First published in the March issue of Street Machine

“My 1968 XT Falcon recently travelled from South East Queensland to participate in the 2025 Targa Tasmania.

“Surrounded by a sea of Porsches and other exotic marques, the Falcon was a rose amongst thorns, or possibly the other way around!

“The trick piece for my Falcon is the twin Garrett turbos feeding a stroked tall-deck Dart block via hydroformed 321 stainless manifolds. It uses a MoTec ECU with drive-by-wire throttle, and it’s on flex-fuel, as there isn’t much E85 in Tassie.

“Right now, it’s making around 1100hp at wastegate pressure, maxing at 12psi before bleeding off. Behind the engine is a Jerico H-pattern four-speed cog-swapper, tailed by a Race Products fully floating nine-inch diff.

“Sadly, we suffered an oil pump drive failure on the last leg of Targa, but we are sure we entertained the volunteers and officials all week prior.

“The XT may not be the finest choice for a tarmac rally car, but I believe it presented well on course and resonated with the public, being relatable and, IMHO, the best-sounding! I mean, who doesn’t like straight-cut transmissions, boost and V8s?

“A little refresh is on the cards for it, and then I’ll look at adding more boost!”