Unique twincam heads with four valves per cylinder, dual fuel injectors at each port, and heavily fortified internals boosted output to rarefied levels: 550 bhp and 500 pound-feet of torque. This peppier little four could pull itself right along with 120 pound-feet of torque at 3,600 revs. Handling was no less impressive: race-car sharp yet road-car forgiving, with mild understeer changing to power-on oversteer whenever your right foot commanded. Acceptable road-car passenger space was the rationale, but the cockpit was still race-car cozy for six-footers.For all its race-car breeding and heritage, the Ford GT was quite happy to dawdle along at town speeds and could «soak up road imperfections with ease,» to quote Road & Track. But all this only adds to the mystique of a fabulous Ford that was gone way too soon, shot down by «Way Forward» cuts along with the Wixom, Michigan, plant that built the cars carefully and largely by hand.
The ordered, obsequious universe we now take for granted may be the exception to the rule, instead of the other way around.
Take aerodynamics. Because the basic body shape acted like an inverted wing, the GT40 was infamous for being less-than-stable at racing speeds. Kurt Russel plays stuntman Mike and has two «death proof» cars for the film, the other being a 1969 Dodge Charger. Also featured were aluminum pistons with two compression and two oil rings. Both cars employed an aluminum space-frame overlaid with aluminum panels, but the GT benefited from manufacturing techniques unknown in the 1960s.
As a result, it was claimed to be 40 percent stiffer than Ferrari’s formidable F360 Modena, a key rival, l finance quotes yet curb weight was just under 3400 pounds, more than respectable for a fully dressed road car. Skidpad grip was world-class at near 1g, and Road & Track’s test car ran the slalom some 2-mph faster than the much-acclaimed Ferrari Modena.
The only drawbacks to commuting in a GT were Thighmaster-high clutch effort and the very limited visibility associated with midships cars. A twin-disc clutch and Ricardo six-speed manual transaxle conveyed all the might to the rear wheels through a helical limited-slip differential.
The new hardtop roof was modeled after the Thunderbird’s, featuring large, square C-pillars and rectangular rear glass. Small front air «splitters» created downforce at the nose, while side splitters beneath the doors worked together with an enclosed bellypan to smooth airflow on the way to rear «venturi» exits. If you’re like us, you’ve probably got a sneaking suspicion that a shoebox in the basement isn’t the best way to store all your antique documents. Home-theater PCs are available from just about every computer manufacturer out there, and most look like regular PCs, with the CPU tower, monitor and j frank dobie gone but not forgotten keyboard.
Will we ever see its like again? And few of us will make it to a ripe old age without joining the fold. For the sake of everyone in the company and all who love cars, we hope Ford will come up with the «better ideas» it so urgently needs. Ford swallowed its pride and recalled all 448 GTs built in 2004, the first full production year.