Following Griggs Racing Products' performance-first philosophy, the turnkey Track Toy wears a clean, frill-free look. Griggs fits its front air dam with sufficient under-car support to keep it from bending under aero load, so it helps handling and directs more air into the charge cooler and radiator. The rear wing was stock a Miller, but a NASCAR-type spoiler is normally fitted or replaced by an optional all-out cometition wing.
That's what the GR40tta in the pictures is all about. As the Mustang market has matured with the refined S197 chassis and the overall weekend-warrior market has come to embrace the well-heeled looking for street and track excitement of ever greater sophistication, the once-lowly Mustang has come to compete and win at the highest levels. As Bruce observed, while some of us can't wait to pull the trigger on a pneumatic wrench, others can't wait to pull on their blue-suede driving shoes. To that second group, Griggs [(707) 939-2244; www. griggsracing.com] is offering the Track Toy. After all, Bruce has been selling Mustang parts and one-off cars for years. A series-produced car sold off a simple chart by dealers is the next logical step.
To recap the mechanical details of the Griggs S197 suspension and brakes detailed in our July '07 issue ("Better Than Good," p. 186), the Track Toy uses Griggs' highly developed A-arm front and torque-arm-based rear suspension. These are no-excuse assemblies that completely replace the stock Mustang suspension in order to provide the precision, traction, and stability necessary to positively glitter through the apexes-along with the guts to take racetrack abuse so the owner doesn't have to bolt the car back together after every on-track weekend. These aren't cheap, quickie bolt-ons, but top-of-the-line, race-derived, reengineering jobs that allow S197 Mustangs to embarrass Ferraris and Porsches.
As each customer has slightly different needs, Griggs Racing is offering the Track Toy in three levels: GR40tt Sport, GR40tta Autocross/Open Track, and GT40ttr Road Race. They're all spiced with an extensive option list to address the chassis and powertrain, with big-power, supercharged cars on the menu. Griggs Track Toy dealers, which include long-standing traditional parts vendors and Ford dealerships, are playing a vital role in guiding customers through the order list. We're also excited by the thought of several Track Toy demonstrators spread across the country. Getting people behind the wheel is the only way of convincing them of the car's abilities and sophistication.
Track Toys are ordered through any Griggs dealer and are built at Griggs Racing before being shipped to the dealer. This is important, as all the details Griggs has accumulated in two decades of Mustang development is tuned into the chassis rather than relying on a dealer's labor department, which is well past its depth when setting up such an installation.
Since all the parts are on the shelf and ready to go as we head to print, Track Toys are available immediately. Pricing depends on the car, but generally speaking, the most basic Track Toy-which is anything but basic-retails for $50,000. The supercharged models hover in the $70,000 range, which includes the Mustang GT starting point.
Should Donald Trump discover open-tracking is more fun and less expensive than wife collecting, it's possible to double the price of a supercharged GR40ttr with exotic engines and such, but that would take a Track Toy right into championship race car territory. More realistically, it offers the best equipment, excellent setup, and meaningful exclusivity to the in-crowd at the track. For those with the means, it clearly delivers instant gratification.