Comments:
Ford Sets Nurburgring Record
Another stellar performance by Ford's racing program team....
Via duPont Registry....
A tad surprised by that…
I have huge respect for the ability of the team and the GT line has been a raft of engineering successes - so not with that. But given that under Farley the brand is practically killing the European business I didn’t think they would use the Nordschleiffe so prominently (they are doing it with the Mustang as well).
I guess that this specific team/program is the company's Halo product....
So they aren't willing to cut any corners there regardless of what may be happening in other regional subsidiaries etc. It frankly came as a bit of a surprise to me as well despite being a lifelong Ford fanboy 😉👍
For me the surprise was how comprehensively Farley ruined Ford in Europe…
Even though he was head of the European division in the past and should not have been able to plead ignorance 🤷🏻♂️
Apart from the Transit crown jewels…
The brand is dead for all intents and purposes 🤦🏻♂️
Exactly, the best selling SUVs and trucks in the Americas are, essentially, incompatible with European infrastructure and demographic needs/wants........
He went for a Heritage strategy for Europe…
But based it around a small electric Explorer (on Volkswagen’s MEB platform) which has absolutely zero heritage in Europe and on a very similar (same platform) Capri - this used to be a very storied European junior pony car - turned into a bloated lazily designed SUV fastback 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Unlike with something like the Mustang there was no nameplate continuity and I believe the Capri left the scene in the late 1970s so likewise there’s not much in terms of transfer.
Unlike with something like the Mustang there was no nameplate continuity and I believe the Capri left the scene in the late 1970s so likewise there’s not much in terms of transfer.
The Euro carmakers have a stronghold....
On the types of vehicles that the vast majority of Europeans desire to purchase and drive.... I haven't visited often enough to get a sense of how Asian carmakers are now fairing there, but I think they also have an advantage over American manufacturers at this point in time....
Let’s not forget…
That Ford was considered a ‘European’ carmaker for the best part of a century in Europe - with a largely separate product portfolio fully adapted to European tastes. They used to have a double digit market share in Europe for the majority of their time here and are now down to less than 3% (we are in the region of Porsche with this, albeit global numbers for the latter).
As for the Asian manufacturers it’s a mixed bag but especially the Japanese ones have been losing share and relevance for a while. Honda is practically dead, Nissan on its heels, Mazda is a niche player, Toyota very much depends on the market (quite strong in Eastern Europe). Hyundai and Kia are probably the most successful overall.
It does look like a slick
Possibly a Pilot Sport Cup N3 or N3R.
Would be nice to know how much slower it'd be on a street legal tire.
Yeah, massive performance
Probably close to the limit with ICE & 2WD, the 919 was almost a minute faster but is hybrid & 4WD (another crazy lap).
I'd rather have a car with a fun driving personality for public roadways. For track, a proper Formula car is best imho.
Tho yes, 'merica gotta pee on everything to show...........
Actually there has been numerous reliable boosted 6 cylinder engines capable of high power levels.
Not sure I'm as impressed. But that driver is the man.
If it's not road legal, then it's a race car. But race cars are subject to limits on weight, engine power, and aerodynamic devices. So a car that's not a legal race spec and impossible to register for the road (in its current form) is neither fish nor fowl. I'm sure that if Cadillac were to show up with a derestricted, weight-gutted, and competition-illegal version of its IMSA GTP, the result would chop 30 seconds off the Ford result.
As always, I think there are basically three types of cars that turn these stunt laps; cars that are road legal, cars that are race legal, and cars that are neither. The challenges of competing with constraints means that my personal affection is for the first two categories. More than anything about the new Ford record, I'm impressed by the driver. Watch the in-car video from this run and marvel at his reaction times and apparent knowledge of every single curve on the Nurburgring before it even arrives.
Best Regards,
Tim
Good point. I'm definitely going to see the video, was too busy during the week!
Cheers Tim, Filip