2010 FPV F6 E Road Test Review

WHEN WE REVIEWED FPV’s F6 sedan in June, we marvelled at its effortless ability to slip between relaxed, everyday cruising and full-throated hammer.

‘Jekyll and Hyde’ was the analogy used (cliched, we know).

Now FPV has wheeled out a new version, the F6 E, based on that ballistic F6; a version that, on the face of it, also leans more to tyre-shredding nastiness than niceness. But does it? What would emerge after a week in the saddle of FPV’s newest luxo-express?

The F6 E is the newly-minted partner to the GT E, the V8-powered executive cruiser based on the GT that sits at the top of FPV’s price list.

Like the GT E, the F6 E wears different clothes, sports a different interior and is marketed as a more sophisticated vehicle. But with Ford’s brutal FPV-enhanced turbocharged inline-six under the bonnet, is the F6 E just a more exclusive, but equally mad, F6?

Styling

From the outside, the F6 E is more subtle than the in-your-face F6. The front and rear bumpers are the same, but the ‘raccoon eyes’ and rear quasi-diffuser that are blacked out on the F6, are colour-coded on the F6 E.

The F6’s rear wing has also been turfed in favour of a discreet lip-spoiler, and the chrome window mouldings add a touch of class to the E’s body.

A chrome garnish on the bonnet’s leading edge crowns a different grille mesh design (the same hexagonal mesh used by the GT E), and the lower bumper opening is now a single unified aperture.

The F6 E shares the design of its 19-inch wheels with the F6, however they’ve been painted in Shadow Chrome to match the E’s more subdued body-colours.

Our test car looked great in its navy blue-ish ‘steel’ paintwork, and, although it lacks the visual punch of the F6, it’s still a suave looker. Externally understated, the F6 E is a sleeper: a performance car whose appearance belies its abilities.

Still, give it a second glance and you’ll spy those enormous brake rotors, the fire engine red Brembo calipers and that truck-sized intercooler. The business-class dressing isn’t quite enough to hide the F6 E’s origins.

Interior

Inside the F6 E’s cabin, it’s a slightly different affair. The same cabin plastics used by up-spec Falcons are present here, except FPV has elected to dress them up with dark walnut woodgrain trim, a sports leather steering wheel and alloy pedals.

Befitting its upmarket positioning, the F6 E’s seats, centre console lid and door cards are trimmed in leather as standard, with the F6 E logo embossed onto the front seat headrests. Our car was decked out in black leather, but red hide is an option for some exterior paint colours.

Some low-key FPV badging is smattered about the cabin, with the FPV-branded instrument cluster and a build plate mounted on the centre stack garnish being the most noticeable examples.

Those familiar with the FG Falcon will feel at home here, and it’s pleasing to see that FPV chose not to mess too much with the FG’s nicely laid out and high-quality interior.

The seats are supportive, plush and comfortable. The pampered posteriors of the executive classes may have dictated style here. While generously shaped, they lack a little of the bolstering required to hold the driver in place during spirited cornering – at least for smaller folk like yours truly.

The range of adjustment to the driving position is excellent however. Thanks to the reach/rake adjustable steering wheel, electric driver’s seat and fore/aft adjustment on the pedal box, it’s a cinch to tailor the F6 E to suit any driver.

There’s room aplenty in the rear of the cabin too, and back-seat passengers are well served by generous legroom, a fold-down centre armrest and rear air-conditioning outlets.

Equipment and features

The F6 E comes loaded with standard gizmos: with cruise control, power windows, electric driver’s seat with three-position memory, Bluetooth phone integration and those adjustable pedals - all factory-issue.

An auto-dimming rear-view mirror is also standard kit, and the wing mirrors are electrically adjusted. Dual-zone climate control is also included, and, while the centre stack-mounted starter button is a little gimmicky, it’s at least nicely integrated.

An oil temperature gauge and boost gauge are incorporated into the instrument cluster, and both are handy for keeping an eye on the F6 E’s vital statistics.

It also comes with a punchy premium audio system which incorporates an AM/FM tuner, six-CD in-dash stacker, iPod integration and a subwoofer bolted to the parcel shelf.

The system perhaps lacks a little of the high-fidelity clarity and ‘imaging’ found in some of its upmarket competitors, but, we’re splitting hairs, it’s more than adequate to get the neighborhood hopping.

Our test car was fitted with the optional satellite-navigation system. It’s a tad disappointing however to see FPV persisting with Ford’s remote-control sat-nav interface. It feels like an aftermarket addition, and compared to more well-integrated systems, it feels a little cheap.