Ford Motor Company Chairman...
Ford Motor Company Chairman and CEO Bill Ford Jr. reveals the stunning Ford GT40 concept at the North American International Auto Show on January 6, 2002, in Detroit, Michigan.
"Freeing ourselves of the fear of creating a car that looked too much like the original was a liberating experience for this team," Camilo says. "But staying true to the original themes in a clean, modern design made this the most difficult project I've ever been involved with."
Though a difficult task, Camilo seems to have pulled it off, as did the SVTE engineers. How would they replicate the 200-mph Le Mans performance of the 427? How about with a supercharged, intercooled 5.4 modular pumping out 500 hp and 500 lb-ft of torque. Curiously, unlike the '03 Cobra, the GT40 combines a supercharger with an all-aluminum, Four-Valve engine with superb results. "The Ford mod engines are great performance engines that allow much versatility for us as engineers and for our customers who love to modify their cars," SVTE's John Coletti says. "This application really demonstrates its awesome potential."
The 5.4 is backed with an RBT six-speed transaxle featuring a limited-slip and a 4.22:1 final drive. And, naturally, the aforementioned fuel cells supply 28.4 gallons of fuel for those endurance races.
So what does this all mean? Will we see new GT40s taking on Vipers, Vettes, and Saleen S7s at Le Mans and in the showroom? Maybe or maybe not, but Ford has put quite an effort into making this new version viable for the modern era, and it couldn't hurt that our friends at SVTE were at the heart of this car's development. Success means they'll be given more projects in the future-some of which we will be able to buy.
Classic Focus
Fresh from its debut at last fall's SEMA show, we caught Classic Design Concepts' [(248) 624-7997; www.classic-designconcepts.com] gorgeous '02 Focus ZX5. The car's new World Rally Car-inspired front fascia has round foglights seamlessly blending into a fender flare/spat arrangement and it is topped off with a contoured/vented hood. Gone is the cheesy plastic factory grille, replaced by one of diagonal stainless mesh that is matched in the hood vent and child-swallowing lower grille openings. We're not sure yet whether the fender flares will make it into production, but we know the hood and fascia should be available by the time you read this.
- Dale Amy
Harnessing Power
Beginning in 1999, the Cobra Four-Valve switched to a new injector design (called the P-style), as did the Crown Vic's 4.6 Two-Valve in 2001. The problems with these new injectors are that they cost considerably more than the old D-style versions, and perhaps more importantly, they are available in few flow ratings-19, 24, and the FR-500's 33 lb/hr are the only three we're aware of.
The good news is that Paul's High Performance [(517) 764-7661; www.paulshp.com] has engineered weatherproof wiring-harness adapters to allow use of any of the available range of D-style injectors in these applications. Simply plug these between the ends of the factory injector harnesses and the D-style injector of your choice. A set of eight adapters costs $135. - Dale Amy
Let The World See It!
That's right, you can let everyone see your show Ford at the World Ford Challenge and not miss a moment of the drag-racing action. This year's Mustang & Fords and Mustang Monthly Auto Show Spectacular will be held on a newly paved area next to the drag-strip at Gateway International Raceway. Of course, if you haven't heard, the World Ford Challenge will be held on May 16-19, 2002, at Gateway. For more informa-tion on the car-show rules, check out the WFC5 program in this issue or go to www.worldfordchallenge.com.