking to them about the gas gauge at all? They gunna swap it for you?

[Commando]

heh, I have sigs/avatars/images removed so I forgot about it. Cheers

Ev - it's the only gauge that comes with that particular system. I'll get mine pimped instead

[ClassicAU]

Damn it, that sucks. Take some photos of it at night all lit up and what not, cos it doesnt look that bad during the day. Would have been nice to avoid the Dave spec backyard mods for such a nice car!

[Commando]

During the day it's fine. And at night it's only noticable if you glance down at the gauge, but still it clashes when you've got an interior lit up with white/red, & then off to the side there's some green & orange. Will take a night-time pic when I can pinch the work camera again.

I'm a bit of a stickler when it comes to consistency with interior colours, be it material or lighting. The main reason reason behind the EF tapedeck in the EB was the plastics matched up well and the orange display matched the digi dash + buttons. I can't stand seeing a tidy car interior ruined by (example) a bling-silver headunit + nuclear green display.

[Kenaz]

Looking good, Dave. Very neat and factory like

[Commando]

Bump.

OOOOOOOKKKKKK...

I received a letter tonight regarding the LPG Vehicle Scheme claim:

Unfortunately you are not eligible to reveice this grant. This is because you have received an LPG Vehicle Scheme grant within the last three years.

I'm fairly pissed off. This is obviously a standard letter template, but what concerns me is that it is incorrect. Unfortunately the ausindustry website (http://www.ausindustry.gov.au/Energyand ... /home.aspx) is down at the moment but if you google LPG Vehicle Scheme timeline and look at images, the timeline is the first image to pop up.

The timeline CLEARLY states that it is not three years between CLAIMS that is needed, it is three years between the first CONVERSION and the second CLAIM.

Doubt I'll have time to fk around on the phone tomorrow at work, and it's something that can only be done Monday-Friday 8:00-5:00

Anyone else been fucked around by this?

[NUT347]

That's sooo gay!

How much did the LPG system cost?

Its only worth it if you get the rebate...

[Commando]

$4800ish (remember it's liquid injection), mind you it's probably cheaper now. I'd calculated that compared to petrol i'd pay it of in just over 12 months (inc rebate), or around 3 years if i'd bought an egas model. I plan to keep it for at least 5 years.

I have contacted ausindustry, will see what happens...

[NUT347]

Hopefully you get the rebate man

[Commando]

Bump

I'm at home bored while waiting for the washing to be done. Figured I'd post an update. Firstly the rebate problem was fixed quickly & I got the $1750 within a couple of weeks. I've done about 35,000kms on gas now & have clawed back approx $4k (including rebate) from my initial $4800ish cost. This car is friggen cheap to run!

It's a bit dirty now & has a couple of dings on the bootlid/rear bar thanks to a bike carrier failing at 100kph, writing off one bike as it fell onto the highway & having the 2nd bike fall forwards between the carrier & the car, bouncing up & down like meatspin on go-ey. Fun times!

Anyhoo I probably won't update for a while, it's just an A-to-B car & will remain that way for hopefully another 200,000kms. Next mod - rubber strip to stop the knt zapping me. Might get it tinted too, if I can get a good deal somewhere. The bloke who did my EB (A+ job) has disappeared.

[galapogos01]

4 grand in 7 months, not bad!

If you want to do it in Melbourne I can recommend Car Tint Options in Mulgrave. Cheap & does a good job, not afraid to fix any mistakes etc.