Legends have made it to the books of history, to the walls of museums and have their named etched in stone for eternity and beyond; remembered as the one amongst the Gods. Another trait that legends share is that they have never been brought back to life. That being said, Ford like its founder has always made sure to push itself and step up their game in every possible way. With the recently unveiled GT concept, Ford has brought back to life what was once restricted to the books of history, only to see the Europeans sweating.
The 2017 Ford GT not only marks the home coming of the legend from the era gone by, but also puts the American auto giant back in the league of exotics. The GT uses complete carbon fibre in its construction extended right down to the monocoque chassis along with aluminium body panels, gets active aerodynamics and a stellar modern age V6 engine that with a rather humble nameplate ‘EcoBoost’.
Starting with the design, that ultra-light, ultra strong chassis is matched to one visually titillating design of the Ford GT. If a car design could be termed as NSFW, this would be it. Not an Italian, not a Brit, but exactly this! That’s simply how beautiful it is. Hidden under the cloak of a Le Mans prototype racer, the Ford GT concept is quite close to the production version. The front is reminiscent of the classic GT40 with the wide hood, but beyond that the beautifully sculpted lines takeover and give you the entire super car visual prowess you need.
The cabin body shell is well hidden between the wide front and the mid-engine at the rear and the access comes from the front-hinged doors. Moving to the rear and you are greeted with the two humongous canon-like exhaust and the classic red tail lights residing at the extreme edges. The integrated rear spoiler also gets its very own air brake function and can rise vertically, tilt as well as angle upward that speaks about the extensive downforce that Ford is trying to achieve.
That’s not all; Ford is targeting the best power-to-weight-ratio on the GT. But not just to compete with cars in its class. The GT as Ford says will have the best power to weight ratio across seen on any car in the market. That makes it extremely light while the power is said to come from the monstrous turbocharged six-cylinder EcoBoost motor (no supercharged V8 this time round) set out to produce 600 horses of pure American power. The engine detail still isn’t out, but is likely to be developed on the 3.5-litre unit seen on the new Ford Raptor F-150.
What we love about the Ford GT is the pure honesty that comes along with it. It is not trying to be someone it isn’t. It does not have inhibitions in being the supercar it should be. There are no fancy electric motors, energy recovery systems, only electric drive mode and an i-pad controlling everything. It is a supercar, a legend and lives by the name. It comes with atrocious power handled by a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and rides on 20-inch Michelin Pilot Super Sport Cup 2 tyres wrapped in ultra-light carbon fibre rims that ensure you don’t take off, and we mean the last line literally.
Being developed for around a year now, the folks at Ford are super fast in sculpting this beauty to life. It does boast of some very interesting tech wizardry including an active suspension. The interiors come with a digital instrument cluster, a touchscreen display unit and also Ford’s SYNC 3 infotainment set-up. You also get paddle-shifters lurking behind the steering wheel.
Ford plans to take the GT to Le Mans in 2016 and is looking at consuming lap times with handling its mainstay. The Ford boys are seriously looking to up its game with this one and will be giving a tough fight to the men at Italy, not to forget the compatriot Chevrolet Corvette. 1960’s are back!
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