Picture this: A dark, damp room. It’s in the basement of a normal looking warehouse. There’s a door with a keypad, a place to swipe a badge and a retinal scan. But that’s just the beginning. Behind that door is a hallway that leads to another, larger door. There’s no keypad. There is no retinal scan, or place to swipe a badge. No, this door is only opened by you uttering a phrase that changes every week. It knows the sound of your voice. If it’s not your voice, an alarm sounds, and a dozen armed guards come to take you away.
Impossible Mission?
That kind of sounds like a plot for Ethan Hunt and the Impossible Mission Force. While it’s a dramatization, the Ford Skunkworks team does meet in a very remote area behind a giant wind tunnel where no one can really see what goes on.
Watch Out Europe, Here We Come
In this case, it was to develop a car that would spare no expense at taking on the best pure track machine that Europe has to offer: The Porsche 911 GT3 RS. That’s the car that everyone sets out to take the throne from, but while some come close, most miss the mark. However, the Mustang GTD has something up its sleeve.
“Mustang GTD shatters every preconceived notion of a supercar. This is a new approach for us. We didn’t engineer a road car for the track, we created a race car for the road. Mustang GTD takes racing technology from our Mustang GT3 race car, wraps it in a carbon fiber Mustang body and unleashes it for the street,” said Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO.
Engine & Racing Tech
The GTD is powered by a Supercharged 5.2-liter V8 that is promised to produce at least 800 horsepower and features a giant hydraulically-activated Drag Reduction System (DRS) wing that is attached to the body, plus active aerodynamics under the front of the car. There will be no back seats or trunk space, as the trunk will be taken up by rear suspension components.
50/50 Weight Distribution
In order to make as close to a 50/50 weight distribution as possible, the Mustang GTD has a transaxle, which is a way to combine your transmission, rear axle, and differential for weight balance. It will have only one gearbox: an 8-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
Production
The Mustang GTD is produced by Ford at the Mustang plant in Flat Rock, Michigan, and then shipped to Markham, Ontario, Canada, the home of famed automotive engineering manufacturer Multimatic, the same company that redesigned the suspension for the latest generation Ford GT, using their incredible Adaptive Spool Valve dampers.
Born From Jets
Recycled titanium from retired F-22 Raptor jets is used to create the paddle shifters and door sills. There will also be an optional titanium exhaust.
When asked what makes the Mustang GTD so special, Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance Motorsports, said, “We obsessed about the racing technology under its skin. What makes it go is even more compelling than what you can see when it passes you by. When you look at the engineering, the aerodynamics, how the powertrain works, the Mustang GTD is a rocketship for the road.”
The Nürburgring
Ford is aiming for a sub-7 minute lap time on the Nürburgring, the 12.49-mile German public highway that is used to qualify how great a streetcar is on a race track. It is one of the most dangerous tracks in the world, and it is also one of the longest. The lap time of the current generation 992.1 911 GT3 RS is 6:44.848. This is a car you can go into any dealership and buy and drive home. The Mustang GTD aims to be the answer for customers who don’t want a Porsche.
Race Car First
Since it was actually developed to race in the GTD racing class for the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship here in America, it will also compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Both series will involve the Mustang taking on the likes of BMW, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz AMG, Ferrari, and the like.
Cost
The Mustang GTD will cost at least $300,000 and fully debut by early 2025.
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