Newly painted silver, the Ford GT is now on display at the annual Chicago Auto Show.
Ford’s new all-American supercar, the GT, will actually be rolling out of a plant in Ontario, the maker has confirmed.
The 600-plus horsepower “ultracar” will be produced by Multimatic Inc., a suburban Toronto supplier with extensive experience using the exotic carbon fiber that will be used for the Ford GT body. Multimatic previously produced the Aston Martin One-77 supercar which also used the super-light material.
Bedecked in a new silver paint scheme, the GT concept is currently on display at the Chicago Auto Show. It was originally painted blue when unveiled at the North American International Auto Show – where it was one of the event’s big surprises.
At the time, CEO Mark Fields told TheDetroitBureau.com the project came together almost unexpectedly as senior management went looking for “a showcase where we can highlight all that technology and innovation (Ford was working on) in a dramatic way.”
(For the bombshell announcement of the Ford GT, Click Here.)
Ford Chairman Bill Ford and CEO Mark Fields unveil the new Ford GT supercar at the Detroit Auto Show.
The 2-seater shares some of its basic design themes with the Ford GT launched more than a decade ago as a way to mark the automaker’s 100th anniversary. In turn, that model borrowed heavily from the original GT40 race car that helped Ford dominate the endurance racing circuit decades earlier.
The maker has dropped a few hints about what to expect, but it has also been vague about specifics, beyond confirming it will make extensive use of carbon fiber, and suggesting the Ford GT will deliver at least 600 horsepower using a specially tuned version of Ford’s 3.5-liter twin-turbo EcoBoost V-6. Torque has not yet been determined.
(Click Here for TheDetroitBureau.com’s complete coverage of the 2015 Chicago Auto Show.)
Based on the pace of improvements in the broader supercar community, it is likely that the GT would be able to launch from 0 to 60 in around three seconds, and to be considered competitive would almost certainly need a top speed in excess of 200 mph.
Ford Chairman Bill Ford indicated the new model will reach showrooms later in 2016 as a 2017 model.
The great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford owns the first of the 2003 Ford GTs and also indicated he may take the first of the new ultracars. But there are others who want to jump to the front of the line, including Detroit Tigers star pitcher Justin Verlander.
Chairman Ford indicated that a limited number of the new Ford GTs will be produced. The decision to go with Multimatic, based in Markham, Ontario, was revealed by Dianne Craig, the president of Ford of Canada.
According to an annual survey by trade publication Automotive News, the firm ranks 81st on the list of North America’s 100 largest suppliers.
It provides a wide array of components and services to the auto industry. It also operates a motorsports unit that campaigns cars of its own in North America and Europe.
(Nissan ready to expand its high-performance NISMO division. Click Here for the full story.)
an evolution of the “J”-car