Falcon GT HO Phase 4 Fact

XA 2

The XA Ford Falcon GT-HO PHASE IV

The XA Ford Falcon GT-HO PHASE IV Howard Marsden was impressed with Keith Goodall's driving skill so at one of the race meetings for the 1972 Dulux rally November 1972 Howard offered Keith Goodall the opportunity to buy the race version of the XA Falcon GTHO Phase 4 Keith had never actually heard of a racing XA Falcon GT-HO 4. Howard had assumed Keith would use the car for rally events that wasn't so in Keith's thinking. It was actually the very low purchase price of such a rare car that was offered that appealed to Keith. The deal was struck. Keith Goodall made the payment to Howard Marsden for the acquisition of the Ford Falcon GT-HO PHASE IV

Keith Goodall contacted his brother Kevin in Melbourne to arrange to pick up the GTHO Phase 4 from the secret location of the Ford special vehicle division, lot 6 Mahoneys Road Thomastown

Keith Goodall knew the XA GT-HO was special so he wanted it sipped up to Townsville rathere than driven, as with Keith Goodall's other cars and previous GT-HOs from FORD Kevin had previously driven the XW GT-HO Phase 1 & 2 from Melbourne to Townsville for his brother Keith. It's likely Kevin was more excited than Keith on the acquisition of the XA Falcon GT-HO Phase 4 race spec, I say that because Kevin Goodall knew what the car was about so he rushed down to 6 Mahoneys Road Thomastown with a mate and his son young Keith Goodall, brother Keith's young nephew

On arriving at Ford Lot 6 Mahoneys Road Thomastown nicknamed the 'skunkworks' it was the most difficult place to get into for security reasons protecting the development of Ford's racing arsenal Eventually when they entered the building much to Kevin's disappointment Kevin was told the car wasn't ready and told he will have to come back once the notify him that the car is not ready and that wont be for a while due to current racing commitments

Interview with (Charlie) Keith Goodall

Young Keith actually Charlie, Keith Goodall is his uncle and Kevin Goodall his father Charlie described the cars in the lot 6 building as 4 red XA Falcon GT's being there. I double checked with Keith and questioned are you sure there were 4 there not 3? Keith reassured me there were definitely four cars there 4 red XA GTs just plain ordinary looking no stickers on them like race cars. What impressed him most was this white Capri with the widest flared guards and body he had ever seen. Was this a Cologne Capri mock up prototype that capri vividly sticks in his mind rather than the 4 XA red FALCON GTs

Further GT-HO research found that the 4th car may have been the 'company car' 'XA 4' used by Bill Santuccione. A red pepper XA GT-HO Bill used for bedding the brakes for the race cars amongst all the other testing as a mule car used to do for different cams and set ups etc; This red car was currently registered as a FALCON GTHO LCP 402

It was possible that was parked there and that's why there were four RED XA GT-HOs there at the time 3 were Brambles red and one was Pepper red. It would be close to 6 months before Lot 6 contacted Keith to say the car was ready,Kevin Goodall went to lot 6 this time without his son. The only racing GT-HO XA FALCON there was XA-2

It was mistakenly said to be the Moffat GT-HO Phase 4 as it had Moffat written on the door, that may have started at the mix up of which car was which for Moffat or Gibson to be reinforced later when the car was stickered by Keith Goodall like a Bathurst racer for the Townsville show late June 1973 at the McKillop Ford display.

Kevin actually drove the car out of lot 6 with temporary plates on the car destination was Bayswater that's where the car would be kept until shipping was arranged to Townsville Kevin didn't get far driving the car on the fuel that was provided by Lot 6 so he pulled up at the next petrol service station in Canterbury Road .The XA-2 GT-HO would not start Kevin spotted a loose battery lead so and fixed it and went on his way there were a few looks there because of the loud side dump pipes exhaust sound.

The car created a lot of attention because it had side exhaust pipes no mufflers so Kevin continue this journey to Bayswater where the car was kept for a few weeks until shipping to Townsville was arranged. Normally Keith Goodall arranged for Kevin to drive the cars up to Townsville that he purchased from Ford this time because the XA GTHO were so special and was told it was a bit of an animal to drive Keith insisted the car not be driven and be instead shipped up to Townsville by sea. Well Kevin's sons recall the wild rides in the XA GT-HO phase 4 in Melbourne When dad you to drop them off to place like the ice skating ring While climbing into the back seat having hit his head on the roll cage. An incident with Kevin's neighbor that was so frightened on a trip from Bayswater down the Burwood Highway at an undisclosed speed ( 100+MPH) claimed we will be in the City in minutes never ever rode in a car with Kevin again.

The car was picked up from lot 6 with 2 sets of mufflers and some exhaust pipes as well as 2 spare Detroit locker diffs,

The car was driven around with the side dump pipes What a sound that must have been! The globe wheels were inside the car in boxes not with the tyres so 15'' tyres had to be purchased Kevin kept the 14'' standard GT wheels

After a few weeks the XA GT-HO Phase 4 left Melbourne Victoria sea bound for Townsville Queensland fitted with the special Daytona style Globe 15" x7'' wheels

When the car finally arrived in Townsville it was in June 1973 . As the XA GT HO 4 was ready to be driven out of the ship the car The car would not start? The battery and leads were checked they were okay , After being informed there was a kill switch it was flicked on and the car kicked over with a loud deafening thumping roar frightening some of the ships crew.

The timing was perfect just in time to display the Ford Falcon GT-HO Phase 4 at the annual Townsville show around July 1st 1973 on Norm his mates FORD DISPLAY

Keith Goodall decorated the car with BATHURST like signage a bit like the Allan Moffat Phase 3 race car to display at his race sponsor and mate's McKillop Ford display at the Townsville show, Keith had a ball firing up the Phase 4 with its unmuffled side dump pipes bellowing out the load hot QC20 sound much to the crowds delight-

Interview with Ross Bullimore.

TheTownsville Queensland mechanic for Keith Goodall LOT 6 1972 FORD XA FALCON GTHO XA 2

Hi Ross,

Keith Goodall gave me your number asked me to give you a call his car, the 1972 Falcon GTHO

Oh yeah the XA the Phase 4 yep

Your the man that adapted it for street use, just wondering if you can recall if it had the pan hard rod?

I believe it did when it got here originally because it had the roll cage and everything in it and it had basically a race system on it and no muffler just pipes on it.

Oh yeah the dump pipes

Yeah yeah when it got here the cage and everything was in it.

It had no signage Keith said would that be correct?

No no it didnt have any signage on it no.

Keith believes that he received the car just before the Townsville show ?

Thats right yes because he had it on display in Norm McKillop display at the Townsville showgrounds yes

Do you recall of the car arrived up there in June , May in 1973 ?

Yes that will be about right sometime around then because the show is like early July or something.

Yes it was in the Townsville show it still had the bare exhaust and everything when he put it in the Townsville show he kept firing it up for everyone

He told me that he dressed it up for the Townsville show with the decals on it, number 1 on the doors.

Yes had those on for the show yes.

Did you drive the car back then ?

No!

That's a shame.

Heh heh, he really hated it actually

That's a surprise!

He reckons it was such a horrible thing because it was too rough he reckons in the camshaft couldn't drive it in top gear around town. He never liked it he always went back to his 69 HO the little Windsor one it was a lot nicer he reckons to drive

Yes he kept talking about that at length.

He loved that car, it was a nice car.

It had a Mustang racing engine I believe. He reckons he clocked it 152 mph at Phillip Island!

Yes he raced against Colin Bond and Brocky and everybody in that thing, Lakeside and so forth and it was a rocket that thing it was a rocket that thing from day one,it was a bullet.

Yes I know it was a long time ago is there anything remarkable that you can recall about the car ?

Just the fact than when it turned up it was like you knew. It was never meant to be a road car because they didn't have any like finish it off to be a road car it was like a bare naked car basically

They never prepared for it to be a road car,you know what I mean

So it was pretty much rugged.

I put the exhaust and all that stuff on it

they never really planned to put one on.