WHAT makes a hotel truly stand out? A Rolls-Royce in the driveway? Or perhaps one for each day of the month? The owner of a Macau luxury hotel has ordered a fleet of 30 Rolls-Royce Phantoms in what will become the biggest single order for the luxury car maker in its 110-year history.

Rolls-Royce isn’t saying how much the deal is worth, but the list price of the long-wheelbase Phantom saloon in Australia is a minimum $990,000 plus on-road costs per vehicle. Try making this deal in Australia, though, and you’re easily looking at forking out more than $30 million for off-the-rack plebeian versions.

In contrast, the fleet of Macau Phantoms will be highly customised, including bespoke clocks crafted by the watchmaking arm of London-based Graff Diamonds, pushing their cost up even further to make two of the batch the most expensive Phantoms ever commissioned, according to the British-bred uberluxury marque.

The binge order, placed by Chinese entrepreneur Stephen Hung, will be used to ferry well-heeled clients to and from his Louis XIII hotel, which opens on Macau’s Cotai Strip in 2016. It’s further proof of the lure of iconic European brands in Asia, with the Goodwood-based car maker also helping design the driveways of the hotel to accommodate its flagship sedans.

While being honoured to be part of Rolls’ biggest ever pay-day, chief executive Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes said Mr Hung’s commission “reaffirms Phantom’s pinnacle position as the motor car of choice for those seeking to experience the finest luxury the world has to offer”. It should also help the BMW-owned maker’s bottom line immensely so that it’s rollin’ in it (cough)…

AUSTRALIA is on track to post a record number of vehicle recalls in 2014, with a real chance that more than a million cars will head back to dealerships to fix potential safety defects.

In fewer than eight months, almost 70 vehicle recall campaigns have affected 789,000 cars, SUVs, utes and vans, according to the federal Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, which oversees vehicle recall activity.

More vehicles have been recalled so far this year than in every full calendar year except 2001, when 855,000 were affected. If the trend continues, recall notices could hang over 1.26 million vehicles by year’s end, comfortably outstripping the 1.11 million new-vehicle sales predicted for 2014.

The largest recall so far this year is for 142,000 Toyota HiLuxes – the equivalent of almost four years of sales for the work ute – while the smallest, from Jaguar and Skoda, are for only four cars each.

As of August, Jeep’s Grand Cherokee held the title as Australia’s most recalled car of 2014 with six notices. These have affected more than 76,000 vehicles – including some that have returned multiple times to correct different problems – that were sold as far back as 1993. Problems have ranged from fuel leaks to failing brakes and indicator software glitches, and even a cruise control system that would not switch off.

Holden’s Commodore is not far behind, with five recalls for the VE and VF Commodores. These have affected more than 103,000 vehicles – the equivalent of about three years of sales – for wearing wires, dodgy wiper motors, leaky LPG systems and poor welds.

Recall campaigns have affected 29 of the 51 passenger-car brands in Australia since January 1, with Chinese car makers including Great Wall, Foton and MG all featuring prominently, despite their fledgling status.

However, the department cautioned against criticising recalls, suggesting they did not necessarily mean a vehicle had a fault.

“Many recalls are for inspection only and are precautionary in nature,” a spokesman said. “It would be undesirable if vehicle recall campaigns were seen in a negative light – recalls should be viewed as manufacturers doing the right thing.”

Andrew McKellar, the chief of the Australian Automobile Association, pointed to the increase of in-car technology as a potential source of recalls and was also supportive of the recall process.

“The argument that manufacturers should be open and transparent with their customers if there’s any question over safety is a good rule to follow,” McKellar said. “Recalls are an effective channel for advising the customer that the vehicle may need a modification … in most cases they can be done relatively quickly and seamlessly.”

The reasons for safety recalls this year range from a lack of proper documentation in vehicles to the risk of fires in engines and electrical systems.

Porsche sent out alerts for five of its track-focused 911 GT3s after several caught fire overseas. However, the incident has not turned up on the government’s official records because the luxury German sports car maker said it had collected all the affected vehicles before the government’s deadline to issue a recall.

Three recalls – two for Toyota and one for Mitsubishi – have on their own accounted for almost half the 788,000 vehicles affected to September. Market leader Toyota recalled more than 300,000 vehicles – twice as many as it sold in the same period.

Total recall

Vehicle recalls in Australia are reported to the Federal Government’s Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development and published on the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s recalls website, www.recalls.gov.au

Car makers adhere to the voluntary recall code of practice in notifying the department, which involves contacting owners, either directly, through approved advertisements, or both.

The Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development oversees and manages vehicle recalls in Australia, but has no power to force a manufacturer to recall a vehicle. For that it turns to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, although a department spokesperson told Wheels: “To date, the government has never needed to invoke its powers to enforce a compulsory recall of vehicles.”

Official recalls are all safety-related and can affect anything from the braking system or airbags to the windscreen wipers, seats or lights. Car makers also conduct “service campaigns”, which are far more prevalent than safety calls; they are to rectify non-safety-related items. That could include a software update or a new radio.

Service campaigns typically relate to any manufacturing defect that does not impact the safety systems of the vehicle, and sometimes the changes or updates will be made without owners knowing.

Recalls can impact sales but the increased acceptance of manufacturing faults as a product of modern motoring means a manufacturer’s sales rarely dive dramatically as a result of intense recall action.

Toyota’s much-publicised “unintended acceleration” recalls of five years ago did little to stop the brand’s sales dominance, while more recently Volkswagen brushed aside a small sales dip following its controversial DSG automatic transmission recalls before returning to growth.

Source: Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development and Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

* Year to date 2014

# Based on FCAI full-year sales projection and recalls running at same rate as first 7.5 months of 2014.

FORD’S Australian-made Territory SUV appears to have been a key part of the development work for the upcoming Everest seven-seat off-roader – well, the back half of it at least judging by these spy images.

Sharp-eyed Wheels reader Soren Lund spotted this early left-hand-drive Ranger-based Everest mule driving through Melbourne this week, wearing the front cabin of the trade ute and an ill-fitting Ford Territory load space at the rear.

Few design clues come from this engineering evaluation vehicle. However, we’ve noticed that the black insert on the front guard carries a repeater lamp – something the near production-ready Everest concept car unveiled here in August last year, and more recently in Thailand where the Australian-developed SUV will be built.

The mule is yet to adopt the more angular front end – including the notched headlights to either side of the trapezoidal grille that separates the Everest from the more trade-friendly Ranger ute – while down the rear, the Territory’s squared-off proportions are a long way off the Everest concept’s softer, more sculpted lines.

The front doors already carry the deep scallops featured on the sides of the twin-cab Ranger, but on the concept car they do not extend into the front guards.

Much more advanced prototype versions of the Everest are already out in the wild, showing the road-going version will one day look a lot like the concept.

However, if you’re starting to like the looks of this Holden Colorado/Isuzu MU-X rival, don’t go rushing into showrooms just yet; the Ford-badged SUV is not expected to arrive in Australian showrooms until well into 2015.

WRC: Atko struggles while VW Dominates

THE Volkswagen steamroller crushed the life out of the opposition in the world championship Rally Australia with the German squad powering to a rare one-two-three dominance of the podium to seal the Manufacturers’ title with three events still to be decided.

Reigning world champ Sebastien Ogier claimed the 19th win for the Polo WRC in just its 23rd start, ahead of Jari-Matti Latvala and Andreas Mikkelsen. It was the first podium clean sweep by a manufacturer in 25 years.

The three Volkswagen crews also top the standings for drivers and co-drivers Championship. Ogier/Julien Ingrassia and Latvala/Miikka Anttila will battle out the remaining three rallies to determine who is crowned world champion at the end of the season.

The two have a history of tight battles and in Australia 6.8 seconds was all that separated the champion and his challenger.

“There is no better way to come back for the team,” said Ogier, with a nod to the disaster in the last rally in Germany when first he then Latvala crashed out of the lead and let Hyundai through for a win.

Mikkelsen, the young Norwegian females have voted the rally star they would most like to have a slip and slide with, continued to impress with another podium, 1m18s from the lead.

The reigning world championship team didn’t allow the Ford, Hyundai and Citroen teams even a sniff of success in the three-day event in the Coffs Harbour region.

Northern Ireland’s Kris Meeke was fourth for Citroen in what he suggested was his best driving performance at the WRC level. But for an audacious corner cut, after which officials docked him 61 seconds, he may have been on the podium.

Finn Mikko Hirvonen, a three-time Rally Australia winner, finished fifth for Ford amid strong speculation that he will be let go after failing to impress this season.

Sixth was the exciting 27-year-old Kiwi Hayden Paddon in a Hyundai i20. He looks WRC quality and, urged on my many spectating countrymen, was the first of the Hyundai trio to finish, ahead of lead driver Thierry Neuville.

Finishing ninth behind Welshman Elfyn Evans’ Ford was the brave former F1 star Robert Kubica, in another Fiesta. Clearly still without the full use of his right arm, badly hurt in a crash in 2011, the Pole set some swift stage times and never lacked commitment.

Australia’s returning WRC driver Chris Atkinson was brutally savage on his own his lack of competitiveness against the championship regulars, blaming his lack of seat time at the top level. Also contributing were some poor tyre choices and the disadvantage of being first into every stage on Saturday and Sunday, playing a reluctant road ‘sweeper’.

“I just haven’t clicked,” he admitted after finishing just in the points in 10th.

“Nothing beats racing,” said Atkinson, a Hyundai test driver who competed in only one previous WRC event this year, in Mexico.

“Okay, sometimes you jump back in after a break and you’re immediately quick. But one second a kilometre is a shit-load in this sport. Every time I pushed to the limit, I lost that rhythm. It’s frustrating; I don’t want to turn up just to make up the numbers.”

Atkinson also said he really didn’t want to destroy the i20: “I think the team wanted me to bring it home and score points.”

On Saturday, and acting on some incorrect weather forecasting, Atkinson opted for soft tyres, ruefully declaring afterwards: “I turned them into slicks.”

He said the car was all over the road under braking and scrambling to get traction out of corners. “When they wear, the speed difference is massive.”

Asked if he expected to be back in the WRC in 2015, Atkinson said: “I hope so. I’d like to come back to Rally Australia and take a crack at getting on the podium.”

V8 SUPERCARS: Mercedes extension deal close

FLAMBOYANT team owner Betty Klimenko’s Erebus Motorsport V8 is moving close to a deal that will allow the squad to continue to race Mercedes-Benz E63 AMGs beyond this season.

With relations between Erebus and the factory sporadically frosty, there has been speculation that Mercedes-Benz Australia may not ratify an extension beyond the current two-year arrangement.

But both sides are reportedly increasingly comfortable with an extension.

AMG Customer Sports boss Jochen Bitzer was at the Sandown 500 at the weekend accompanied by Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific marketing general manager Jason Nomikos and PR chief David McCarthy.

“Negotiations with Erebus are still going, but it’s all good from our perspective,” said McCarthy, despite making the point that prestige brands were conspicuously rare sightings in the car parks at Sandown.

“Betty is a long-time customer of ours and we respect our customers. We expect the deal will proceed and then Erebus can move ahead with some certainty.”

If done, the deal will allow Erebus to continue racing the E63 AMG in V8 Supercars, but neither AMG nor Mercedes will be financial backers of the race program.

Klimenko and her family have been long-time adherents of the Mercedes brand and its products.

NASCAR: Ambrose heads home…

MARCOS Ambrose will shut down his NASCAR career phase after a nine-year stint in the United States to virtually confirm nagging speculation that he will return to Australia in 2015.

Dual V8 Supercars’ champion Ambrose has been associated with a return home to drive for a long-mooted V8 team to be fielded by American businessman Roger Penske.

On Tuesday, it is expected Penske will announced Ambrose as the driver of Penske’s new V8 entry, to be run in association with the existing Dick Johnson Racing.

Penske’s operation is believed to have bought one of Johnson’s two V8 Supercar licences.

“There has been a lot of conjecture through the years, but I just want to get my kids home to enjoy the Australian lifestyle as well so they can make a good choice when they grow up,” Ambrose said in a US interview.

“This is really a racing choice for me and I feel like the time is right for me to stop in the US and personally I think it is a great time to move back home to Australia with my family.

“Today is not the day to talk about anything about my racing future. I feel like personally this is the right choice for myself and my family to call it a day here in the US and move on to our next chapter.”

Ambrose was more than honest in assessing his present situation in NASCAR.

“I feel like my level has plateaued at the Sprint Cup level. I haven’t kicked off the next level.”

Ambrose was inevitably competitive on road courses, and won two such events. But he failed to realise his target of winning on the ovals that are the essence of NASCAR racing.

Penske is one of America’s largest and most successful outfits, winning in Indycars, NASCAR and sports car racing.

Ambrose, now 38, is likely to discover the local scene has changed dramatically since he abandoned Australia to pursue his NASCAR dream. Many of his old adversaries, such as Mark Skaife, Greg Murphy, Steve Richards and Mark Larkham, are no longer regulars in a sport full of quick young up-and-comers with no respect for reputations.

WRC: 2015 calendar firmed

THE FIA has announced a 13-round calendar for the 2015 World Rally Championship, with Rally Australia locked in for 10-13 September.

The Argentine round will be in mid-April, when conditions are likely to be warmer and drier, with Portugal moving back to late May. The changes mean Italy’s round will be a week later in mid-June.

Portugal’s fixture will return to its traditional fan base in the north after 10 years in the southern Algarve area and swaps places with Argentina.

Poland, which successfully returned to the championship in 2014 after a five-year absence, retains its place for next season.

MOTO: Rossi miracle with Miller third in Moto3

LEGIONS of Valentino Rossi fans were thrilled to watch their hero turn back the clock to win the MotoGP round at the Grand Prix of San Marino in Misano on Sunday, with Jorge Lorenzo making it a rare Yamaha one-two finish.

The Doctor made his intentions clear with a flying start to move up from third to second into the first corner, behind pole man Lorenzo.

An early attack by Honda’s Marc Marquez was quickly dispensed with and then with 25 laps to go Rossi was able to pass Lorenzo to lead the race.

Championship leader Marquez also passed Lorenzo soon after and remained within half a second of Rossi until, with 19 laps remaining, he lost the front trying to keep up and crashed out of contention. He remounted and was classified 15th.

The win was Rossi’s first since Assen last year, and Yamaha’s first MotoGP win of the season.

In the Moto3 GP, Alex Rins scored his second win in as many races after a daring move on the final lap handed him victory by 0.042sec from Honda team-mate Alex Marquez.

Australian Jack Miller was third after qualifying his KTM on pole. His lead in the world championship has been reduced to nine points.

Remy Gardner, the 16-year-old son of 1987 world 500cc champ Wayne, had no easy GP initiation after his late call up to the Kiefer racing KTM. He finished 27th of the survivors, importantly one place ahead of his teammate.

Qualifying was fraught for Gardner due to a lack of bike familiarity and track knowledge, coupled with rain and equipment failure in the free practice sessions. He started 33rd on a 35-strong grid.

BMW is not working on a rival to the AMG GT, says M Division executive Michael Wimbeck, the M3 and M4 project leader.

The Mercedes sports car, which was revealed this week as the Stuttgart brand’s 375kW Porsche 911 rival, is not causing a fluster at BMW’s high-performance arm.

“I don’t think we need it at the moment,” Wimbeck told Wheels.

“It would be nice – an M1 successor – but I’m not sure if we need it 100 percent.”

The M6, which is more of a Grand Tourer rather than super-sharp sports car, is not the basis of a rival, and nor is the BMW i8, which with its 5.0-sec 0-100km/h time is slower than the hero BMW M Cars, from M3 to M6.

Wimbeck said the i8 is “a little different, it’s the other end”.

“We thought a few times about [doing a pure sports car], but when we do something like that, it should be something special. We should do it not just to have one as well, but to do one that’s outstanding.

“If you build a sports car, it must be a very good one.”

“With this range of competitors, you can’t take an M6, do this and that, and then you have a supercar. You must build this car from zero. And then you are able to compete with a Ferrari or a McLaren.

“BMW, when it builds such a car, you can’t make it second-best, that’s the big problem.”

The tie-up between BMW and Lexus – who are collaborating on a hybrid sports car program – is not something that M Division is currently involved in, either.

“Oh, that’s a completely different story,” Wimbeck said. “At the moment there are no connections.”

Ford has released details about its FG X Falcon model line-up and equipment levels of each variant.

Standard across the range will be new alloys, front and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera and Ford’s latest SYNC2 connectivity system, which includes voice activation, digital radio, emergency assistance and more.

Engines will carryover, offering buyers a choice of the 179kW/353Nm 2.0-litre EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder or 4.0-litre inline six in 195kW/391Nm (petrol), 198kW/409Nm (EcoLPI) or 270kW/533Nm (turbocharged) forms.

Power and torque figures for the new XR8 will not be released until early October.

Externally, the cars receive new front and rear styling treatments and 10 colours will be available, though not all colours will be available on all models.

For a detailed rundown on the specifications of each model, see below:

FALCON SEDAN

The Falcon sedan includes the following features:

MECHANICAL

Standard engine:

• 4.0-litre DOHC DI VCT I6 petrol engine (195kW, 391Nm)

• 2.0-litre 16V TiVCT EcoBoost petrol engine (179kW, 353Nm)
• 4.0-litre EcoLPi DOHC DI VCT I6 LPG engine (198kW, 409Nm)
• 6-speed automatic transmission with sequential sports shift
• Control Blade Independent Rear Suspension

• Michelin low-rolling resistance tyres with improved fuel economy new
• 16″ x 6.5″ alloy wheels new design
• LED tail lamps new
• Projector headlamps new
• Body coloured bumpers, side mirrors and door handles new design bumpers

• Light limestone upper environment new
• 4-way power adjustable driver’s seat
• Single zone automatic climate control
• Power windows and side mirrors
• Cruise control with steering wheel mounted controls
• Single CD audio system with 4 speakers
• DAB+ radio new
• Interior Command Centre with 8″ colour touch screen new for Falcon sedan
• SYNC 2 with Voice Control and Emergency Assist new
• iPod integration
• Bluetooth® mobile phone integration
• Two USB music ports additional USB port
• SD card slot new
• 3.5mm auxiliary audio jack
• Dual antenna system new
• Wi-Fi hot-spot new

• Front and rear parking sensors new front sensors
• Rear view camera with overlays new
• Dynamic Stability Control
• ABS with Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD) and Traction Control
• Driver and front passenger airbags
• Side curtain airbags
• Side Thorax Airbags
• Emergency Brake Assist
• Beltminder™ system (for driver and front passenger)

The Falcon G6E sedan includes the following features in addition to those of the Falcon sedan:

MECHANICAL Standard engine:

• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT I6 petrol engine (195kW, 391Nm)

• 2.0-litre 16V TiVCT EcoBoost petrol engine (176kW, 340Nm)
• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT Turbo I6 petrol engine (270kW, 533Nm)
• Luxury Sports suspension

• 18″ x 8.0″ alloy wheels new design for G6E
• 19″ x 8.0″ alloy wheels new design for G6E Turbo
• Unique front LED day time running lamps L shape new
• Fog lamps new
• Rain sensing wipers new
• Front fender badge feature new design
• Unique G6E front bumper
• Front grille with chrome trim
• Power Side Memory mirrors with integrated turn indicators

• Light limestone upper environment new on G6E only
• Perforated Leather wrapped steering wheel, stitching with new accent colour thread
• Black upper environment new on G6E Turbo only
• Optional tan interior environment
• Electrochromatic rear vision mirror (auto-dimming)
• Premium Sound system with 9 speakers including Amplifier and Subwoofer
• 8-way power adjustable driver’s seat with 3 position memory
• Puddle/courtesy lamps on inner door trims
• Leather wrapped handbrake handle
• Satellite Navigation with Traffic Message Channel
• Leather trimmed seats
• Cloth Covered Sunvisors
• Dual zone climate control
• Sunglasses holder incorporating map reading lamps

The Falcon XR6 sedan includes the following features in addition to those of the Falcon sedan:

MECHANICAL Standard engine:

• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT I6 petrol engine (195kW, 391Nm)

• 4.0-litre EcoLPi DOHC Di VCT I6 LPG engine (198kW, 409Nm)
• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT Turbo I6 petrol engine (270kW, 533Nm)

• 6 speed manual transmission (not available with 4.0-litre EcoLPi engine)

• 6-speed automatic transmission with sequential sports shift
• Sports Suspension

• 18″ x 8.0″ alloy wheels new design for XR6
• 19″ x 8.0″ alloy wheels new design for XR6 Turbo
• Unique front LED day time running lamps W shape new
• Rain sensing wipers new
• Unique XR front bumper new design
• Unique Sports Grilles with accent colour surrounds new design
• Front fog lamps

• Black upper environment new
• Perforated Leather wrapped steering wheel stitchingnew colour accent thread
• Prestige six-speaker audio sound system
• Cloth sports seats
• Sports Instrument cluster gauges and blue backlighting

The Falcon Utility model includes the following features:

MECHANICAL

Standard engine:

• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT I6 petrol engine (195kW, 391Nm)

• 4.0-litre EcoLPi DOHC Di VCT I6 LPG engine (198kW, 409Nm)
• 6-speed automatic transmission with sequential sports shift (floor or column shift)
• Leaf Spring Rear Suspension

• 16″ x 6.5″ steel wheels
• Body coloured front bumper and door handles new bumper design

• Single Zone Climate control now standard
• Interior Command Centre with 8″ TFT screen new
• SYNC 2 with Voice Control and Emergency Assist new
• SD card slot new
• Dual antenna system new
• 4-way power adjustable driver’s seat
• Power windows and side mirrors
• Single CD audio system with 2 speakers
• Cruise control with steering wheel mounted controls
• iPod integration
• Bluetooth® mobile phone integration
• Two USB music ports
• 3.5mm auxiliary audio jack

• Dynamic Stability Control
• ABS with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) and Traction Control
• Driver and front passenger airbags
• Side Head/Thorax Airbags
• Emergency Brake Assist
• Beltminder™ system (for driver and front passenger)

The Falcon XR6 Utility includes the following features in addition to those of the Falcon Utility:

MECHANICAL

Standard engine:

• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT I6 petrol engine (195kW, 391Nm)

• 4.0-litre EcoLPi DOHC Di VCT I6 LPG engine (198kW, 409Nm)
• 4.0-litre DOHC Di VCT Turbo I6 petrol engine (270kW, 533Nm)

• 6 speed manual transmission (not available with 4.0-litre EcoLPi engine)

• 6-speed automatic transmission with sequential sports shift

• 18″ x 8.0″ alloy wheels new design for XR6
• 19″ x 8.0″ alloy wheels new design for XR6 Turbo
• Unique front LED day time running lamps W shape new
• Rain sensing wipers new
• Unique XR front bumper new design
• Unique Sports Grilles with accent colour surrounds new design
• Front fog lamps

• Perforated Leather wrapped steering wheel, stitching with new accent colour thread
• Black upper environment new
• Prestige six-speaker audio sound system
• Cloth sports seats
• Sports Instrument cluster gauges and blue backlighting

• Same as Falcon Utility

The Falcon and Falcon XR range will be available in 10 colours. All colours except Winter White are prestige paint colours.

It might not look much different, but the interior of the FG X Falcon will feature important upgrades under the skin.

The new Falcon will debut Ford’s latest SYNC2 in-car connectivity system, which includes digital radio, an eight-inch colour touch screen, voice activation for major functions, the ability to make the car a Wi-Fi hot spot and emergency assistance.

Standard across the entire range, SYNC2 will allow drivers to control the navigation, climate control, phone and audio systems through voice command. The system has been tuned specifically to understand the Australian accent, while the car’s voice, dubbed ‘Karen’, also speaks the local lingo.

To input sat-nav instructions, drivers will simply need to press the voice button then speak the address. Alternatively, Ford claims the system understands instructions such as “Find me a car park”, or “I’m hungry”, and be able to direct the driver to the appropriate venue.

Digital radio displays the track information on screen and two separate antennas (one located in the roof and the other behind the front bumper) improve reception.

Ford’s Emergency Assistance system can assist rescue efforts by automatically dialling emergency services in the event of an accident that activates the airbags or fuel pump shut-off. In less severe incidents, SYNC2 is able to provide the vehicle location and open line communication to the occupants.

The FG X Falcon will hit showrooms in early December.

The Special Edition Craig Lowndes Commodore is official. After months of speculation, the V8 Supercar legend gets his name on a VF Commodore, after having his signature on the side of a BA Falcon ute back in 2007.

This time around, it’s to celebrate the man’s stunning debut in the category at the 1994 Sandown 500 before his pearler of an effort as runner-up on debut at Bathurst – as a 19-year-old.

The special edition sedan is based on an SS V Redline, and comes complete with a 270kW 6.0-litre V8 and your choice of a six-speed manual or automatic gearbox. There are stripes, a black roof and unique badging, but beyond that the Lowndes Commodore offers little in the way of additional substance: there’s no power increase, not even a set of unique alloys.

If you don’t care about that, every buyer gets to meet Lowndes at a “money can’t buy” Red Bull Racing private function, as well as a pair of tickets to your local round of the 2015 V8 Supercars – in which Lowndes may well be wearing the coveted Number 1.

While Holden is taking orders now, pricing for the Lowndes Special Edition will be confirmed in the coming weeks, but expect a small premium over the SS V’s $52.5k list price.

HSV has dropped its supercharged V8 into its only two-door to produce the most ballistic Aussie ute ever built: the HSV GTS Maloo. With a whopping 430kW and 740Nm of torque, the Maloo can crack a tinnie from miles away and storm from 0-100km/h faster than you can say “Bluey”.

The 430kW output puts daylight between it and the rest of the Maloo range, which kicks off with the 317kW entry-level model and, until the GTS steamrolled in, was crowned by the Maloo R8 SV with “only” 340kW. HSV’s GTS Maloo makes everything before it look half-hearted, offering a fire-and-brimstone experience to send the Aussie legend out with an atomic-sized bang.

Only 250 of the hardcore Maloos will be built (10 of these for our Kiwi brothers). In keeping with the spirit of the hero GTS sedan, the super-ute wears a similar front-end as well as a set of ‘Dark Stainless’ finished 20-inch alloys stretched out to 9.5 inches wide at the rear.

To pull ’er up, there’s a premium brake package that includes 390mm discs up front wrapped in six-piston calipers (372mm down the rear wrapped in two-pot calipers), while out back is the twin-hump hard tonneau cover and a set of shadow-chrome quad exhausts.

This is also believed to be the world’s first ute with torque vectoring, which adjusts via HSV’s “preference dial” that also alters the snarling Maloo’s stability, traction and launch control systems, as well as the electric power steering and bark from the bi-modal exhaust. The ute doesn’t have the sedan’s Track setting, nor its Magnetic Ride Control, but that’s about all it misses out on.

Importantly, the rear suspension is taken from the sedan, which in turn was developed for the Camaro ZL1, and surrounds a 9.75-inch limited-slip diff.

There’s also head-up display, forward collision alert and lane departure warning as part of the safety kit, as well as HSV’s Electronic Driver Interface that delivers all sorts of stats and data to the driver. Oh, and there’s curtain airbags as there is in every Gen-F Maloo.

But this beast ain’t about airbags: HSV won’t offer up a 0-100km/h claim, but Wheels’ best test result for the manual 430kW GTS sedan is 4.7sec, so expect the monster Maloo to sweep to the tonne in less than five seconds in manual form, and even faster with the six-speed auto.The stonk comes at a price, though: the GTS Maloo is expected to cost around $85-90k when it arrives in showrooms in November, and coincides with two new colours that need volume switches of their own, including the Jungle Green hue seen here. B&S balls just got a whole lot more exciting…

FORD will shrink its Falcon sedan line-up as it prepares to wind down more than half a century of Australian manufacturing, the car maker has revealed.

A detailed list of the changes that the FGX Falcon range will introduce as the car maker counts down to its late 2016 exit from building cars tailored for the Australian market – but excluding details for the V8-engined model – show that while the XT badge makes way for an entry-level fleet-buyer special named simply “Falcon”, the G6-badged car tailored as an entry point for mum and dad buyers has gone.

Of note, Ford has finally confirmed that the entire Falcon range will update its eight-inch multimedia touchscreen to include SYNC2, a voice-controlled system that can adjust everything from the air conditioning to a linked smartphone, as well as phone emergency services after a serious crash.

It even can function as a wireless hotspot, sharing a smartphone’s internet connection with up to four separate devices.

While “Falcon” will replace the XT badge, and G6 is consigned to history, the richer FGX range will keep the G6E and G6E Turbo badges for more refined models, as well as the more sports-honed XR6 and XR6 Turbo badges shared with the Falcon Ute range.

However, the Falcon range will also resurrect the XR8 badge for one final run, coinciding with the cull of the Ford Performance Vehicles division either late this month or early in October after the last GT-F model rolls off the car maker’s Broadmeadows-based production line.

The richer, but smaller, Falcon range will include front and rear parking sensors that bend around the front and rear bumpers as standard, with the front ones triggered using a “park aid” button mounted on the dash.

The entire range also adds a reversing camera for the first time, with active guides that show where the car would move according to the steering angle of the front wheels, making backing into a shopping centre car park much easier. It includes a zooming function that shows a close-up of the area directly behind the car.

The Falcon will also become the first Australian-made car to feature digital radio as part of its standard fit-out.

Under the bonnet, buyers will be able to tick the box for carryover drivetrains that include the 195kW/391Nm 4.0-litre four-speed, a 176kW/340Nm turbo 2.0-litre four-cylinder, or an LPG-burning 198kW/409Nm version of the six, as well as the as-yet unrevealed V8, which is expected to produce about 335kW.

The base Falcon, sitting on 16-inch alloys, will add projector beam headlights and LED tail-lights, while the G6E sits on either 18- or 19-inch alloys and adds L-shaped LED daytime running lights, new-look fog-lamps, and rain-sensing wipers for the first time.

All are paired with a six-speed automatic transmission.

In contrast to the G6E-badged cars, the sportier XR6 will use W-shaped LED daytime running lights.

Ford’s updated Falcon range is expected to go on sale later this year, with details of the V8-engined XR8 and pricing across the range expected to be revealed soon.