Venom XR

Do not bank on SII being released Sept '04. BA Falcon is doing very well, and minor updates and things such as the Falcon Classic/SR are the order of the day, rather than a model update.

Most of you probably have seen 'Mandarin'. I believe it's the metallic orange used on the R7 prototype which became Territory.

Guys, Optimax *IS* BP Ultimate or vice versa, depends on whether your state has a BP refinery, or a Shell one. So for VIC, NSW, ACT they are both from Shell, in QLD/WA it's BP. I don't know if each adds anything beyond the refinery but the fuel is generaly the same - any difference you feel could be purely mental, or your particular servo is dodgy or something.

To my knowledge the Hillier boys have not done an BA Coupe, though I might see if I can get an update from Troy. They are fairly snowed under doing their normal jobs - hearse conversions. There was no followup to the Hillier/Autotek Raptor gullwing ute this year due to their work commitments. I was at the motorshow in 2003 when the other BA Coupe was there (which has been said is the product of a Melbourne company), and I know what the Hilliers thought of that effort...

How about UTERUS You could have a big sticker on the rear glass... "Born in the Tray!" or something like that...

Just NOS? NOS is a brand, what about other Nitrous Oxide kits?

Except Brians car isn't factory, and the original post was about a replacement gearbox for factory cars. Ford won't match a gearbox spec to the aftermarket whims of people like Brian. The Brian's of this world are always going to have to look at upgrades to areas such as driveline when making the sort of mods he has to the engine and he's done that, but we're talking factory spec here and I think you've forgotten that whilst arguing the quality of the shift in Brian's car (which no one is doubting). Ford are not going to put an aftermarket gearbox such as the Mal Wood-modified T56 in factory cars, the cost would be prohibitive - full stop. If they did, what would Mal Wood do besides service such gearboxes? It's to his benefit Ford throw in 'on the limit' drivelines into cars such as the XR6T which are undergoing such large performance upgrades. It'll be a factory T56, TR3650 (something that's off the shelf from Tremec as they do several variants of each), or a factory something else like a Getrag. They might decide to stick with the T5 for all we know. FPV are a slightly different story, they might decide mods to an existing gearbox are worth the extra cost.

Just to expand on the Ford-Jet Fighter thing, think about the FPV Turbo's name in full. F6 Typhoon F-14 Tomcat F-15 Eagle FA-18 Hornet If that was intentional on FPV's behalf, then I consider that to be rather clever! As the FPV Territory is (rumoured?) to be called Hurricane, then that theme is being continued. Perhaps the complete name should be FR6/FA6 Hurricane (Ford RWD/AWD 6 ...) Maybe FPV could then do an F4 Spitfire (Turbo Focus!)

FPV can't use the XR branding, as that's a Ford brand. I think the Typhoon pick up was actually made by GMC, not Ford.

You'd have to assume they'd use the Tremec TR-3650 5 speed manual.

More like 1890kg (4024lbs) Hmmm.... I just had to go back and check of course. I am not a close follower of these vehicles but after checking I found the E34 was listed at 1670 kg. Must be the one I had in mind??? I also see that the newer models are around 1800kg - as with all makes and models weights seem to be very vaguely represented BMW M5 Specs Heavy sucker. In any case, the Getrag 6 speed is a great box.

More like 1890kg (4024lbs)

Brian, you feel your requirements are obviously beyond the T5, and you've already committed yourself to a trans conversion. If someone else decides to post a thread about the existing gearbox including a poll then why do you have to dictate the terms in regards to your special needs? Really, this poll is relevant to those with a T5 as 100%'s first post indicated. You're not relevant here, so rather than bury the poll, why don't you post elsewhere on what people's experiences are with a T56 upgrade? But as far as the T5 goes, my experiences have been good. My first T5 survived 292,000 k's without a rebuild and was the best part of the car went it left my hands. My current T5 has been modified with a short-throw SureShift shifter from Herrod Motorsport, and a short shifter shaft from Battens Performance Tuning. The old 2nd to 3rd shift problems are all but gone. I can confidently shift in anger, and do 2nd to 4th, 4th-5th, 5th-to any other gear, etc without any dramas. The position of the gearknob thanks to the shorter shaft is also a big improvement and it feels 100% more comfortable. Slotting into reverse is perhaps the only issue I still have with the gearbox. However, I find if I take it easy, slot into 5th then reverse it's ok.

In NSW/VIC/ACT/TAS your BP Ultimate is Shell Optimax. In WA and QLD Optimax is BP Ultimate. The refineries have a sharing arrangement. I'll use either fuel, as there's no difference. Have never used anything but 98 RON fuel unless I've been forced too by lack of proper fuel.

The XR8 runs a Tremec TR-3650 box, first used in the T3 cars. Their torque handling is rated at 488Nm, though the TR-3650-2 is rated at 528Nm.