Star Cars: Eric Bana’s 1973 Ford Falcon XB

While some cars, such as the Porsche 911, the Austin Mini, or the Ferrari Testarossa have truly international appeal, there are others that are heralded as heroes in their home markets, while being largely unknown overseas.

Such is the case for many of Australia’s V8-powered muscle cars, one of which caught the eye of a future Hollywood leading man, and would ultimately become his lifelong companion.

Born in Melbourne in 1968, Eric Bana’s formative years were shaped by the thrilling motorsport events he saw on TV, with perhaps the most impactful race being the 1977 Bathurst 1000, where Allan Moffat and Colin Bond secured a 1-2 finish driving Ford Falcon Coupes.

Already enamoured with the model, Bana’s enthusiasm for the Falcon was only strengthened when, at the age of nine, he first set eyes on the extensively modified post-apocalyptic example driven by Mel Gibson in the cult classic film, Mad Max.

And so, at the age of 15, Bana persuaded his father to buy him a Falcon coupe of his very own. While it was in need of cosmetic and mechanical restoration, this only strengthened his bond with the car, as he carried out the repairs with his friends in his parents’ garage.

A little over ten years later, Bana and his friends set about rebuilding the Falcon for competition use. On its completion, the car was entered into the five-day Targa Tasmania endurance race with Bana and a friend driving, and the pair managed to finish third in their class, much to their surprise.

Now bitten by the racing bug, Bana continued to compete, but with relatively few events suitable for his XB Coupe, it was side-lined in favour of other cars, including a race-prepared 993-generation Porsche 911.

By 2005, Bana was a well-known name in Hollywood, having starred in films including Chopper, Black Hawk Down, Hulk, Finding Nemo, and Troy. Despite his success, he hadn’t lost any enthusiasm for his first car, and now he could afford to properly invest in the Falcon. Subsequently, it was fully rebuilt and upgraded to race specifications, with its power output increased to a mighty 590 horsepower.

As documented in his 2009 documentary film ‘Love the Beast’, Bana set out to prove the car’s capabilities in April 2007 by entering the Targa Tasmania rally once again, coming full circle from his first motorsport event.

While it took some time to settle with the newly rebuilt Falcon, Bana and his navigator Tony Ramunno soon got into the flow of things, setting some strong times going into the event’s fourth day.

Unfortunately, this is where things took a turn for the worse. After carrying too much speed into a tight right-hand corner at the Cethana stage, Bana crashed the car into a tree – though thankfully both Bana and his navigator Tony Ramunno made it out of the wreck uninjured.

While this experience might be enough to put some people off motorsport for good, after taking time to consider his options, Bana had the Falcon rebuilt once again, with Robert ‘Robbo’ Haken of Logan Valley Smash Repairs being tasked with the work.

Far from a straightforward project, this involved straightening, welding, panel repairs, and final paintwork. Once this work was complete, the rolling body was taken to mechanic Mark Johnstone, who worked with Bana to create a ‘race car for the road’.

The engine was fully rebuilt by ex-Ford Performance Racing mechanic Brad Nankervis, with the Ford ‘Windsor’ V8’s displacement being kept at 408ci, but using a Dart block and locally fabricated 3V CHI heads.

Other engine components added included a 750cfm Holley carburettor, a solid roller cam, JE pistons, an MSD electronic ignition system, and a dry sump built to V8 Supercar specifications.

With the powerplant finished, the time came to upgrade the dated leaf spring suspension setup with a custom coilover kit, consisting of fully adjustable Koni shocks with Eibach springs.

Braking was revised to six-piston AP Racing callipers at the front and four-piston items at the rear, with 12-inch discs on all four corners. The car retained its five-speed Tremec gearbox.

In 2014, the rebuild was complete, and while ‘The Beast’ is not expected to see competition again, it remains with Bana as a much-loved companion, and a reminder of his boyhood dreams of racing a Ford Falcon XB coupe.

Photos via MotorTrend / Hot Rod.