Top Car

76 TOPCAR.CO.ZA|January 20162016’s most wanted:FORDGT‘Otherthanthe obviouschangesthe roadcaris the racecar and theracecar is the roadcar’T THIS MOMENTin time, the new FordGT is like an icebergin the supercar sea.We’ve seen it, it’s real,we even know whenit’s going to arrive; butexactly how big theimpact is going to bewhen it hits dependsvery much on what’slying beneath th esurface. And the waters su rrounding it are deceptivelymurky, despite initialconfirmation of over 450kW,carbon fibre construction and exce ptional aero. It certainlyseems like a significant blip on our radar – just howworried should the establishment be?This has beena secretive project right from the start.Genesis was a small team, located in a Dearbornbasement, working late nights and weekends – the onlytime they could push the car outside and see what itlooked like in daylight. The faintest flutterings of rumourheralded its arrival at the Detroit motor show in January,but still it was a shock – suddenly there, a new Ford GT.Not just in concept but as a statement of definite intent,subsequently reinforc ed atLe Mansin June where Fordunveiled the racing version, and with it a pledge to be onthe grid at La Sarthe the follo wing year, the ultimate 50thanniversary celebration of the original ’s famous one-two-three victory.That, however, is about assentimental as the new GT gets. Itmost definitely is not some kind ofself-c ongratulatory heritage pastiche.Concrete details include the structure:a full carbon fibre tub, clad incarbon fibre panels, with aluminiumcomponents front and rear to cradlethe engine, mount the suspension and tolerate cras htesting. Much like a modern McLaren. Instead of a fire-breathing, old-school V8, the engine is a race-proven3.5-litr e twin-turbo Ecoboost V6, driving the rear wheelsvia a seven-speed Getrag twin-cl utch automatic. Thesuspension uses in-board push-rod dampers and anunusual-enough-to-patent spring-and-torsion-barcombination – an ‘active’ setup to gowith th e activeaerodynamics. The brakes are Brembo ca rbon -ceramics.The interior features a digital gauge cluster, paddleshifters and a steering wheel as laden with buttons asany from Ferrari. But this lot aside, Ford has beenreluctant to reveal any specifics.Dave Pe ricak, head of Ford Performance – theorganisational umbrella that now encompasses FordRacing and the blue oval’s high-performance pr oductioncars – is keen to apol ogise for the cloak and dagger. ‘It’s abit moresensitive right now than it would typically be,’he says , ‘and that’s only beca use we are ge tting ready torace .’ The new GT’s first competitive event is set to bethe Rolex 24 at Daytona in January, while the productionversion won’t be ready untilthe follo wing November.But even this builds intr igue. The ro ad car and theracing car are different beasts, aren’t they? Think again.‘Other than the obvious changes you have to makewhen you go racing – the fixed wing, ot her rules andregulations you just have to follo w – the ro ad car is therace car and the race car is the ro ad car,’ Pericakexplains. So much so that it’s difficult to examine one