American Reacts to Ford Falcon Cobra | Targa Tasmania 

You mighta loved all that.but i loved JACK SQUAT! im using that for sure! Onya mate

Ian a few people have recommended "Love The Beast" which is an Eric Bana doco on his car and the Targa Tasmania circuit, and although I also agree that it isn't suitable for your channel it is definitely one to watch in your spare time - you definitely won't be disappointed. Whilst on the subject of Eric Bana you should also watch the Independent Aussie Film "The Castle" which he also acted in for a fairly true portrayal of Aussie Culture.

The red and white car was a Holden Commodore so a full size family sedan, gives you an idea of the size of the falcon. That guy really knows where and when he's got traction!

The Cobra only had 400 made, and came in 2 sizes, split evenly: 351 Cleveland V8 and 302 Cleveland V8

There’s a good doco of Eric Bana at Targa Tasmania called Love the Beast. It’s a good watch, probably not ideal for your content, but worth seeing.

Bro, I think we should make you an 'honorary Aussie' and throw you a dual citizenship. You love this place and everything about it as much as we do. :)

I’m a Ford girl!! My dad had a large Ford dealership in Ferntree Gully in Melbourne. I was driven to high school,in one of these by my dad. The guys at school were so impressed!!

This Video made me realise how lucky I am to live in Tassie and being able to go watch this every year since I was a young feller

I worked on this motor. 351 Cleveland with 302 conrods (long rods) ACL pistons with shortened pin height to suit the longer rods. 2V closed chamber heads with 4V valves and modified combustion chamber to get compression rights

Loving how much you're getting into everything Aus, cheers mate, you're always welcome here

Tassie has some of the best roads in the country. I was born and raised there, live in WA now, but I tell all my mates with motorcycles, if you want to go on a good holiday, take your bike to Tassie. A lot have now thanked me for it

See's a Commodore, "What's that?" Lol. Love it! It's like he's looking at some fine art, then someone slips a dog turd in there. Hahaha!

I'm a Holden guy till I die, but ford xb coupe is an awesome looking car,the best design ford ever did by far, pictures and video don't do the shape of this car justice,in the flesh these cars are absolutely beautiful

If it looks familiar, that's the body style used for the Mad Max Intercepter.

Great upload Ian fantastic mate loved it , And the red and white car he passed was a holden commodore think it was a " VH " . 👌👍

Hi Ian. Peter Brock was my favourite driver. On 8 September 2006, while driving in the Targa West '06 rally, Brock was 3 kilometres from the finish of the second stage of the race at Gidgegannup, about 40 km from Perth, Western Australia, when he skidded off a downhill left-hand bend on Clenton Road for over 50 metres in his 2001 Daytona sportscar and hit a tree sideways, in the driver's door. The 61-year-old Brock died within a couple of minutes of the impact. His co-driver, Mick Hone, was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition. Watch the Bathurst 500 highlights from 1972 and the 1st 1000 in '73. Then '74 etc. When you get to 1983, I recommend you try and watch the full race, (and watch the qualifying top 11 video first). You have already seen Dick Johnson's crash in qualifying for the 1983 race.

Hey man, I'm from NZ, enjoyed your reaction. :) I have one of these in my shed. (2-door) There were 3 models of 2-door, XA, XB, and the cobra was the last, the XC. (Mine is XA) They're most famous for being the base car for the Mad Max interceptor. Cheers dude ;)

You should check out "Love The Beast". Eric Bana's GT falcon. It's a fantastic watch.

Ahhh that entire running gear! 351C,Toploader, 9'' Diff...Enough said!

I reside in New Zealand, and regularly NZ and Aus cars move between our two countries for race events . Occasionally, we team up with the Aussies, and take cars to large race meetings in USA. As a rule we surprise the heck out of Americans, because we tend to drive so hard. Glad you enjoy our stuff.

G'day Ian...I am a Ford guy...got a 2008 FG XR6 and a 2001 Futura...The car is a 1978 Cobra..it's an XC model..similar to the Mad Max Interceptor but that was an XB previous model..came with both 302 and 351... Targa Tasmania is run over a week over 2500 kilometres of closed public roads..and cuts through some of our incredible and famous roads...the event itself is well known around the world..Brocky didn't pass away at Targa Tas but it was a Targa event in 2006 in Western Australia...Thanks so much again for your great videos...cheers. Rod in Tasmania...

Correction to Peter Brock mention around 10:30 . Was in Western Australia. The event where Peter Brock made his fatal error was Targa West. This other Targa was a Western Australia attempt at replicating the success of Targa Tasmania with a similar event but on worse roads. Although Targa Tasmania has had too many fatalities also.

I'm super impressed with the camera work. I know this is played out over the span of a number of days. But hats off to the cinematic feel of it. Australians still know how to shoot cars the old fashioned way. And not that Fast and Furycrap way of faking it.

The xa to xc Falcons could also fit a heap more rubber under the rear making them look even tougher than the one in the video. I'm Holden through and through but always had a soft spot for the coupes. My favourite paint scheme hands down was privateer Murray Carter at Bathurst. Sounds like you need to make the pilgrimage to Bathurst one day. Love your passion for it 😀

Just a matter of interest, the XC Cobra was the last of the Superbird Falcon coupes (XA, XB and XC Models) and came with either the 302 or 351 Australian made Cleveland engine. It was my teenage dream car. That red and white car that you saw it passing was a later model Holden Commodore (either a VC or a VH Model, I couldn't quite make out the grille) which was a car made famous by Peter Brock and a car that basically took over the muscle car mantle in Australia from the Superbird Falcons in the early 80s when Ford had reverted to making sedans only.

Tasmania, I must admit is the most beautiful looking state I've seen

Watch the Eric Bana doco, ‘Love the Beast’. It’s about a 2 door Falcon like this he rebuilt for the same, Targa Tasmania. This car doesn’t look balanced, rear tyres way to skinny, front end way too high, but that’s looks, it’s probably set up for the stint and looks are secondary.

Hey! Tasmania! Love going to the Targa rally ! It's amazing seeing the fleet of 50+ Porsches drive between circuits on the normal public roads

This year's Targa Tas Condolences to those that lost loved ones. Such a great race

It sounds soooo good, its a classic and a legend

Mate you need to do one on the GT-HO PHASE 3. About tuff they were and were the fastest 4 door production car in the world plus how much one cost to buy now.

G'day again Ian, back in the day ( around 40 year's ago) I had an LJ Tarana 1300 go to work ride, & an XB Ford Falcon 500, 302 with a 30/70 cam & a Hollie 4 barrel duell pumper on top, T- bar auto, weekend ride.. there are times I miss em..

Can't believe it's been that long since I asked you to check this out, time flies lol. looking at this again after so long, Sometimes I forget how lucky I am to live in Tassie.

I'm from the coastal rural towns south of Sydney and the scenery looks just like this. Check out a place called Kiama..

we don’t really associate Ford America and Ford Australia as the same brand here. A lot of us think of them as seperate brands pretty much due to them almost acting as seperate brands when ford aus was still around.

I’m a Holden guy. Got a SSV commodore 6ltr with an xforce 3inch exhaust with a muffler delete and I love this falcon. It’s sound looks handling. Got give the driver’s credit they drove that like a boss.

These guy's are REAL drivers. Man handling big old tanks like this in those conditions. The pros cars practically drive themselves now. They just have to point them in the right direction.

Brock used to race targa Tasmania but actually died in targa Western Australia. He won the Tasmanian one in a monaro

Check out the Ford GTHO phase 3. Was the fastest 4 door sedan in the world.

Awesome bud, so good to see, that's the most air time live w/sound! of the Cobra I've had the pleasure of watching, well done, Wrock on 🏁

The mosiac choices at the end. The one with most information is just past your right shoulder with the smiling suit and tie guy .

Awesome video. I’m a Holden man but I love the Falcons of the 60’s and 70’s especially the coupes. I’d say this particular one has had major upgrades. Handling and breakes were definitely not their strong suit (as nearly all cars from that era) my mate inherited a genuine XC Cobra when his dad passed. It’s a 351 Clevo and unrestored unmolested thing OG beauty

351 but my favourite of all time was the XA GT coupe had a pleasure to ride in one in my younger years they are the true Muscle car ❤️❤️❤️❤️

XC Falcon Cobras had either the 302 Cleveland or the 351 Cleveland. The Cleveland was made in Australia from 1971 to 1984. US production ended in 1974. Ford Australia supplied the 351 Cleveland for some de Tomaso models, including the Pantera from the end of US/Canadian production until the early 1980s. There were 400 Cobras made, 200 with the 351 and 200 with the 302. They were fitted with 4 wheel disc brakes. Basically it was a special run-out model to get rid of teh Coupe shells before the XD Falcon was introduced in 1979. The biggest highlight for the Falcon coupe was its Bathurst win in 1977, with Moffat/Ickx leading teammates Bond/Hamilton for a Ford 1-2. Just. The Falcon coupe's also won in 1973 (Moffat/Geoghegan) and 1974 (Goss/Bartlett).

Ford xc cobra Each of the cars was given its own individual serial number and fitted with a sequentially numbered plaque (from 001 to 400) on the dash. The first 200 Cobras produced were given the 5.8L 351 Cleveland V8, while the other 200 received the 4.9L 302 Cleveland ... the only exceptions to this being build number 001 is a 302ci (4.9 litre) V8 and build number 351 is a 351ci (5.8 litre) V8. I went to my school formal in one 🤘

This was shot on different days and spliced together. They do multiple runs. But still cool

That's what Mad Max's car looked like before the makeover.

5:40 love how the VK cummodore completely dissapears behind the falcon. those cobras are absolutely amazing. alot of those scenic windy roads in the first 5 mins are in my area. i go to my mums farm each year for targa and setup on the hill to watch them go past. they are great roads to ride on the roadbike too. tassy is a great place.

Back in the day, these XC coupes were sitting unsold at the factory, till a US exec saw them, got them repainted into cobra colours. They started flying out the door.

At last you return to the path of righteousness... ;) The XC Falcon Cobra was built because Ford Australia had a new model in the pipeline and needed to clear shelves. Two-door Hardtop sales had never been very strong and by 1978 were down to as little as 120 units a year - bad news when there were still 400 shells in the inventory. One idea was to paint them black, add a Playboy bunny and market them as Playboy specials, but that was rightly shot down as being inappropriate for a family car manufacturer. So Edsel Ford II put his hand up. He was in Australia to help round out his education, filling the role of assistant marketing director, and he had an idea: Cobra stripes. That was it, just give 'em Cobra stripes and a new badge. It was an established Ford brand, and it would only cost as much as an extra run through the paint shop, so Ford went for it and created a legend. The effect was done by painting the whole car Bold Blue, then taping out the stripes and spraying the Sno White over the top (with Olympic Blue edging to hide the seams) - one way to spot fakes is to run a finger over the edges, or just check the stone chips. Mechanically, though, there was nothing on a Cobra you couldn't get on an ordinary optioned-up Falcon - same 302 or 351ci Cleveland V8 (200 of each), same 3-speed auto or 4-speed manual gearbox, same four-wheel disc brakes (ask me about that, the way those were introduced was a laugh in itself...!), and although the Globe alloys, dual exhausts and reversed bonnet scoop were all very tough-looking, you could get those on pretty much any Falcon if you ticked the right option boxes. So it was a bit of a con, but it did the job. Australians went absolutely nuts for them, all 400 sold out before they even hit the dealers, and for a while anything with a Ford badge had to have imitation Cobra stripes as well. After all, there were no more Hardtop shells coming down the line, so they really were "limited edition". And, it was the brainchild of the great-grandson of Henry Ford himself. All that comes with one proviso though - if the car above is original. The fakes are many because, as I said, it's really just a paint job. The originals were all 302's or 351's, but there may be some mad lad out there who's taken an old Falcon Hardtop and given it a 7.0-litre Cobra Jet engine. I don't know of any, but I hope one's out there. On that topic, a '69 Torino Talladega is one of my bucket list cars. Edit: "What's that?" That is a VB Commodore, with Group C fender flares and whatnot.

Gotta look into some classic Holden's too being a gm fan they can be beastly

Loving your reactions to our classic beasts. The red and white car that the Falcon passed was an early Holden Commodore, a few years newer than the falcon (about 1979-1984). I'm pretty new to your channel but I'm loving it already. Keep it going mate!!

Riding a motorcycle around Tasmania is the best experience I have ever had,words can't describe how good it is

It looks as though it's running in a classic class, so fairly restrictive class. 351c, 4spd toploader, 9" diff

Check out Eric Bana completing in Targa Tas. in an XA Falcon Coupe. He parks it in the bush !!

It’s a pleasant surprise to see someone making videos of my home state. I spectate Targa Tasmania every year, following the cars around all the stages in my Toyota Supra. It really makes me appreciate the beauty of my state to hear you talk about it, to me it’s just so normal. It’s a small isolated part of the world, and for that reason alone I love it. Sadly it’s starting to get busy, especially these past couple years. Its becoming increasingly difficult to afford land or a house.

The red and white is a HOLDEN ,.....Australian made ........and thanks for holding off so we could hear that magic ... I met Peter Brock and his wife in my younger years at a fund raising ball. A real nice guy. softly spoken and a true gentlman . I got to shake his hand . God rest his soul .... He died doing what he loved.

The XA and XB in my oppinion were nicer looking car .

wait until you find out about the 6cyl ford barra motor. have a look at an fpv f6 typhoon or xr6 sprint. one of the best motors in the world.

My parents had an XC Falcon. I think it was like the base model with 4 doors but had a V8 auto. She used to hum along for a stock old thing. Always loved the shape of these beasts.

Glad to see your on to Targa Tasmania. So many great cars and beautiful scenery. I always wanted to enter in but never got around to it.

Baby Got Back! One of the best rear ends on the planet?

There was a Targa Tassie stage that went right past my parent's farm in Buster Rd. Could sit on the hill and watch them scream over the bridge and up the hill past the driveway. It was awesome.

It's a 5.8 ltr 351 Cleveland I believe. That particular example is a Bathurst spec. Some Falcon Cobras came with the 4.9 ltr 302 Cleveland V8.

As an aussie kid in the 70s the big Ford with the blue and white colours was totally iconic

Glad to say, I grew up in Tassie. Drove all those roads in my tough little (worked) Datsun 1600. Quick as hell round all those tight turns. Not quite as fast as the Cobra in the straights though Ha!Ha! Oh! the memories.

Just got back from Tassie and it was the most beautiful place I've been in Aus, WHEN you come down you have to go there!

@5:39 when you say “what is that” awesome reaction man love it 😊 the good thing about Targa’s it brings out cars from the past I grew up with and watched on telly like this Cobra and I think with Ford back in the day it was go big or go home because from 1972 they had Brocky upsetting the pie cart and winning races left right and centre in a LJ Torana GTR XU1 hence the Cobra and the 1-2 finish in 1977 lol. I do agree that this thing would be a beast to drive especially in the wet, with good throttle control to get the power down is definitely a must. Really enjoyed your reaction and maybe do some more Targa’s would be great thanks man 😎

That "red and white car" was one of you beloved GM products XD

That is one very beautiful Australian Ford Falcon XC Cobra. The red & white car he passed in the rain was an Australian Holden Commodore. My cousin actaully owned an XC Ford Falcon Cobra. That was some great driving by Ian at Targa Tasmania. I actaully went to the late Peter Brock's home. He did pass away sadly racing a Shelby Daytona coupe. R.I.P Brocky.

The car is a XC Falcon Coupe, similar to Allan Moffat,s 70,s Bathurst cars, guessing 351C, 4 speed man, disc front brake, drum rears. Sounds AWESOME!!!! The Red and white car is a 80,s Commodore similar to what ( Australian ) Peter Brock raced. There is another Peter Brock in America, No relation.

Oh man, memories. I had one of these when I was in the Hwy Patrol in Sydney. 5.8 litre 2 door.

My grandmother used to work at the Ford Broadmeadows factory back in the day. She probably had her hand in building that cobra. When I show her the current prices of cars she built she falls over 🤣

I'm a Holden girl through and through but damn even I appreciate the old ford muscle cars

When I got my learners permit back in 1988 I played cricket with a bloke who had an XA Falcon hardtop, it had a tunnel rammed 351 with twin 750cfm holleys and 4 on the floor and to this day I still haven't driven anything with more grunt or that made me not use it's full rev range. The thing was a monster, and is probably the reason the XA in general is my favourite Falcon model

Cobra was running the 351 Cleveland, Aussie built, have it in my 1981 Bronco. Clevelands have a beautiful note😍

Peter brock passed in the targa in west Oz, oddly enough in a Shelby Daytona designed by pete brock

Mate that was awsome I’m lucky enough to have these beasts fly past my house every year it’s beers and mates and sideways wickedness u gotta luv targa goodonya man cheers

I live on the Targa course Gunns Plains area section Leg 4 and the misty conditions in the morning is usual for the time of year they come through our valley. Tight windy downhill into the valley , then a windy uphill section heading to the west coast, unbelievable to hear and watch them take the hard left hand turn on 3 wheels normally. Allan Moffat and Colin Bond finished 1-2 at the 1977 Bathurst 1000 in XC Falcon Cobra's

"V8s all sound like V8s, but, this.." Buddy, this sounds like satan waking up in the morning without coffee and cigarettes - it's a Clevo!

I love how one of the corners i sat at for every targa as a kid was in the clip haha

The XC Hardtop Falcon Cobra was available with 302 and 351 Cleveland engines. The previous model, the XB is the car used by Max Rockatanski in the Mad Max films. The red and white car is an early Commodore. It appears to be a VH model.

Long before I learned the value of Ford's.. Everytime in at a car meet and an xa-xc coupe comes in....steals the show..they are damn beautiful muscle cars.

The Cobra was a limited edition Muscle car of the Ford Falcon released in 1978 it was based on the XC Hardtop. In December 1977 Ford built special order XC Falcon GS Hardtops. These cars were specially modified in the P&A (Parts and Accessories) workshop at Ford's Campbellfield factory. All vehicles were modified with 'evolution' upgrades that had been approved by CAMS for Australian Group C touring car racing Falcons the changes were mostly designed to enhance race durability, these vehicles often referred to as "Pre-Cobras", were intended to be raced by teams at Bathurst in 1977. The modifications included rear wheel wells that were deepened inboard by 1 inch to accommodate larger racing wheels and tyres, a reverse bonnet scoop to allow the race car engines to draw cool air from the base of the windscreen, twin electric fans that were switchable from the dash (replacing the single engine-driven fan), a front shocker tower brace "K brace" that stiffened the front end, an idler arm brace, and an aero package including a rear "blade" spoiler similar to that used on the 2-door Holden Torana A9X and a front air dam. The cars were available in standard body and interior colours and retained the side trim strips, dummy rear brake scoops and unpainted chrome bumpers of the standard GS hardtops. The race cars did complete the 1977 Endurance Series in their new specification and then participated in the 1978 ATCC season. The cars were painted Bold Blue with an overlay of Sno White, with Olympic Blue accent stripes separating the two colours "Cobra" emblem decals, a throwback to Carroll Shelby's Mustangs of the 1960s, were affixed to the front fenders, along with a name decal at the rear the bodyshells were painted blue first, the intended area of blue stripes and sills then masked and the white coat painted over the top. Each of the cars was given its own individual serial number and fitted with a sequentially numbered plaque (from 001 to 400) on the dash. The first 200 Cobras produced were given the 5.8L 351 Cleveland V8, while the other 200 received the 4.9L 302 Cleveland the only exceptions to this being build number 001 is a 302ci (4.9 litre) V8 and build number 351 is a 351ci (5.8 litre) V8. Cobras were available with either automatic or manual transmission. Standard equipment included four-wheel disc brakes, limited slip differential, 15-inch Bathurst Globe wheels, front & rear spoilers and dual exhaust. The interiors were uniformly black, with Cobra specific cloth seat inserts in black with blue stripes that match those on the outside body. Cars numbered from 002 to 0031 were known as Option 97 specification, the "Bathurst Cobras", fitted with parts to allow for racing, including twin radiator fans switchable from the dash, a gearbox oil cooler, suspension bracing and reworked rear wheel body housings. They were most easily identified from the other 370 Option 96 Cobras via their large and functional rear-opening bonnet bulge. Allan Moffat's "Moffat Ford Dealers" race cars of late 1978 shared the same body paint decoration as the road cars.

Car is a 1978 Ford CC Falcon Cobra. Engine is a 351 Aussie built Cleveland V8. The Aussie blocks were strong era than US counterparts because of a different block material. The last 200 blocks all went to USA for Nascar use.

When the XY GTHO phase three was retired to the place of mythology and legend that is now its home everyone knew there would never be another. But then Ford gave the best shot it could come up with with the mustang inspired XA to XC coupe series. This is the pinnacle - the 351 Cleveland Cobra with, if my memory is holding strong, an 850 double pumper Holley. Don't crucify me folks if I am wrong - just working from memory. You just took me back 45 years - I can still remember dreaming of owning this car.

The red and white car being passed, was a holden vh commodore 5.0ltr HDT (holden dealer team). The stock hardtop could fit 10.5" (265mm) wide tyres under the haunches, but a option 97 (bathurst cobra, 30 off) was 1" (25mm) wider. 200 x 5.8ltr and 200 x 4.9ltr were built. The bathurst's can be identified by the reverse cowl bonnet, strut tower brace and twin thermo fans.

1977 Ford XC Cobra. 5.8 lt...351 Cubic inch Cleveland motor. Borg Warner 4 speed, 9" locker diff. Front disc's, drum rears. From memory about 1500kg. The last of the old style Falcons made in Aus and one of the best for mine.

That’s a 351 Cleveland baby! Singing sweetly ! Australian ford falcon 4WDisc brake Same underpinnings as a torino

Was living in Launceston back in the late 70's when the local ford dealer had a brand new Cobra 5.8 & it when to public auction at the dealership, which I attended. From memory it sold for around $18,000 - if only we new then what we know now.

They came out with a 351 Cleveland with a top loader gearbox and 9” diff. Fairly big car and a hand full to drive

Ian, the car at 5:38 is a Holden Commodore VB. First ever Commodore, the sl/k model (top of the range) had the Holden 5.0L V8. Sweet car, sweet sound.

The little red and white car is the GM Holden Commode (LOL Ford family here). They were the other Aussie V8s. We also had a Chrysler Valiant at that time.

the symphony comes from under the bonnet..were takin a 5.8 liter Windsor 351 baby.. that's music..& that's rock n roll..

BRO you have to watch LOVE THE BEAST with Eric Bana, it's literally about his love for driving his XB Falcon and how he got it to Tassie and so forth all the while being interviewed by Dr Phil, Jeremy Clarkson and Jay Leno. One of the best films based on cars I've ever seen.

That road from about 4.30 is so similar to the old Bathurst track back in the day . Great stuff !!!! The red car was a commodore like Peter Brock's.

Australian Ford Falcon XA coup 1978 came with a 351 Cleveland. It’s the same model car used in the Mad Max movies for the interceptor. Big powerful car they used for racing in Australia Bathurst.

Targa ran through my old town, the mount black stage in Tullah. Drivers would take a break in town before continuing through to the next stage, the boys and i had the opportunity to check out all the cars and talk to most of the drivers every year. It was awesome. Funny story. Tesla ran Targa in 2011-2012 to test a new electric car. They needed a place to charge their car and my family owned one of the pubs, we let them charge their car at the pub and they knocked out the power to the whole town. lol

As a size comparison the falcon (and commodore in red and white) were full size family sedans also used commonly as police cars in Oz and NZ, similar to the crown Vic in the states, and the Holden was also a Buick regal and the coupe was a Pontiac GTO.

Red and white car was a Holden Commodore (vk model i think). Also Peter Brock did NOT die at Targa Tasmania but at a similar event at a place called Gidgegannup in Western Australia. He was actually there to promote the event by taking part in it.