1970 Ford Falcon XW GT HO Sedan

As thinly disguised race cars went, Ford's Falcon GT HO was right up there with the best of them, a homologation special in the finest Bathurst tradition. When Ford launched the facelifted XW Falcon range in 1969, the GT heralded new levels of performance thanks to the 351-cid Windsor V8, a twin-plate clutch, limited-slip diff, power-assisted front disc brakes and 36-gallon fuel tank plus a full complement of instruments. With trademark 'Super Roo' stickers and twin driving lights, the Falcon GT was the toughest looking Falcon yet and went on to spawn the legendary GT-HO which gave Allan Moffat his first victory at Bathurst in 1970. Although HO stood for Handling Option, and the XW GT did indeed include an anti-roll bar at the rear, there were some important changes under the bonnet as well, with a bigger Holley carbie, reprofiled camshaft, better flowing intake manifold and altered valves and lifters. All 1969 GT-HO Falcons (retrospectively tagged Phase 1s) used the Windsor block but for 1970 Ford switched to the higher-revving Cleveland block. Depending on the source consulted, the first 110 (some quote 50) GT HO's manufactured in 1970 were interim cars and have retrospectively been tagged Phase 1.5, prior to the official introduction of the Phase 2 with a close-ratio gearbox, 31 spline axles, twin-point distributor etc. The result was a thumping 300 bhp and 380 lb/ft of torque, making the GT-HO the quickest Aussie muscle car to date with 0-100 km/h times in around 6.5 seconds and the standing quarter mile in 14.4 seconds. After the failure at Bathurst in 1969, Ford hit back in 1970 and no fewer than 14 Falcons GT-HOs took the start at Mount Panorama and recorded a memorable one-two, despite numerous engine failures. Just 662 Falcon XW GT HO's were built in 1969-1970, a fraction of total XW production, and for the serious muscle car collector and Ford enthusiast, a genuine HO must be one of the most desirable performance cars around, not to mention a rapidly appreciating asset.