*new* Top Gear Ford Gt Review
#12
Understeer is an inherent issue with any car these days -- and one that can be overcome with some work. Understeer or not, that car was quick.
Whether or not a GT2 is going to outrun one is anyones guess -- I'd put them close in terms of performance and both are easy to get more horsepower from due to the forced induction route.
The one thing the GT has going for it over most other cars is a unique identity and a direct link to the past. The GT may share a motor with the Ford lightning -- but unlike the Porsche it does not look like a gussied up mustang ...
I agree with the C6 comments. GM has a solid history of using Ford's "super car" as a benchmark for their modified vette -- and then offering a quicker car for considerably less money.
Anyone who has been around long enough to remember the various Ford Cobra's and Cobra R's being out classed for less money with more convenience (radio, A/C) will probably join me in waiting with baited breathe for the next generation Z06.
Whether or not a GT2 is going to outrun one is anyones guess -- I'd put them close in terms of performance and both are easy to get more horsepower from due to the forced induction route.
The one thing the GT has going for it over most other cars is a unique identity and a direct link to the past. The GT may share a motor with the Ford lightning -- but unlike the Porsche it does not look like a gussied up mustang ...
I agree with the C6 comments. GM has a solid history of using Ford's "super car" as a benchmark for their modified vette -- and then offering a quicker car for considerably less money.
Anyone who has been around long enough to remember the various Ford Cobra's and Cobra R's being out classed for less money with more convenience (radio, A/C) will probably join me in waiting with baited breathe for the next generation Z06.
#13
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This is hardly the glorious return of the GT40, either. It does not meet requirements for GT racing in any american or international road racing series, including Speed World Challenge. (engine is too large for forced induction accordint to GT rules, unless they de-stroke it by 1.4 liters)
The GT40 was built to beat Ferrari at Le Mans, but i see no reason for this overweight pig of a car to exist if it's not going to go head to head against the world's best on the racetrack. Ford will mark them up insanely, as opposed to Ferrari's limitations on their dealers to only sell at MSRP(firsthand retail i mean). They should have done this car right, with a purpose built 7.0 liter naturally aspirated V8, and taken the GT circuit by storm. Given that Saleen, with relatively limited resources, was able to design and build a Ford-based 427 for their S7 with 550 BHP, I can't see why that would have been so hard, except perhaps for Ford's typical insistence on cost cutting at every corner. Did they actually want to make money on this car? *newsflash* ICON CARS AREN"T FOR PROFIT! I just can't believe how they shot themselves in the foot so badly by making this car so far from the spirit of its predecessor.
Quick2k
The GT40 was built to beat Ferrari at Le Mans, but i see no reason for this overweight pig of a car to exist if it's not going to go head to head against the world's best on the racetrack. Ford will mark them up insanely, as opposed to Ferrari's limitations on their dealers to only sell at MSRP(firsthand retail i mean). They should have done this car right, with a purpose built 7.0 liter naturally aspirated V8, and taken the GT circuit by storm. Given that Saleen, with relatively limited resources, was able to design and build a Ford-based 427 for their S7 with 550 BHP, I can't see why that would have been so hard, except perhaps for Ford's typical insistence on cost cutting at every corner. Did they actually want to make money on this car? *newsflash* ICON CARS AREN"T FOR PROFIT! I just can't believe how they shot themselves in the foot so badly by making this car so far from the spirit of its predecessor.
Quick2k
#15
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Originally Posted by steve c,Jul 20 2004, 11:56 AM
The GT-40 was a race car.
The GT is a road car.
You don't want to drive a race car on the street.
The GT is a road car.
You don't want to drive a race car on the street.
I like the Ford GT a lot but I don't think this days it will make a huge impact in its class. I'll take that GT2 anytime.
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I never said i want to drive the race version on the street. I wouldn't want a C5-R or a Viper competition coupe in my garage for daily driving either, but apparently you missed my point. The road-going versions of those cars can be modified to fit the rules of major sport motoring organizations like the FIA, but the Ford GT cannot. Therefore, it will not have a race version, which is the betrayal of tradition that i feel so disappointed about.
Quick2k
P.S. the GT-40 was also a road car, homologated for racing purposes.
Quick2k
P.S. the GT-40 was also a road car, homologated for racing purposes.
#19
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Hmmm... The C5-R might look like a C5, but my understanding is that it has some significant differences. Like a 7.0 liter motor and a track that's several inches wider (and there supposedly different suspension?)
It's not like you can take a typical street Z06 and expect it to be anything but a back marker in ALMS. So why expect the GT to be race-ready?
The current 911 GT2 street car, for example, doesn't get raced. Even the 911 GT3 goes through quite a lot of changes before it'll do well in even the realtively stock series Grand-Am Cup.
If the only issue is that the supercharged engine is too large for the letter of the law for the ACO, that's a very simple thing to change. Take off the supercharger, stroke the displacement, do whatever other whiz-bang mods are required and permitted, and go racing. Eh?
It's not like you can take a typical street Z06 and expect it to be anything but a back marker in ALMS. So why expect the GT to be race-ready?
The current 911 GT2 street car, for example, doesn't get raced. Even the 911 GT3 goes through quite a lot of changes before it'll do well in even the realtively stock series Grand-Am Cup.
If the only issue is that the supercharged engine is too large for the letter of the law for the ACO, that's a very simple thing to change. Take off the supercharger, stroke the displacement, do whatever other whiz-bang mods are required and permitted, and go racing. Eh?