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Ford GT |
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Blood will out … |
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The
original version of the Ford GT,
christened GT40, was a fearsome racing
beast, built during the mid ‘60s to
compete against the Ferraris at the 24
Hours of Le Mans. A technical marvel and
an absolute jewel in its concept, the
GT40 perfectly reflected the devotion
and perseverance of Ford.
In fact this car was to become one of
the classiest in the history of
endurance racing. At the 24 Hours of Le
Mans alone it took the 1st, 2nd and 3rd
treads of the podium. The year 2006 was
in fact the 40th anniversary of this
historic event, which saw the GT40 start
off on an incredible series of
victories, allowing Ford to dominate for
a period of 4 years this extremely
demanding world of endurance racing.
A road going car, the Ford GT directly
inspired from the GT40 needed to rest on
a solid structure, as with a racing car.
To meet this an aluminium space frame
chassis was developed. The hybrid
aluminium space frame chassis are based
on the efficient usage of 35 extrusions,
7 complex castings and 2 castings shaped
in semi-solid, as also various stamped
aluminium panels.
The Ford GT engine, based on the most
powerful of Ford’s power units, namely
the V8 produces 550 bhp, for a torque of
680 Nm. Data highly similar to the 7,0
litres engine which won the 24 Hours of
Le Mans in 1966 and 1967.
The GT chassis rests on unequal length
control arms suspension, as also coil
over spring-damper units to allow for
its low profile. Brembo brakes and
monoblock callipers with 4 pistons are
fitted to the car.
Up-to-date technologies were adopted for
the design of the Ford GT, amongst
others aluminium chassis panels, built
following the “super carbon forming”
process. The centre tunnel is of the
friction-stir type, and there are
roll-bonded floor panels.
Amongst some of the Ford GT’s
exclusivities, we noted the
super-plastic-formed aluminium body
panels, a capless fuel filler system not
forgetting the aluminium engine cover,
with one piece carbon-fibre inner panel.
The Ford GT40 of the ‘60s Ford was a
true racing machine which became
legendary, and Matech Concepts has now
allowed this power beast to have a
spectacular comeback on the
international motorsports scene, and
this through competing in the European
FIA-GT3 championship.
It goes without saying that the Ford
GT’s characteristics at the outset
constituted a perfect departure point to
build a racing car. Matech, reputable
manufacturer and racing team, are really
holding quite a gem in their hands. With
the help of Ford Germany (wind tunnel),
of Bosch Motorsport (engine management
and electronics), of Motec (data
acquisition) and several other
manufacturers, Matech has in fact opened
a new chapter in the annals of the Ford
GT. A winning chapter, seeing that as
from the second FIA-GT3 meeting of the
season, the Frenchman Romain Bera and
the Belgian Stefan Van Campenhoudt gave
Ford GT its first victory. Blood will
out … |
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Ford Mustang |
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The other myth … |
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Rarely, in the history of the American
motorcar, has a model left quite such a
mark in its time….and it is far from
being in the past. A Lee Iacocca design,
the Mustang was unveiled on 17th April
1964 in New York. It was Ford’s
intention to offer the post-war American
youth a model which broke away from the
heavy and massive style of cars being
driven in the United States. Fitted with
either a V8 or a straight 6 cylinder the
Mustang was immediately synonymous with
a sporting image, further confirmed by
the various versions prepared over the
years by Carroll Shelby.
Prince amongst the Muscle Cars, the
Mustang had mixed success over the
decades. In 2005 the present model put
in its appearance, and the myth took off
once more. Personified by a Shelby 500
GT that absolutely oozed pure racing.
Different American championships have
allowed the Ford Mustang to continue
reaping success upon success. This is
namely the case in the Grand-Am series,
where the Mustang FR500C has become the
reference in its category …
It was only with the arrival of the FIA
GT3 championship in Europe that this car
finally disembarked on the old
continent. Developed in collaboration
with the American branch of Ford Racing,
the Mustang FR500GT had a rather shy
début in this international competition
created by Stéphane Ratel. Nonetheless
its development continues, and there’s
no doubt whatsoever that with its
aggressive look it will be back in
strength …
Not satisfied with merely monopolising
victories in Grand-Am, the Mustang
FR500C took advantage of the arrival of
the GT4 category in Europe to show
itself on the European tracks.
Respectively entered by the Canadian
Multimatic Motorsports team and the
Belgian Motorsport 98 team, this
gorgeous American machine didn’t wait
long to clinch its first victories, both
in Oschersleben and at Spa.
The Ford Mustang seems to have taken a
liking for GT events, and for the
European public it is but a wild dream … |
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