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SPECIAL

Ford Territory

SPECIAL

Ford Territory

Ford FG Falcon - Comfort Style and Technology

Staff, Friday April 11, 2008.

Page 1 of 1

Class-leading accommodation, user-friendly technology, a spacious, driver-oriented cockpit and stylish new environments across the range are all hallmarks of the all-new FG Falcon interior.

Building on the contemporary interior architecture of the previous model, the FG Falcon revises the relationship between the car and its occupants while creating a dynamic and sophisticated appearance that reinforces the vehicles’ athletic and involving driving dynamics.

"Our goals for the creation of the interior were very similar to those of the exterior design team," said Ford Australia Chief Designer, Interiors, Marcus Hotblack.
"Our research indicated that customers were looking for increased sporty characteristics and luxury from their Falcon and that this was just as important for the inside of the car as it was for the outside. After all, the interior of a vehicle is where most people spend the majority of their time interacting with the vehicle."

Accordingly, one of the key goals for the interior design team was to create greater series differentiation across the range to match the new FG Falcon line-up. While the basic interior architecture remains consistent across the range, the three distinct Falcon families each receive their own distinct interior environment, consistent with the exterior.
"The interior of our Falcon XT was designed to appeal to modern families, offering practicality and durability while maintaining outstanding aesthetic qualities," said Hotblack.
"The XR interior is bright, bold and visually as potent as what’s under the bonnet, while the G Series interiors acknowledge performance but in a more refined, sophisticated manner.
"The different interior environments are matched by comfort and technology that equally suit the demands of owners of each vehicle."

Cockpit feel

The common theme across all vehicles is an interior that has been designed with an affinity towards detail, function and ease of use.
Interaction with the interior begins with significantly improved ingress, which is followed by a spacious cockpit feel, with all controls oriented towards the driver.
Spaciousness was created by expanding the glasshouse and moving the A-pillar forwards. The result is a spacious feeling to the glasshouse around the head and shoulders but a snug, cocoon-like ambience lower down.

A new seating environment, which makes occupants feel more at one with the car, has been created by raising the Interior Command Centre (ICC) screen within the Instrument Panel (IP) to align it with the instrument cluster, while the centre console has also been raised and enlarged.

In order to retain balance, the door-mounted armrest has been raised to match the new height and dynamic look, while the instrument panel has been rotated five degrees towards the driver for improved visibility and reach.
"Our desire was to create a feeling of the occupants, particularly the driver, being at one with the car," said Hotblack.

"By raising the screens, controls and surfaces that the driver most interacts with, we have not only improved their relationship with the driver but also lessened the time the driver has to have their eyes off the road."
The new ICC screen in the FG Falcon has also increased in size and is matched by new menu systems that are intuitive and easy to use, along with enhanced graphics that provide greater contrast, easier and faster identification of information and a more attractive layout.

A new Human Machine Interface (HMI), which incorporates the ICC, Multi-function Display (MFD), instrument cluster and steering wheel controls, provides increased functionality to control key aspects of the vehicle. Further information on this new system can be found in the separate HMI section.
The gear lever has also been raised and angled closer to the driver for improved operating comfort, while the raised centre console provides better support for the driver’s arm.
A new park brake with an integrated self-adjuster mechanism reduces the required travel angle of the lever when pulled into the active position, resulting in less effort to apply the park brake as well as less lever intrusion into the driver’s space when it is applied.

Similarly, the switch for adjusting the exterior mirrors has been moved from the window sill to the driver’s door armrest, optimising its placement for easier reach by the driver and integrating with the power window controls.
Switch locations and feel for other functions has also been optimised to improve the overall cabin ergonomics.

Accommodation

In addition to delivering improved ingress and egress for front and rear occupants, a refined cabin environment and optimised primary controls, the all-new FG Falcon also provides enhanced visibility, and class-leading luggage space and rear seat flexibility.
The overall vehicle package links seating and ergonomics with the mechanical package to develop a vehicle architecture that delivers minimum space for the hardware and maximum space for the occupants.

The new roof structure and vehicle silhouette, in conjunction with the new roof rails and interior seating position, have increased head room all around, particularly at the rear with an increase of 13 mm.
Meanwhile, the new door structure and interior trim designs have increased front and rear shoulder room by 10 mm and 24 mm respectively, while front and rear hip room have increased by 25 mm and 22 mm respectively.
Rear leg room has increased by 10 mm, while the new instrument panel, new steering column shroud and redesigned footwell have improved driver knee room.

"The interior design team worked very closely with our package engineers to deliver an interior environment that is more spacious and comfortable than ever before," said Hotblack.
"Increases in occupant space were achieved while packaging additional safety equipment such as curtain airbags on some models and increasing levels of sophistication and plushness across the range."

Increases in interior accommodation continue through to the luggage compartment, with the FG Falcon offering superior packaging at 535 litres when fitted with the standard temporary spare wheel, and 505 litres when fitted with the optional, matching full size spare wheel.
The hinges and boot lid struts on FG Falcon do not protrude into the boot cavity when closing, thereby protecting stored items and ensuring the luggage space can be fully utilised.
The Falcon’s luggage compartment useability is further enhanced by its design, layout and packaging of the spare wheel, which provides a practical recess to help prevent small luggage items from sliding across the boot floor when driving.

Seats

The FG Falcon continues with the very popular 60/40 split fold rear seat set-up from the BF Falcon MkII.
This flexible rear seat package offers customers more space and the ability to fit larger items in the vehicle than would normally fit in the boot itself, such as skiing equipment.
New seat bolster design on both front and rear seats ensures occupants sit ‘in’ the seat rather than ‘on’, while the introduction of new soft seat backs front and rear, and the use of more luxurious fabrics on all models, provides improved interior plushness and comfort.

Rear seats also feature improved seat contours, including more foam and increased cushion depth, and a revised rear seat cushion frame structure for enhanced occupant comfort. Rear seat passengers also benefit from new centre armrest cup holders as well as smaller front seat track foot covers, which provide increased rear occupant foot space by 10 mm.
Larger headrests provide more support and improved occupant protection.

Stylish new environments

The dynamic and sophisticated interior design of the FG Falcon carries over into the interior environment treatment, creating a modern evolution of well-loved colours and fabrics.
"Each colour used throughout the mode line-up has been specifically chosen to create a more sophisticated appearance throughout the vehicle," said Ford Australia Colour & Trim Manager, Debbie Pascoe.
"The colours were carefully refined to look softer and reduce the feeling of plastic, while the combination of colour and grain textures raises the bar for Ford vehicles in this area."

Environment colours

The new environment colours for the FG Falcon are Shadow, which is a slightly softened new black used throughout the vehicle, and Cashmere, which is an elegant high end neutral that is used only as a lower section colour in the vehicle.

Grain strategy

A specific Instrument Panel (IP) grain strategy was also developed for the new Falcon, with the creation of a new grain called Natural. Deliberately designed to vary subtly throughout the IP in size, scale and depth, Natural gives a softer, more leather-like appearance.
The complementary grains which support the IP follow this same strategy to create an ambience of sophistication and appropriateness for the vehicle.
In addition, the technical grain which appears in detail areas such as cup holders, has the appearance of a refined chain mesh a detail widely referenced and used extensively in all areas of modern design from fashion to interiors.
Notably, for the first time, woodgrain inlay is not available on any Falcon across the range, reflecting the modern, sophisticated positioning of today’s vehicle.

Painted and decorative finishes

A number of painted and decorative finishes are available across the new Falcon range, including:

Dark Nickel : a warm yellow tinted silver, which is reminiscent of cutting edge metals, is rich and inviting and used on different elements throughout the range to create a different look in each vehicle.

Liquid Metal : incorporating a slight blue tint, Liquid Metal has been used before on Falcon but retains its modern look while being smooth and lustrous.

Satin Alloy : bright and clean, this colour has chameleon-like qualities, changing and adapting when used on various parts throughout the vehicle, and gives a very effective metal appearance.

Black Onyx : a superior, super high gloss black, this colour provides the ultimate in regal, yet sporty and modern appearances.

Matte Shadow : a matte version of the environment colour, this painted finish looks soft and sophisticated.

Cyber Carbon : a contemporary twist on carbon fibre, the Cyber Carbon finish draws the viewer in for a closer look. A combination of blacks and dark burnt ambers, it moves and turns with light and colour, creating an exciting new decorative finish.

Model-by-model interior environments

Interior environments that have been specially created to suit the character of each new Falcon family provide differentiation across the range and amongst the line-up of vehicles in each family.

Falcon XT

G6

The fabrics for the G6 embody plushness and softness, with the Savvy insert moving Ford into ground-breaking technology for vehicle fabrics in Australia. Very soft, but not velour, flocked yarns such as those used in the Savvy insert can be difficult to get through the rigorous tests vehicle materials must pass, but the Savvy insert has delivered the perfect combination of useability and style.
Meanwhile, the Estate suede material on the bolster is the epitome of fashion, being used extensively throughout domestic and commercial interiors, and as accents in fashion, so it is sure to resonate with modern customers.

G6E

The standard Nudo Leather used throughout breaks new ground for Ford Australia, with the incredibly soft leather offering a lustrous look and feel in the vehicle, giving the customer an ideal combination of luxury and sports.

G6E Turbo

XR6 / XR6 Turbo / XR8

The interior of the XR range of vehicles screams performance, with a dark ambience highlighted by technical accents. The fabric pattern is highly technical and the insert pattern coordinates with exterior colour choices and the interior environment.
The XR series is available in Shadow/Shadow, with colour coming from the fabrics and strong metallic accents in Satin Alloy.
Fabrics that feature three dimensional textured surfaces, which call to mind rubber and metal, are the key statement pieces, with bright and dull yarn mixes offering intrigue and interest.
The insert fabric Streetwise is inspired by modern, energetic street wear and is available in a select range of colours that are matched to exterior colour choice. Its bolster companion, Attitude, literally hugs the seat, taking full advantage of the sports inspired shape. The Attitude bolster picks up the interior theme colour as a feature within the twin needle stitching.
The leather option uses Nudo Leather on the bolster with Nudo Weave as the insert. This new embossed leather insert has a very athletic, strong and masculine appearance, offering the performance customer the ability to make an even more powerful statement.

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