1973 Ford XA Falcon 500 V-8 Sedan

Launched in March 1972, the XA was something of a milestone car in Ford Australia's history, being the first car completely designed and built in this country. The XA marked a change in direction for the Falcon's styling, with a larger, more curvaceous shape and for the first time since the mid-1960s a two-door hardtop model was offered alongside the familiar four-door sedan and long-wheelbase station wagon. Ford continued with a range of commercials, including the popular utility and panel van. The range consisted of the base model Falcon 500, Futura and Fairmonts and standard equipment now included retractable seatbelts and a heater but a long option list was available, including bucket seats, power windows, air conditioning, power steering and various engine and transmission combinations. The XA's interior was brought up to date, with a wraparound 'cockpit' style dash and more safety features such as a collapsible steering column and impact absorbing steering wheel. Mechanically, the base Falcon 500 was equipped with a 200-cid in-line six but could be ordered with a larger 250-cid version of the same motor or with V8 power, either a 302-cid V8 (developing 240 hp) or the mighty 351-cid V8 as found in the GT. The choice of transmissions included three and four-speed manuals or a three-speed automatic, either with column or centre changes.