Taxis Dumping LPG Ford's For VW PASSAT Diesels

[Deco28]

Cairns is all Prius's and a few Camry Hybrids now.

[Brazen]

Try going to the airport with your wife and two kids and their luggage and fit that in a egas Falcon sedan with a spare tyre slap bang in the middle of the boot. That would be enough to change to wagons for the lucrative airport runs.

[naddis01]

Originally Posted by Mr Hardware

Moot point.
389L for Hybrid Camry, which is about the same as an egas falcon (379L).

I think he means if you gas the hybrid you would have no boot space.

[FG XR]

come to australia and see our german taxi's!

[prydey]

i wouldn't read too much into the article. maybe a journo happened to take a ride in a cab where the driver happened to mention his boss was getting a vw for him to drive next. suddenly its in the paper and believed as gospel!!

a conversation between a journo and a taxi driver - there'd be a fair bit of truth and not much conspiracy theory wouldn't there


as mentioned by mr hardware - there'd be a lot of taxi operators who buy their falcons 2nd hand at auction. i bought my egas 1yr old for half price. you just can't beat that.

also, regarding the old tech lpg setups, the taxi's actually prefer these systems for their simplicity.

[Joe5619]

That is the best thing that could happen to Ford & Falcon!!! No more crappy Taxis going around!!! yeaappppiee

I saw an FPV Taxi in Sydney the other day. Had to look twice to much I saw seening correctly

[vztrt]

Don't think Ford will care, as they wont have any sales either way.

But will be interesting to see what happens if diesel goes to 1.80/l.

[TUF_302]

People are always reffering to Falcons as Taxi's, i think having something else take the role is a good way for Ford to get the taxi image off its back

[Brazen]

Ford should give the G6 at XT prices for taxi operators, if your going to have Falcons bought as taxis you might as well have it as a good avertisement for the Falcon.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by Brazen

Ford should give the G6 at XT prices for taxi operators, if your going to have Falcons bought as taxis you might as well have it as a good avertisement for the Falcon.

Ford don't care nor do they want to sell their cars as Taxi's.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by Melz

I think the taxi fleets show great diversity. Saw a Toyota Prius being used in Clayton, often see a Territory near the Tulla, seen plenty of camrys. At the end of the day they need a reliable somewhat cheap car that can be driven into the ground and do hundreds of thousands of kilometres. I've seen plenty of VWs with many kms on them so time will tell

We're getting a fair few Civic Hybrid taxi's coming in for services at work, the Hybrid is taking the taxi industry by storm, I see a lot of Prius around the joint in yellow now.

Also I've seen that Taxi Terri you talk of driving the Tulla

[g220ba]

Originally Posted by Brazen

Ford should give the G6 at XT prices for taxi operators, if your going to have Falcons bought as taxis you might as well have it as a good avertisement for the Falcon.

As I've previously aID in this thread Ford don't wish to pursue the image as lets face some taxi operators don't exactly maintain their vehicles to a great extent. It really wouldn't be greatly profitable (Let's face that's what fords about that these days) to offer the G6 at XT prices.

I see taxi operators moving away from falcons a positive move simply because when somebody gets into a cab with about 400,000km's on it, more than likely it'll a few noises and rattles, maybe the standard diff whine then this really isn't gonna be seen as a quality product even though it's done alot more km's than many of these falcons would see in the next 20 years. The general public don't see it as the car having done so many km's and still going strong they percieve it as this car's only 3-5 years old why is it in such a condition.

For some reason the general populas see the falcon as nothing more than a taxi, whether that be an XT, G6ET or even a GT it's still just a taxi to some. The image of the falcon and ford as a whole may be getting that much needed change to the public back on side.

[Nikked]

Most taxis are bought at auctions, Ford don't sell many cars to taxi owners. Not all taxis are factory E-Gas either...

[Jastel]

Originally Posted by prydey

i wouldn't read too much into the article. maybe a journo happened to take a ride in a cab where the driver happened to mention his boss was getting a vw for him to drive next. suddenly its in the paper and believed as gospel!!

a conversation between a journo and a taxi driver - there'd be a fair bit of truth and not much conspiracy theory wouldn't there


as mentioned by mr hardware - there'd be a lot of taxi operators who buy their falcons 2nd hand at auction. i bought my egas 1yr old for half price. you just can't beat that.

also, regarding the old tech lpg setups, the taxi's actually prefer these systems for their simplicity.

About the only accurate post here!!

There are many factors when choosing a vehicle for a taxi

If fuel economy was the only one we would all have hybrids

But service costs, availablity of parts, availablity of a mechanic that knows that car, insurance, load capacity/seating and even personal choice all come into it.

The main reason people are switching from Falcons and looking at alternatives is the SVI LPG debacle forced on us by pencil pushers.
From BF onwards you must use SVI which has not had adequate testing and in my experience does not work nearly as well as mixer systems
BA's are at the end of their taxi life so now is the time when owners must decide and may switch brands
Ford do not even have SVI as an option, Egas is mixer type with Ford promising it meets emission targets, we all know this is 30 year old technology and they work OK so we will leave them out of the debate, they have just delayed the release of there LI LPG so that doesn't work properly either.

Also with LPG around 90c and costing $5000 to fit in country areas it is almost at the point when it is not worthwhile

I know several taxi operators going back to Falcon from Priuises, nobody can fix them, parts cost a fortune so any savings you make on fuel are soon gone.

In Germany the taxis are all Mercs and BMW's because they are the cheapest and best for the job, some of you are implyimg that they must all be crap as well. If you think that way take out of your precious Falcon any part that was tested/improved on a taxi, do you have anything left???

NO - just an aftermarket LPG kit

Thought so.

[bernadette86]

I see it as a plus less taxi operators killing a beautiful car. But taxi's prove that falcons are built. My brothers XF ran up as pilot vehicle 600k without a rebuild on gas. My friends EB wagon over a million km's on gas and one gearbox! What more can you ask from a car???

[jpd80]

Originally Posted by Mr Hardware

They also report not being able to take more than 2pax + luggage on airport runs. Priuses aren't a real taxi. Now the hybrid camry, that's the way of the future. Especially if you gas it!!!

Hahaha

While the Prius won't cover all situations, most operators report that they are fine. In the event that you
have more than two passengers with luggage most travel savy people request a station wagon or maxi taxi.
That's why cab companies have a mixed taxi fleet it makes sense when most fares are urban commutes,
I think this is where Ford should be pushing the TDCI Mondeo Station Wagon...

[fg_nitro]

Originally Posted by Dr Smith

Wait until they have to reco a VW box...I know, I had one done under warranty and the local dealer sourced the box from a specialist in Dandenong...makes a brand new ZF look cheap.

As long as you can buy a one year old e-gas Falcon from the auctions, paint it "taxi yellow" and equip it with long standing electronics then the majority of cabs will still be Falcons.

What you mean 14,000 dollars for a reco gearbox in a 3 year old transporter :

[Stoney!]

Originally Posted by BOSHOG

surely the people doing this study have all the internal figures needed to come up with the decision, it must be the right decision.

Exactly what I was thinking, I noticed a couple of Passat wagon taxi's on my last trip to melbourne, they wouldn't have just jumped into such a decision, they would have been running one for a while and realised the strengths of european cars. Not to mention the strengths of running a diesel around the clock without the complexities of a gas sytem.

Stoney!

[prydey]

Originally Posted by Stoney!

without the complexities of a gas sytem.

Stoney!

the egas is pretty complex :

[Brazen]

Originally Posted by vztrt

Ford don't care nor do they want to sell their cars as Taxi's.

If you cant beat them, joing them. Taxi operators will continue to buy new Falcons whether Ford wants it or not, and Ford should realise the fact that these cars are rolling advertisements for hundreds of passengers a month. Having taxis at G6 spec or higher may make the businessman travelling to Melbourne airport consider a Falcon when his Mazda 6 lease is up for renewal.

Go to Europe and the Mercs and Skodas are quite nicely specced, it actually made me realise that Skodas especially are pretty nice cars.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by Brazen

If you cant beat them, joing them. Taxi operators will continue to buy new Falcons whether Ford wants it or not, and Ford should realise the fact that these cars are rolling advertisements for hundreds of passengers a month. Having taxis at G6 spec or higher may make the businessman travelling to Melbourne airport consider a Falcon when his Mazda 6 lease is up for renewal.

Go to Europe and the Mercs and Skodas are quite nicely specced, it actually made me realise that Skodas especially are pretty nice cars.

Taxi operators buy their Falcons from the auctions. Ford do not offer a taxi pack and buying a year old Falcon will be a lot cheaper then buying new.

[jpd80]

Originally Posted by Brazen

If you cant beat them, joing them. Taxi operators will continue to buy new Falcons whether Ford wants it or not, and Ford should realise the fact that these cars are rolling advertisements for hundreds of passengers a month.

Unlike past taxi pac Falcons, Ford won't be offering XTs with 25-30% discounts.
That was the bit Ford didn't like about taxi sales....

And as said above, most taxis are sourced from government auctions, not from Ford dealers...

[Brazen]

Originally Posted by vztrt

Taxi operators buy their Falcons from the auctions. Ford do not offer a taxi pack and buying a year old Falcon will be a lot cheaper then buying new.

A lot of them are now doing the whole 'fleet' thing and are now buying multiple new cars at a time.

At Adelaide airport recently I was in Falcon XT with 9000km, lowest km taxi I have ever been in.

[Mr Hardware]

Originally Posted by BOSHOG

surely the people doing this study have all the internal figures needed to come up with the decision, it must be the right decision.

Haha, you'd think so wouldn't you. But if you know yellow cabs management in brisbane, you'd know their figures are very wrong very often.

Originally Posted by Brazen

Try going to the airport with your wife and two kids and their luggage and fit that in a egas Falcon sedan with a spare tyre slap bang in the middle of the boot. That would be enough to change to wagons for the lucrative airport runs.

Yes. And with the falcon wagon still having the old live rear axle instead of IRS, it's yet another reason why most cabs in brisbane are now wagons.

Originally Posted by naddis01

I think he means if you gas the hybrid you would have no boot space.

Oh. Right. Fair Call.

Originally Posted by Coyote V8

come to australia and see our german taxi's!

I reckon hey. What a joke.

Originally Posted by vztrt

But will be interesting to see what happens if diesel goes to 1.80/l.

Exactly. It's happened before, it'll happen again.


Oh and listen to Jastel and prydey. They are both very right.

[Stoney!]

Originally Posted by prydey

the egas is pretty complex :

Yeh but the e-gas system has barely any gains to it because of it's inefficiencies. It's an agricultural system that people travelling average k's would barely reap any rewards from.

Taxi's on the other hand I know have a number of troubles with it because of it's ancient setup. I've seen many a pictures of blown up airbox's on E-gas falcons from backfiring, not to mention them being down on power, hard starting and heavy on the gas.

Our work ute at Sydney buses is averaging 27L/100k's. Amongst many other suspension, steering and brake related problems the Passats will most likeley not suffer in its first 60,000k's. Even if they do they will not have the problems we are having with ford getting them fixed. (still better than the 4.0 V6 hilux's we had that just simply were designed with ******** brakes - that don't pull you up)

Stoney!

[Mr Hardware]

Stoney, i looked after taxis years ago, and in that time the cabs i looked after clocked up in excess of a combined ten million kilometres. The very, very small amount of time we spent on looking after the LPG systems would have been similar to that of looking after any fuel system, on LPG its converters, on liquid fuels its injectors, filters and pumps. We only had one airbox blow up in that whole time, and that was due to a cranky cabbie liking to pump the accellerator on startup. We changed the sparkplugs every 28,000klms and as a result, nil LPG issues.

[Dr Smith]

Originally Posted by fg_nitro

What you mean 14,000 dollars for a reco gearbox in a 3 year old transporter :

I don't think a dealer buys a ZF for $14,000 ( is that a spare parts list price?), And yeah, with a T5's fwd/6 speed auto so an expensive combo (thank god for warranty), while a Passat DSG will cost even more I would estimate.

[Mr Hardware]

a bit of a hike from the old BTR's $1250 reco fitted that you know will last you in excess of 300,000klms....

[Giant Cranium]

how many less cars does that mean ford sells a year?
will it afect the bottom line if there are no more falcon taxis?

[Dr Smith]

Originally Posted by captain awesome

how many less cars does that mean ford sells a year?
will it afect the bottom line if there are no more falcon taxis?

Very, very few Falcon taxi's are brand new cars, rather auction bought low kay cars. So Ford's sales are not effected.