AU II Falcon

The Ford AU Falcon in AU II form was the post-mid-2000 parity front that ran to the end of the AU's life. It is the definitive AU package, distinct from the original shark-fin AU I, and the immediate predecessor of the Project Blueprint BA Falcon.

The 2000 parity front

After AU I proved aerodynamically uncompetitive, TEGA and the teams developed a parity front during 2000. The fix grafted the top half of the AU front bar onto the bottom half of the VT Commodore bar — joined from below the headlights — to cut the AU's front-end lift. It ran from Calder 2000 onward and is the only significant difference from AU I; the two share the same chassis and mechanicals.

Engine & driveline

The AU carried the Group 3A Ford 5.0-litre Windsor-based V8, naturally aspirated to the regulated 7500 rpm at a 10:1 compression limit and quoted around 480 kW / 620+ bhp (about 616 hp / 616 Nm by 2002). Engine management was a free MoTeC system in this pre-control-ECU era. Drive ran through the Holinger six-speed to a Ford nine-inch live axle with a fabricated, fixed-ratio crown wheel and pinion on the control 3.25 / 3.5 / 3.7 set. The AU used a double-wishbone front and a live rear axle located by four links and a Watts linkage.

Brakes, wheels & tyres

The works/2004-spec car ran AP six-piston monoblock front calipers on ~375 mm discs and AP four-piston rears on ~340 mm discs, brake make varying by team. Wheels were Speedline 17 × 11 in on the works car, supplier again varying by team (Speedline, O.Z. and others). The control tyre was Bridgestone to 2001 and Dunlop from 2002. Category minimum weight was 1350 kg.

Evolution and a note on track figures

For 2003 the AU was given a longer front splitter to add more front downforce, trying to stay competitive with the new Project Blueprint BA Falcon and VY Commodore — a parity package under which teams still built their own chassis — before the AU was phased out as teams moved to the Blueprint cars. Note that published 1632 mm front / 1610 mm rear figures are not accepted as wheel-centre track: they are quarantined in the conflict register (CON-001) and should not be read from the build sheet as centreline track.

For its championship record see the 2000, 2001 and 2002 seasons. Sources: verified spec catalog (2002 official / 2004 AVESCO AU specs) + AU model-state records / V8 Supercars Physics Handbook (N. Higginson) — Grade B/D.