That was back in August, when we were awaiting Holden's about-to-be-released VT Commodore. It looked like an early fightback when the already upmarket version of Ford Australia's biggest car gained a few mechanical, exterior and interior enhancements.

Valued at over $4,500, the extra goodies added only $1,700 to the recommended retail price of the big Ford, and only 500 were to be built. So it seemed strange that six months later one should arrive in WA as a media test vehicle.

Instead of the 5.0 litre V8 usually associated with Fairlane, Concorde uses the high performance six cylinder engine fitted to the Fairmont Ghia - tweaked up by Ford's performance partner, Tickford, the four litre multipoint injected six produces 162kW of power and 361Nm of torque, compared to 157kW and 357Nm of the standard six. (The V8 is an optional extra).

Incidentally, what look like driving lamps under the front bumper are cornering lamps that come on with the indicators to light up tighter corners - actually a good idea, and the headlights are superb for country driving.

So, if it is such an attractive package, how could there be any Fairlane Concordes left on Ford's stock lists? The answer is probably two letters - VT.

Any Ford is inevitably compared to Holden's Commodore, and Falcon/Fairlane has frankly been left behind. This biggest Ford sedan has less interior space than the entry level VT Executive, particularly in terms of legroom,

While the big six engine has ample grunt and power for the car, it is notably coarser in sound and there is also noticeable wind noise at the A and B pillars; the door seals were all intact, but just don't seem to work that well. Road rumble is slightly intrusive, but let's bear in mind the low profile Michelins.

Ergonomics still measure up extremely well, with good control layout and one of the most `user-friendly' cruise controls around (in that respect, at least, it's a country mile ahead of Holden's fiddly indicator-stalk cruise control buttons).

Fuel consumption on test was another reasonable finding, with Concorde returning an average of 12.95 L/100km (22mpg) from the six cylinder engine hauling it around.

Having only recently driven several of the new Commodores, it seemed an unfortunate comparison to find that a tricked-up version of Ford's luxury flagship was left wanting in several crucial areas.

There can be no doubt that Ford has been left sitting behind the 8-ball by Holden's VT, which makes it even more intriguing to wonder just what the new Falcon (and Fairlane, of course) will offer when they are finally released later this year.