When it comes to Australian muscle cars, the Ford GT-HO sits in a class of its own. A modified version of the Ford XY Falcon, the GTHO Phase III was built in 1971 and performed so well that Sports Car World deemed it “…simply one of the best cars in the world”. The first year it came out, Allan Moffat used it to win the Bathurst 500 in 1971. In fact, Moffat used the car to win a number of victories in the first years the car was on the market. For a time, it was considered one of Australia’s fastest cars and continues to be extremely popular among collectors and investors around the world.

Dubbed “The Shaker” because of the shaker scoop that stuck out of the bonnet and made the car shake whenever the engine was revved, this legendary vehicle was created for speed. The Ford GT-HO, with HO standing for Handling Options, came with the 380 HP GTHO 351 Cleveland engine. This special car had bigger brakes, a front spoiler, and a stiffer suspension. The driver had a choice of 3 differentials and could have a close-ratio gearbox installed which would make it an almost exact replica of the race version. The car could go from 0-60 mph in 6.4 seconds and 0-100pm in 14.6 seconds. With top speeds of 144-155 mph, this speed demon was possibly the fastest four door production car in the world at that time.

From the moment production began on the vehicle, people wanted to get their hands on one. The Ford GT-HO actually appreciated in value when it left the dealership, something very few cars can claim. When the car hit the market in the early 70’s it sold for a little less than $5,000. Today, these cars can easily sell for AUD$700,000. In fact, in March 2007 one was sold for AUD$683,650. Another sold six months later for $750,000. Ford didn’t produce a lot of the cars and it is speculated that there are less than 100 of the cars floating around on the collectors market today.

In 1972, Ford started to produce the fourth generation of the Ford GT-HO, the Phase IV. However, the media caused them to put the brakes on production when the Sun Herald splashed across the front page of its June 25, 1972 paper, “160mph Super Cars Soon”. People became afraid of these so-called “Super Cars” and fearing a backlash from the public, Ford simply ended production. A total of four cars had been made, three of which were put on the racetrack at the Bathurst 500 that October. Only one production version was actually built which was sold with the Phase III cars. Eventually, the Ford XA Falcon replaced the XY edition from which the GT-HO was based. Although built in the style of the Mustang and the Torino, the Ford XA Falcon was a purely Australian design with both sedan and utility variations. After a short run, even this line was replaced by the Falcon XB in 1973.