Ford Built the Wrong GT
When Ford built the mighty, sleek, and futuristic Shelby GT350 Mustang, I knew it proved Ford was going to build a GT supercar. This new Shelby arrived with a pile of Ford firsts. The GT350 sported a new V8 engine, was Ford’s first ever production flat-crank unit, was the first Ford with magnetic adjustable dampers, and came with the biggest set of brakes Ford has ever used. Except for the back seat and the Mustang badge, it’s an actual race car.
So that was case over. Ford couldn’t get the GT approved through budget, so they put all of their go-faster parts on a Mustang too. Shared costs meant reduced overhead. Which meant the GT project could get the green light. It all made perfect sense.
Then the Detroit Auto Show rolled around, and there she was: the all-new 2016 GT. Except it seems to me like Ford built the wrong car. There was no huge V8 hiding behind the rear seats, but rather a modest EcoBoost V6. Transmission options also didn’t seem very GT-like, with a dual-clutch auto being the only choice. The car had the right looks, but all the wrong guts.
My question is why? The original GT40 was a car used to destroy Ferrari at Le Mans. Now Ford is making a car with an engine that is nearly identical in structure to some of Ferrari’s most famous engines, and we dump it for a turbo V6. I will accept the criticism that the engine is derived from Ford’s endurance racing project, and it makes more than 500 horsepower, so it should be accepted as a good idea. But then I propose to you the GT350’s 5.2-liter mill. Ford has already promised that engine will make more than 100 horsepower per liter, so we are already at more than 520 on the naturally aspirated engine. Imagine what would happen if Ford just slapped a small supercharger on top. Blasting into the 700 horsepower range seems pretty trivial at that point. The blower also brings the car more in line with its predecessor.
Don’t even get me started on the lack of a clutch pedal.
With the GT350, Ford has the greatest collection of racecar parts imaginable. The spec sheet just reads like a shopping list for a Le Mans machine, but Ford threw most of it out the window in favor of pushing its EcoBoost branding. But nothing sounds or looks like the GT350 on the track right now, so why the hell wouldn’t they use that?
Of course there is also a case to be made for money. If you sell only 200 GTs, and parts like the engine are exclusive, you are paying a lot of money. If you can spread those costs out, each model will be cheaper to build out. It is simple economics.
The GT, all the way back to the GT40, has been about using American might and ingenuity to outpace the Italians. It came with a big thumping V8, brash looks, and three freaking pedals. It was a blue-collar car for the black tie crowd, and it was perfect for it. That dichotomy was ever present and gave that car character. I know the new GT will be insanely good to drive when we finally get a chance, but will it be better than the GT350, or the upcoming GT350R?
So what do you guys think? Did Ford make the right move here, or should they have just dropped that magic body of the GT on top of something else?
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