Far from the land we call America where the Ford Mustang->ke428 travels its fair roads, Australia has its own muscle car version, called the Falcon->ke442.

So while we get inundated with all the Mustang variants left and right, the Aussies now have something to brag about with the unveiling of the GT RSPEC Limited Edition Series, or as they describe it, the fastest Falcon ever made.

Certainly, we'd love to see what the Falcon is capable of when lined up against a Mustang, but that's a discussion and a debate for another day. What needs to be done now is to pay respect to this special edition muscle car that boasts of some pretty cool features that would make even the iconic Mustang proud.

Understandably so, Ford->ke31 Performance Vehicles director Bryan Mears has nothing but gushing words for his company's latest project. "On the track the RSPEC's capabilities are just awesome, he said, "it is the finest-handling GT in history."

"We have put 18 months into the development of the FPV GT RSPEC and we are extremely proud of the results; anyone who drives it on the track will be blown away by just how complete and capable this car is."

Find out more about the Ford Falcon GT RSPEC Limited Edition Series after the jump.

ford-falcon-gt-rspec-limited-edition-series-by-ford-performance-vehicles

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: ford-falcon-gt-rspec-limited-edition-series-by-ford-performance-vehicles
Pros
Cons

2012 Ford Falcon GT RSPEC Limited Edition Series by Ford Performance Vehicles

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 2012 Ford Falcon GT RSPEC Limited Edition Series by Ford Performance Vehicles
  • Horsepower: 450
  • Torque: 420
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior and Interior

The exterior of the Falcon GT RSPEC Limited Edition Series was inspired by the legendary 1969 Boss Mustang, complete with the iconic stripe package and paint treatment. For this model, FPV dressed up the car with the Mustang's C-stripe, as well as fitted in an accent package that includes new components like the lower and upper grille surrounds, fog lamp bezels, mirrors scalps, a high performance spoiler with GT decal, and black painted exhaust tips.

From there, a GT RSPEC badge was added and can be found on the lower left hand side of the boot lid. Finally, of the 350 units that will be made available, FPV will be releasing four different color options, including 175 models dressed in Silhouette Black with Vixen Red accents and another 175 models dressed in either Winter White, Vixen Red, and Kinetic Blue, each coming with Silhouette Black accents.

Inside, the modifications continue, particularly the use of "Shadow" leather sports seats with GT logo embroidery and a piano black finish around the car's ICC unit, tissue box and door spears.

Performance

Under the hood of the Falcon GT RSPEC Limited Edition Series lies a certified boss of an engine - an all-aluminum 5.0-liter "Miami" BOSS 335 supercharged engine - that produces a mighty impressive 450 horsepower and 420 lb/ft of torque.

In addition to the outstanding powertrain, FPV also paid clear attention to providing a car with agile handling and better traction. So they set out and brought a significant number of component changes to develop the entire package. Chief among them is the rear suspension, which now has higher spring rates, re-tuned dampers, larger anti-roll bar, and reinforced rear lower control arms. Meanwhile, the front suspension now has stiffer upper control arm bushes, stiffer front upper suspension strut mounts, and re-tuned dampers.

Another new feature of the car is the addition of Launch Control, which now provides drivers with a more consistent performance when accelerating from an idle position, thus reducing the amount of wheel slip. Bernie Quinn, Chief Engineer for Prodrive Australia, said: "We have created a Launch Control feature on both the manual and automatic transmission that tailors torque delivery to ensure launch performance is optimized. The system is automatically enabled when the vehicle is started and is designed to give drivers a smooth, consistent launch on typical road surfaces."

Pricing

Ford Performance Vehicles announced a price of AUD$76,990 for the Falcon GT RSPEC. Based on current exchange rates, that translates to around USD$81,000.

Competition

In the Land Down Under, the best comparison to make for the GT RSPEC Limited Edition is Holden's HSV GTS and its 6.2-liter LS3 Generation 4 alloy V8 engine. The numbers are pretty similar, although despite packing in a bigger engine than the GT RSPEC, the HSV GTS produces "only" 436 horsepower.