Ford Fairmont 2002 Problems

A faulty body computer is the most likely cause of this behaviour. It’s a common enough fault with this series of Ford Falcons and it often requires the body computer to be replaced as well as the ignition keys to be re-coded to the new computer. Unfortunately, it’s not a cheap fix, although you could try a second-hand computer from a wrecking yard. There’s every chance, though, that it could develop the same problem sometime in the future.

It sounds to me like a fault with the transmission ECU. By turning the engine off and restarting you are rebooting the computer, which suggests it's a fault with the computer.

That’s a lot of water to lose. If it were a head gasket that had failed I would expect the engine to be running roughly, a spark plug to be showing evidence of water contamination, and coolant in the oil. If its running normally and there’s no sign of coolant in the oil than its fair to assume the mechanic was correct and its not a head gasket. Falcons of that vintage are renowned for failing the transmission oil cooler, which is in the radiator, and if that happened coolant leaks into the auto trans. Also check for external leaks, damage to the radiator etc.

THIS is a common problem with the 5.4-litre V8 and has been for a long time, so you would think Ford and its dealers would have worked out a way of removing the spark plugs without breaking them. That you cop a bill of almost $2400 just to remove the spark pugs is disgraceful. Ford and the dealer should both be ashamed for not working out a solution a long time ago.

IT IS unlikely the problem is related to the ABS. It is more likely to be the wear in the disc. It is not unusual to machine discs on Falcons every time they're serviced. It is a common complaint.