Story
The Falcon Ford stopped before launch
Ford Australia developed the XA GT-HO Phase IV for the 1972 touring-car season, intending to follow the XY Phase III with a faster, more competition-focused four-door sedan. The program ended before normal production began. One Calypso Green road car was completed with GT-HO identification, while three Brambles Red XA GT sedans were sent to Ford Special Vehicles for conversion into factory race prototypes.
One road car, three race cars
That distinction matters. The green car is the only completed production Phase IV and the only one of the four with a compliance plate identifying it as a GT-HO. The three red cars began as regular XA GT sedans and were modified at Ford's Lot 6 operation for competition. They share the Phase IV story, but their plates, preparation, and later histories are not interchangeable with the road car.
What Ford was developing
The proposed package centered on a quality-control 351 Cleveland with a 780 cfm Holley, revised oiling and cooling, freer exhaust, and a reported 340 bhp. A four-speed Toploader, 3.00:1 Detroit Locker nine-inch axle, Panhard rod, lowered suspension, revised rear leaves, double-acting dampers, special brake equipment, 15-by-7 Globe wheels, and a 36-gallon tank addressed sustained high-speed racing. Roll cages, fire suppression, larger race fuel capacity, and competition livery belonged to the prototype preparation rather than the intended customer car.
Cancellation and afterlife
Changes to Australian touring-car rules and the June 1972 supercar controversy ended the planned production run. Ford stopped work on the prototypes, sold the completed cars, and later used portions of the parts inventory through RPO 83 XA GTs. An RPO 83 car is historically related but is not a Phase IV. That boundary is essential when reading badges, components, auction descriptions, or restorations.
Reading a genuine Phase IV
For the production road car, reconcile its specific GTHO compliance plate, H engine code, L four-speed code, Calypso Green paint, white trim, VIN, order record, and delivery history. For a race prototype, begin with one of the three documented XA GT VINs, its T-code pre-conversion plate, Ford Special Vehicles paperwork, and continuous history. A red XA GT with race graphics, Globe wheels, a winged sump, or an RPO 83 option is not enough.