COVER FEATURE
It may be a Le Mans winner, but what’s the road car like? We get to drive one of 2017’s most anticipated supercars
We get an exclusive first drive in one of the year’s most anticipated supercars
PROVENANCE crowns this car. It’s a coronation that’s echoed through the last five decades and one that was reaffirmed 12 months ago when, once again, Ford conquered that most famous of 24-hour races, Le Mans. It was there in 1966 that a trio of Ford GT40S registered a triumphant one-two-three podium sweep, wrenching the trophy from Ferrari’s grasp. Fast-forward exactly 50 years to Le Mans 2016 and Ford once again occupied the podium’s top spot with the all-new GT claiming positions one, three and four in the LM GTE category. A lone Ferrari 488 GTE spoiled the perfect party.
The pedigree runs deeper than just this repeat result, though; it reflects a similar genesis. Both the GT40 and the GT were specifically built to win the famous French race, making the vehicle you see on these pages a supercar unlike any of its contemporaries. A road car it
may be, but race genes are at the core and, even though the road and race GT may have been developed separately, the shared chassis, engine and tech employed reveal a common purpose.
Two years after its unveiling at the 2015 North American International Auto Show and one Le Mans victory later, the road car was finally allowed to be driven by the world’s press at the Utah Motorsport Campus racetrack and surrounding roads outside Salt Lake City. Given that only a handful of the road cars have been built so far, and the fact that only a thousand will be produced over the next four years, this was as exclusive an invitation as it gets. CAR was lucky to be the sole representative from Africa and the Middle East.
THE RACE DNA
We’ve witnessed how good the racecar is, but what of the road car? That’s an answer that must start with that race DNA, so let’s kick off with the chassis. It has a full-carbon tub (all-carbon body panels, too) and a pushrodactuated inboard suspension with primary torsion bars and secondary coil springs. It also possesses hydraulically operated ride-height adjustment that, in track mode, lowers the car by 50 mm in a remarkable transformation that takes around a second to accomplish. Do yourself a favour and look at online videos of the GT morphing from normal to track mode; it’s a genuine jaw-dropper.
There’s an integrated, FIAcertified chromo roll cage; trick aerodynamics that include a keel front suspension used in F1 and Le Mans LMP1 racecars; and a rear wing that can not only be trimmed for high and low downforce, but can actually change its shape, as well as act as an aero brake. And, talking of aero obsession, along with its distinctive teardrop fuselage and buttressed flanks, the GT also boasts by far the smallest frontal area in its class, the figure significantly lower than both that of a Mclaren 720S and Ferrari 488 GTB, even in raised, normal mode.
And then the engine. Rather than go for a turbocharged V8 like all its competitors, the Ford GT has a 3,5-litre V6 turbopetrol. Why? Because, for an endurance race such as Le Mans where fuel efficiency plays a key role, a V6 powering a very light chassis makes more sense. The road car shares the same basic engine block and architecture, with all the ancillaries at the rear of the engine between the block and the transmission for optimum mid-engine mass distribution.
That, however, is where the similarities end. The road car develops 482 kw at 6 250 r/min, along with 746 N.m between 3 900 and 6 000 r/min. The transmission is a Getrag-sourced seven-speed dual-clutch unit that, in manual mode, is operated by a set of carbon paddles on the steering wheel.
ON-ROAD PERFORMANCE
All of that – the provenance and the spec sheet – represents an impressive automotive CV by any standards, but this is still a road car and a key question remains. It’s a question that is not about how it performs – that was always going to be stellar – but how it functions as a road car.
Standing in front of this yellow GT, it was hard not to feel a little nervy. It doesn’t matter how many supercars you’ve driven on-road and track, the GT’S racecar genes put it into an entirely different category. It’s one that makes itself known as soon has you hunker down into the bucket seat and pull the belt across your body. For one thing, there’s no seat adjustment beside the tilt of the back rest – the hip-and-shoulder-hugging seat is fixed to the tub – instead it’s the pedals, along with the steering wheel, that you can move fore and aft to suit your driving position.
A press of the red starter on the centre console fires up the engine, delivering a gravely and distinctly mechanical sound behind your head. It’s not a pleas-
ant engine note – something of a drone, to be honest – and with not much in the way of massadding sound damping, it fills the cabin. And it gets worse. Our test route takes us along a 50 km drive towards the surrounding Oquirrh Mountains and the road surface is bumpy. There are enough state troopers to force a 65 mph speed-limit adherence and, along with the intrusive engine buzz, road imperfections ricochet up through the cabin. This is despite the GT set to its softest, normal mode. Clearly, law-abiding speeds are not the Ford’s strong point.
But then we turn right … and snaking up the mountain range is a long ribbon of smooth, beautifully cambered and banked road that disappears into the distance. It’s finally time to see what the GT is really all about; I thumb the little steering-wheel mount selector to sport.
Just like that, the car turns into something else altogether.
Pressing down on the accelerator immediately changes the engine note into a sweetsounding scream as the digital rev counter lights up across the screen behind the wheel. Acceleration is brutal, but progressive, and the car remains remarkably composed despite balance-shifting changes of direction.
The pass’s tight hairpins and short straights really test the Getrag ‘box, too, and it responds with swift, precise changes that keep the GT engine in the sweet spot through beautifully banked corkscrews and long, sweeping corners. There’s not a huge amount of feedback through the wheel and you’d expect it to really load up under heavy cornering; it remains surprisingly light, though very direct, with the ground-sucking aero through the keel front suspension providing fantastic grip.
Despite me over-cooking a couple of corners, there’s no hint of understeer; neither is it tail happy in the slightest. Instead, it’s the most beautifully balanced rear-wheel-drive supercar I’ve driven. It feels nimble and light, despite its size, and wonderfully composed under heavy braking. When stomping on the ceramic anchors, rather than seeing the GT arrive at a corner on tiptoes, its supremely settled and ready for decisive steering input.
The GT also has what Ford calls an Antilag system that employs software to maintain enough energy in the exhaust manifold to keep the turbo spooled. It works pretty well; while there is a hint of lag at lower revs, if you’re on the money with your gear changes and keep it on the boil, the 3,5-litre delivers its power instantaneously.
All of this gets even better on the UMC track, of course. Configured to track mode and optimised for low-drag, straightline speed and high cornering grip, the GT is in its element. As opposed to intimidating, it’s remarkably driveable. Confidenceinspiring would be the term I’d use and, after a couple of warmups, each subsequent lap posts improved times until, after five flyers, I’m flagged back in.
THE VERDICT
Is the Ford GT up there in terms of the road-car refinement offered by the likes of the Ferrari 488 GTB, Mclaren 650S (we’ve yet to drive the 720S), Lamborghini Huracan and Audi R8 V10 Plus? No, it’s not. Not even close, actually.
But that would ultimately be missing the point. You have to remember that the GT was built primarily to win races, and you can’t help but admire this sense of purpose that radiates from the Ford.
Confirmed by an exterior design that permits only limited retro nods and seductive aesthetics, the GT is unashamedly fit for purpose. These are qualities that make it unique among its peers. And, given that only 1 000 will be made over its four-year production run (of which 850 have already been pre-ordered), the GT will remain a rare and, thanks to that 2016 Le Mans victory, very special car. Just like the original GT40.