History
1969 XW GTHO
One of 260 Windsor engine GTHO`s produced from May 1969 to March 1970 prior to the XW GTHO Phase 1.5 & Phase 2
With only 28 painted in Reef Green.
In May 1969 the first of the XW GT's rolled off the Broadmeadows assembly line.
Ford had upped the ante with the XW by fitting the 351 cubic inch (5.8 litre) Windsor V8
With bigger brakes, a final drive ratio of 3.25:1, a huge 36-gallon (164 litre) fuel tank and suspension modifications to take the extra power and torque, the XW seemed to be the ultimate Grand Tourer.
The HO variant, which arrived one month later, HO stood for "Handling Option" in
"Ford-speak", however most of the modifications added were to the engine. It now
developed 300bhp (225KW).
The 351 got a bigger (600cfm vs 450cfm) carburettor, hydraulic valve lifters, revised camshaft, heavy duty alternator, alloy inlet manifold, a three-inch heavy duty tail shaft, heavier front roll bar, beefed-up coils, stiffer shocks and a new rear roll bar.
In its first appearance at the 1969 Bathurst race an XW GTHO came in second, in spite of wrong tyre choice which saw the works cars pitting for unscheduled stops throughout the day.
Modifications
Restored in 2012 to Factory specifications and `freshened up' in 2019.
