Ford stops GT Falcon sales over engine problem

This isn’t quite the bang that Ford was hoping the last ever GT Falcon series would go out on.

Ford has stopped delivering cars — and called back more than 300 already in customer hands — because of a problem with the handbuilt supercharged V8.

A seal in the engine can become dislodged and damage the transmission’s bell housing — the part that links the engine to the transmission — causing a loud noise similar to a marble on a roulette wheel.

It is not deemed a safety issue so there is no official recall. Instead, Ford is addressing the problem discreetly.

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A statement from Ford said: “Ford is committed to delivering leading quality, including this customer satisfaction campaign that we quickly initiated for a small number of (GT Falcons) after learning a grommet in the engine block may not have been properly installed.”

Ford says 325 of the batch of 500 cars have already been built and that it has contacted most customers directly.

There is no risk the car would lose power suddenly but Ford says the misplaced seal could cause “an obvious noise to indicate service is required”.

The mechanical malfunction is an embarrassing hiccup for the iconic car, which is the most powerful GT Falcon of all time, and the last of its type before Ford closes its Australian manufacturing operations in October 2016.

When the Ford Performance Vehicles division closed at the end of 2012, Ford Australia retrained workers at its Geelong engine plant so they could build the GT Falcon’s supercharged V8.

However, unlike the mass-produced six-cylinder engines which are made on a production line for the Falcon sedan and Territory SUV, the GT Falcon’s supercharged V8 must be built by hand.

Last month, Ford raised almost $400,000 for the National Breast Cancer Foundation when it auctioned the first and the last of the final series of GT Falcons.

Car number 500 alone fetched $236,100 — triple its recommended retail price — to an enthusiast in Melbourne while car number 001 went to a buyer in Western Australia.