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Geneva 2016: Ford GT Reborn
The Ford GT traces its roots back to the GT40. And the birth of the GT40 is a story we all know so well. Back in 1963, the deal to sell Scuderia Ferrari to Ford Motor Company turned sour when Enzo Ferrari backed out. An enraged Henry Ford ordered to create a racing car that would beat the Ferraris at the LeMans. And the GT40 went on to win LeMans for 4 consecutive years from 1966 to 1969.
In 2003, Ford modernised their famed endurance racer, which became a success. It was a supercar for the working class. Fast forward to the present, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the GT40's first LeMans win in 1966, an all-new Ford GT was unveiled. Ford also has another target in mind: to once again take on Maranello's best and win.
[blockquote author="Raj Nair, Group Vice President And Chief Technical Officer (Global Product Development)" pull="normal"]This car's function is to win at LeMans[/blockquote]
The Ford GT was conceived to be a race car. And the road car is developed concurrently, based on the race car. It uses the same race-proven EcoBoost engine, a 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbocharged unit. Power is expected to be in excess of 600bhp and is transmitted to the rear wheels via a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. The engine ECU (Electronic Control Unit) alone has enough computing power from 28 microprocessors to run 10 million lines of code, processing 3,000 signals from 50 sensors! To put that into perspective, a F22 Raptor fighter jet and a Boeing 787 jumbo jet use only 2 million and 6 million lines respectively.
To make the Ford GT competitive, the engineers and designers at Ford want to achieve the best power-to-weight ratio. Hence, the V6 engine is favoured over a V8 unit. Weight is shed by losing 2 cylinders yet more power can be extracted. Carbon-fiber wheels will also be part of the diet. The wheels are supplied by Carbon Revolution. At 8.2kg each, it is half the weight of a forged aluminium wheel. Ford has also collaborated with Corning and developed Gorilla Glass hybrid window - a tough, durable and scratch-resistant window that is 30% lighter than ordinary glass. 5.5kg of weight is saved when used on both the front windshield and rear engine cover.
Carbon fibre is extensively used to build the car's structure. And one added benefit of lightweight carbon-fibre is its ability to take on any shape, with the help of a mold. Aerodynamics is still the best way to reduce weight because form follows function. There is no redundancies in the design of the car. In fact, parts have been designed with dual functions.
The flying buttresses are aerodynamically shaped to create downforce and divert air to the active rear wing. They also house air-to-air intercoolers to keep the engine cool. After which, the heated air is discharged through the taillights, which are actually LEDs surrounding the vents.
The Ford GT looks bigger than it actually is, thanks to its tapering fuselage. Which is inspired by a Formula One car. This reduces the car's cross-sectional area and in turn reduces drag. And it hence effectively reduces the car's weight.
This project was kept a secret from the world, even employees of Ford. It came to light 14 months later and the Ford Performance team sure did a hell of a job in such a short period of time. Ford has recently created an online configurator for us to have some fun. And these are the dream designs for Dickson and myself. Have a go at it too!
- Dickson's GT
- Enzo's GT
Geneva 2016: Ford GT Reborn
So basically it's a mix of 3 cars ...
