Ford Australia
Falcon XA GT-HO Phase IV

Why it matters

The XA GT-HO Phase IV was Ford Australia's planned successor to the Phase III homologation Falcon, cancelled in June 1972 after a political outcry over so-called 'bullets on wheels'. Only four were completed, one road car and three race cars, and three of them survive.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

Ford planned the Phase IV as its next touring-car homologation special, again using the 351 Cleveland V8 rated by Ford at 320 hp. After a newspaper report quoted NSW Transport Minister Milton Morris condemning such cars, all three local manufacturers dropped their supercar programmes in June 1972. By then one production road car had been sold through Jack Brabham Ford, and Ford's factory race team had prepared three race cars from standard XA GTs at the Mahoneys Road plant; the cancellation led instead to the RPO 83 XA GT. The race car associated with Bruce Hodgson was later destroyed.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

Only the road car carries a compliance plate identifying it as a GT-HO; it is a Calypso Green four-door sedan with air-conditioning, sunroof and fast glass. The race cars had hand-built, blueprinted 'QC' engines with a winged sump, while the road car's sump had extra baffling.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Street Machine – Ford Falcon XA GT-HO Phase IV and RPO 83 Level B

   • 4 cars built (1 production, 3 factory racecars)

   Accessed 2026-11-11
2. 2
   Rare Ford Falcon GTs: XA GTHO Phase IV & RPO 83 XA GT Level B Street Machine Staff · Street Machine · 2020-07-26

   • 351 Cleveland, same unit as the Phase III (paraphrase)
   • 351 Cleveland
   • rated by Ford at 320hp (238kW)

   Accessed 2026-11-11