at the high-speed Mount Panorama circuit at Bathurst. The AU also claimed 46 fastest race laps of the 125 races held during that time, or 36 percent. The AU would be the only Falcon in the modern V8 Supercar era to not win a championship or a Bathurst 1000. Its most famous wins would be a win in the 2001 Queensland 500 by Paul Radisich and Steven Johnson in their #17 Shell Helix DJR Falcon. Again in 2002 with David Besnard and Simon Wills in their #9 Caltex Havoline SBR Falcon. The lack of success by Ford during the late 1990s and early 2000s prompted V8 Supercars to introduce a new platform known as "Project Blueprint" that would make the competition more evenly matched. Privateer racer Trevor Haines raced a TE50 to 13th place in the 2002 Australian GT Production Car Championship, and later the team finished 9th outright and a Class 5 win in the 2002 Bathurst 24 Hour. Warren Luff took back to back victories in 2002 and 2003 V8 Brute Ute's series racing an Au falcon xr8 ute. References External links AU Falcon Facts AU Falcon Cars of Australia Full-size vehicles Coupé utilities Rear-wheel-drive vehicles Sedans Station wagons Cars introduced in 1998 2000s cars AU Falcon