Ford entered the 1999 Shell Championship Series with enhanced optimism due to its new beast, the AU Falcon, but it proved winless until Round 5 in the Top End as a young rising star delivered the model’s first win.
Sporting an aggressive bodykit utilising the quad-headlight set-up used by the XR range of performance models, Ford’s new V8 Supercar endured a torrid early history amid Holden’s dominance.
Launched in 1998, the AU Falcon featured a polarising design in the pursuit of low Cd and improved fuel economy.
This didn’t aid the AU Falcon Supercar as it failed to be a hit on track and was immediately outclassed by Holden’s VT Commodore, which had debuted at Calder Park in the hands of the Holden Racing Team and its enduro driver Greg Murphy the previous year.
Ford’s top teams at the time were Glenn Seton Racing, Dick Johnson Racing and the emerging Stone Brothers Racing.
Jim and Ross Stone had been around the Australian touring car scene for some time following a successful career in their native New Zealand, with the duo about to lead the Ford charge in V8 Supercars.
Having entered into team ownership alongside Alan Jones as Pack Leader Racing in 1996, the Stone Brothers fully owned the squad by the time it won the Bathurst 1000 in 1998.
One half of the driver line-up to conquer the Mountain was rising prospect Jason Bright.
Having received his debut as a super-sub for Garry Rogers Motorsport in 1997 at Symmons Plains for a best of ninth before being snapped up to partner Jones at the endurance races.
Third at Sandown proved a great start, but Bathurst proved a challenge on the way to 11th.
Bright was elevated to a full-time slot in the freshly re-branded Stone Brothers Racing squad in 1998 and soon put the industry on notice courtesy of some superb performances including third at Calder Park.
Steve Richards then joined and the duo won Bathurst, despite a fast practice incident requiring significant repairs.
Bright emerged as Ford’s shining light in 1999 by finishing second in the opening round at Eastern Creek before finishing third at Adelaide and Perth.
Phillip Island highlighted the AU’s deficiencies despite Seton scoring two podiums, but Darwin’s Hidden Valley layout was going to provide some joy for Ford fans.Seton scored second in Race 1 before Bright did likewise in the second encounter to both equal the AU’s best result.
This was eclipsed in Race 3 when Bright took the maiden win for the AU following a challenge from Garth Tander. Not only was it the race win, but the round victory for Bright and the end of a long wait for Ford Fans.
John Bowe took just one more victory for Ford at Queensland Raceway in the CAT Racing entry, with Seton finishing fourth in the title despite not winning a race.
Although a fast qualifying package, the aerodynamic kit was criticised for lacking front downforce, which was fixed in 2000 when the VT Commodore front air dam was incorporated into the design.
The AU results improved, but not to the extent of when the BA was introduced in 2003 when Stone Brothers Racing began a run of three titles in a row courtesy of Marcos Ambrose and Russell Ingall.
Bright meanwhile went to Indy Lights at the end of the 1999 season where he finished sixth before returning to Australia as he replaced Craig Lowndes following the star driver’s defection to Ford.
The AU’s lack of success spurred Ford Australia on and the BA proved a more than suitable weapon to quell Holden’s domination during the 2000s.