"Better Technology" on the Phase IV? Discuss...

[FrogInASock]

Following on from this thread on the death of the GTHO Phase IV:

http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthread.php?t=11369265

... just something for discussion.

The XR GT had a 289 V8 with disc brakes. The XT had the 302, XW had the 351, and the XY had the 351 heavily warmed over. But still with pretty basic discs, drums and suspension.

My question to the learned masses is: What 1972 capable things should Ford have put into the Phase IV? Your answer should note that whatever you decide to include in your 1972 bullet on wheels should be available in that year (no computers, ABS, stability control, or the like).

Please write legibly in blue or black pen and pass your papers forward at the end of the exam.

[Bushbasher]

Not so much should have but maybe that should be could have. I'll start and say rear disc brakes.

[pottery beige]

alloy heads, rock n rolls, decent manifold







and better brakes..

[Nikked]

-Magnesium door hinges
-Fiberglass boot, bonnet and doors
-Alloy bumpers
-hemi heads
-Twin 4 barrels

[Gavin Thomas]

"Shut the gate".....Last of the V8's.

Run all the items as per the famous lines in Mad Max when the Mechanic dude, aka Barry, is giving the run down to Max on the engine spec's as per the Black interceptor Coupe.....Phase 4 heads, twin overhead cam's...."600HP thru the wheels",

Also note = To correct some of the GT statement in the opening post =
The first XW's had the Windsor 351, but the Clevo's fitted to the later P2 XW's actually had a much "warmer" camshaft grind than the refined & more "user friendly" camshaft as fitted to the 351C in the P3 XY GT.

Cheers.

[burnz]

well 4 wheel ventilate disk brakes, bucket seats with harness seatbelts,
hidden roll cage.

these were all available at the time, maybe help with the saftey aspect of govco.

[castellan]

The main thing was to use the better brake pads.
Better shocks.
Get rid of your tyres when they were 1/2 worn as they got hard and were even more useless even tho they were rubbish new

[Cabbage]

an insurance discount!

[Linkachu]

One of them polarizer things, i heard they did things only in dreams.

[gtxb67]

Originally Posted by Nikked

-Magnesium door hinges
-Fiberglass boot, bonnet and doors
-Alloy bumpers
-hemi heads
-Twin 4 barrels

and maybe a parachute that deployed at all braking efforts over 60kph and have a little guy in there pack it all back in before the next stop



there was nothing wrong with the car as such. it was a much more refined car than the phase 3. the rules for racing and what was suitable for the road were always going to cross paths at some stage. if it wasn't the phase 4 that was canned, then it would have been the phase 5 or 6 or whatever the doomed racing/production car was called

[max_torq]

4 link rear with coil springs and verticle shocks

[Gavin Thomas]

Originally Posted by Linkachu

One of them polarizer things, i heard they did things only in dreams.

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You should wash your mouth out mate - as they were just a "gimick" thing fitted to cheap opel based commodores. ( Also late 80's - so your a generation & 1/2 past the mighty XA P4 GT anyway ).

The only real achievement it caused was to create the divide that saw GMH & Brocky, rest his soul, part ways.

[Nikked]

Originally Posted by Gavin Thomas

************************************************** ***************

You should wash your mouth out mate - as they were just a "gimick" thing fitted to cheap opel based commodores. ( Also late 80's - so your a generation & 1/2 past the mighty XA P4 GT anyway ).

The only real achievement it caused was to create the divide that saw GMH & Brocky, rest his soul, part ways.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sarcasm

[Road_Warrior]

Definitely 4 wheel disc brakes. Perhaps with the use of the 15 inch Bathurst Globes, could they have used a slightly larger disc on the front?

and +2 to the comment about coil sprung rear suspension. This was tech and design easily within Ford's reach at the time.

[Mickxr8]

Rear discs would of helped , A bullet in evan green would`ve helped so much more

[Franco Cozzo]

Since there was no computer modules back in the 1970s, I'll throw mechanical fuel injection into the mix

[Nikked]

Originally Posted by Big Damo

Since there was no computer modules back in the 1970s, I'll throw mechanical fuel injection into the mix

Like these beasts!

[Bossxr8]

Mostly the things Ford already had in the pipeline, like the rear discs.

Roller rockers would have been one of the best things they could have done, considering how many engines they lost over the next few years due to rocker failures in Group C.

Makes me wonder why they never fitted roller rockers for durability, yet they went to the effort to hand machine the combustion chambers of the Ph 4 heads, which would have been very time consuming and expensive.

[Moby Vic]

427 SOHC engine!

[OzJavelin]

Originally Posted by FrogInASock

My question to the learned masses is: What 1972 capable things should Ford have put into the Phase IV? Your answer should note that whatever you decide to include in your 1972 bullet on wheels should be available in that year (no computers, ABS, stability control, or the like).

Don't see why not .. the technology for stuff like this had been around, just not as cheap-and-cheerful as the mass-produced, computerised stuff we use today. Looking at is a more of a GT (Grand Tourer) than the track-only Phase4 there is a lot of driving/safety technology which could have been installed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-lock_braking_system

Chrysler, together with the Bendix Corporation, introduced a computerized, three-channel, four-sensor all-wheel[4] ABS called "Sure Brake" for its 1971 Imperial.[5] It was available for several years thereafter, functioned as intended, and proved reliable.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_injection

The first commercial electronic fuel injection (EFI) system was Electrojector, developed by the Bendix Corporation and was offered by American Motors Corporation (AMC) in 1957.[8][9] The Rambler Rebel, showcased AMC's new 327 cu in (5.4 L) engine. The Electrojector was an option and rated at 288 bhp (214.8 kW).[10]

.. although the Bendix system, along with the mechnical Rochester system were quite unreliable (especially in cold weather), the capability had been there from approx 15years before the XA ..

In a real flight-of-fantasy a "no dollars spared" Phase4 could have had the lot .. as in 1972 a lot what is standard equipment in cars now (aside from the junk we don't need for driving like iPods, etc) was already in-progress .. like airbags:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbag

Airbags for passenger cars were introduced in the United States in the mid-1970s, when seat belt usage rates in the country were quite low. Ford built an experimental fleet of cars with airbags in 1971

I think the engine has already been covered? 427 SOHC .. probably reconfigured as a DOHC (i.e. DOHC has apparently been around since 1919?)

[Moby Vic]

The 427 SOHC existed in 1972 (actually, it was a few years out of "production" by then).

Actually, I suppose a Coyote DOHC Indy engine could have been converted to a front engine configuration. That would make an interesting addition.

[castellan]

Originally Posted by Road_Warrior

Definitely 4 wheel disc brakes. Perhaps with the use of the 15 inch Bathurst Globes, could they have used a slightly larger disc on the front?

and +2 to the comment about coil sprung rear suspension. This was tech and design easily within Ford's reach at the time.

The 1967 to 1972 LTD Galaxie had coil sprung rear with a pan-hard rod, like the HZ holdens.
But ford loved the leaf rear, the FG ute rear leaf setup is not all that bad now.

[Landau Stable]

Had the supercar scare not happened, i think by the time the phase 5 was rolled out we would have already seen rear disc brakes, perhaps larger front brakes from a galaxie adapted, as well as engine improvements like roller rockers, better intake and exhaust/headers. No doubt there would have also been earlier installments of electronic ignition, and probably better hugging seats for race duties. Perhaps also some of the stiffer bracing as fitted to later P5's and Landaus at the A pillars. Potentially a larger winged sump as well. I don't think Ford would have gone to the extent of coiul rears. It was costly enough as it was, without such a major change to the car. The rest is more bolt on mods.

[pottery beige]

dry sump..

[max_torq]

when they built the coupe body they could have put the shock set up already used in the capri, and adapt the coil spring hardware from the 1972 torino.

... and zinc plate the things.