More GR-1 Lobbying

[DBK]

What a sweet looking car. Can we get this thing built please :cool

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/Carroll-Shelby.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/Carroll-Shelby2.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/Gauges.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/R.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/RA-Top.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/RA.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/RS-Twilight.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/RS.jpg

http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/images/shelby/SA-OD.jpg

[DBK]

It was 1962 when former race car driver Carroll Shelby first dropped an American Ford V8 engine (http://www.howstuffworks.com/engine.htm) into a lightweight European car, creating the first Shelby Cobra. More than 40 years later, Shelby and Ford have joined forces once again to create the Ford Shelby GR-1.


Based on the chassis and suspension of the production Ford GT, the GR-1 (Group Racing 1) is a visual throwback to the 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, but it packs a modern punch with more than 600 horsepower (http://www.howstuffworks.com/horsepower.htm).


In this article, we'll look beneath the GR-1's gleaming aluminum body, learn why Carroll Shelby makes some of the best cars in the world and find out if Ford could actually make a production GR-1 available to the public.


In 2004, Ford unveiled the Ford Shelby Cobra concept car, a futuristic, minimalist roadster that followed the Shelby formula -- put a big engine in a small, lightweight car. A year later, Ford unveiled the Shelby GR-1.


A distinctive aluminum body covers the GR-1's smooth, aggressive shape. The design is very reminiscent of the 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, a car Shelby designed as a faster, more aerodynamic version of his already successful Cobra roadsters.


Ford was able to create a working prototype of the GR-1 in a short amount of time because it is based on the chassis of the Ford GT. The suspension, steering and braking systems also come straight from the GT. In fact, it took only six months from the initial design sketch to the unveiling of a mockup with a fiberglass body, and it was just a few more months until they had a fully operational prototype. That commonality of parts also means there's a decent chance the GR-1 could become a production model.


Next, we'll see how the GR-1 was designed and created.


The GR-1 has much more than nostalgia and a pretty face going for it. An aluminum-block, 6.4-liter V10 engine is under the hood, cranking out 605 horsepower at 6,750 rpm and 501 lb-ft of torque (http://www.howstuffworks.com/fpte.htm) at 5,500 rpm. That's enough power to hit 60 mph in under four seconds. Plus, the GR-1 accomplishes all this without turbocharging or supercharging.


The engine isn't mounted behind the driver's head the way it is in many high-performance cars. This is a more traditional front-engine design, created in part to fit the designer's idea for the car's shape. The transmission, a six-speed transaxle, is mounted in the rear to provide better weight distribution. This is another piece lifted directly from the GT.


The GR-1 also features a limited-slip differential (http://www.howstuffworks.com/differential.htm) and rear-wheel drive. An electronic limiter keeps the vehicle's top speed well under 200 mph -- a speed it could easily top if left unrestrained.

Engine: 6.4-liter V10 aluminum block engine w/ dry sump
Horsepower: 605 hp at 6,750 rpm
Torque: 501 ft-lbs torque at 5,550 rpm
Transmission: Ricardo six-speed manual transaxle
Brakes: Brembo discs with four-piston monoblock calipers (14-inch front, 13.2-inch rear)
Tires: Front: 275/40R-19 Goodyear Tire IQ; Rear: 345/35R-19 Goodyear Tire IQ
Suspension, front and rear: Unequal A-Arms, control arms, coil springs, monotube dampers, anti-roll bar
Curb weight: 3,900 pounds (1,770 kg)
Length: 173.7 inches (441.3 cm)
Width: 74.6 inches (183.4 cm)
Height: 46.0 inches (116.8 cm)
Wheelbase: 100 inches (254 cm) Climbing into the GR-1 through the forward-and-upward swinging butterfly doors, the interior reveals a race-ready design.

The seats are carbon shells equipped with racing-style harnesses. All the instruments in the panel behind the steering wheel are analogue, a sign of the GR-1's 1960s heritage.


A digital speedometer reveals the car's modern pedigree, however, and a closer look shows there is plenty of gadgetry in the dash. The stereo can play MP3s (http://www.howstuffworks.com/mp3.htm) and can record and playback, ostensibly so drivers can record notes about the track while they take practice laps. Noise-dampening frequencies give the GR-1 a quiet street ride.


Mounted in the center of the dash is the Tire IQ display. Sensors in the tires and a built-in accelerometer measure tire temperature and pressure, as well as cornering and braking g-forces, all of which is relayed to the driver and passenger in real-time.

In many cases, cars are designed starting with the frame or the engine, and once the internal components are completed, the body is shaped around it. This is one reason so many of today's supercars look similar -- they tend to conform to the body shape required of a mid-engine-design, aerodynamically stable vehicle.


The Ford Shelby GR-1 is a supercar in a league of its own. The design for the car started with a single sketch by Ford designer George Saridakis. "George produced this completely resolved sketch, the best I've seen in 10 years," said J Mays, Ford Motor Company vice president of design. "This is a designer so masterful at visualizing every aspect of the car and its story that it literally flowed out of his pen." Ford also sidestepped another common aspect of supercar design -- high-technology.



Yes, the GR-1 is modern, but it doesn't incorporate any experimental technologies in the mechanical systems. Instead, the car relies on Shelby's simpler vision of high-performance: putting a lot of high-quality parts in a well-designed car. It's still incredibly sophisticated and advanced, but with so much of the car coming from the Ford GT, the designers didn't have to go out on any limbs for the GR-1.


Like all concept cars, the GR-1's main goal in life is to lend prestige to the manufacturer. However, if the GR-1 goes into production, it could have a much livelier future. GR-1 stands for Group Racing 1, and that harkens back to the great Shelby cars of the 1960s, which dominated the American road racing circuit and gave Ferrari a serious challenge in the European series. It's possible we could see a GR-1 tearing up the Daytona track in the next few years.

Will the people at Ford produce the GR-1? There are signs that they might. First, they created a working car, not just a showroom mockup. Second, with so much of the GR-1 built around parts from the GT, a large percentage of the car is already what the engineers call "production feasible."



When the GT concept was given the go-ahead in 2002 to go into production, only five percent of it was production feasible. There could be some changes in a production model GR-1, such as the V10 giving way to a V8, which would be cheaper and easier to produce. Ford hasn't offered a narrow price range, but it's estimated that the cost would be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.


Finally, there are rumors that the GT, currently the jewel in Ford's high-performance crown, could be taken out of production in 2007. As Autoweek points out (http://www.howstuffworks.com/framed.htm?parent=ford-gr-one.htm&url=http://www.autoweek.com/article.cms?articleId=100616), that gives Ford plenty of time to bring the GR-1 down the production pipeline, thus maintaining their presence in the world of high-performance cars.

[Kave]

Oh my. Look at the doors, ooooooooooh:thumbsup

[FlorIdaho Chris]

Build it and we will come. :thumbsup

[B O N Y]

I JUST DID
:party :party :club :party :party

[Kirby Vieira]

Thanks for the information, pictures and lobbying for this absolutely fabulous car.

[vyprgt2]

Here's hoping that they hurry up and build this great car. I will buy TWO of them....

[Neilda]

Put me down for one immediately!

What a fabulous looking car - I saw an early shot of this car being loaded or unloaded at an airport, it's outrageous looking.

Me want. :biggrin

[Silverbullitt]

Ford ran the GR-1 ad again during the Nascar Race on Sunday. Build it or stop running the ads. You don't make much money running ads on products you don't build.

[Spirit]

I'll Take One. :thumbsup

MUST BE A V-8. :thumbsup

V-10's belong in trucks. :bang

[OK, No Flames From All You Viper Owners] :eek

:biggrin :cheers :biggrin

[Sinovac]

Beautiful car-I want one. However, I have never been a fan of the way a V-10 sounds. Put a big block V-8 in that car!

[KJD]

One in black for me please! :cool

[Fast Freddy]

if ford offers this car for sale i am buying it. i would sell my viper for it if had to. so i think that answers the question about how viper owners feel about this car. with that said i think ford need not worry about there bein plenty of buyers out there for this car.

[kosupply]

make mine any color.....if it was pink I could repaint it!

[MG0427]

Put me down for one too. Thanks

MG

[ChipBeck]

Keep beating the drum DBK. You have your finger on the pulse of Ford High Performance fans better than anyone else and Ford should listen to you. We want this car. I want this car in my 5 (soon 6) Ford garage.:banana :thumbsup :biggrin :cheers :banana

BUILD IT!!!

Chip

[Gierkink]

I'll take one please.

Rob

[Fubar]

They gota make the polished aluminum version. I will buy one. Then spend the rest of my life keeping it perfectly polished!

[MAD IN NC]

what the hell... Let's see... First a divorce then a smaller house with a 6 car garage!. Add me on the list. Blk slvr would be nice.....

[dgussin1]

it needs to be 2900#, not 3900# IMO.

[Fubar]

Ford was able to create a working prototype of the GR-1 in a short amount of time because it is based on the chassis of the Ford GT. The suspension, steering and braking systems also come straight from the GT. In fact, it took only six months from the initial design sketch to the unveiling of a mockup with a fiberglass body, and it was just a few more months until they had a fully operational prototype. That commonality of parts also means there's a decent chance the GR-1 could become a production model.......

......The engine isn't mounted behind the driver's head the way it is in many high-performance cars. This is a more traditional front-engine design, created in part to fit the designer's idea for the car's shape. The transmission, a six-speed transaxle, is mounted in the rear to provide better weight distribution. This is another piece lifted directly from the GT.

How do you use the "GT Chassis" and mount the engine in the front?

[AZGT]

Easy. Put the body on backwards ......................... I should be an engineer.

[satx]

I'll Take One. :thumbsup

MUST BE A V-8. :thumbsup

V-10's belong in trucks. :bang

[OK, No Flames From All You Viper Owners] :eek

:biggrin :cheers :biggrin

obviously you have never heard a Gallardo......


build it with the lightweight V10 and keep the weight under 3400lbs!

[Spirit]

I'll Take One. :thumbsup

MUST BE A V-8. :thumbsup

V-10's belong in trucks. :bang

[OK, No Flames From All You Viper Owners] :eek

:biggrin :cheers :biggrin


obviously you have never heard a Gallardo......


build it with the lightweight V10 and keep the weight under 3400lbs!

Dang, I just knew I couldn’t get away with that remark. :eek :bang :eek

:cheers

[04mach1]

I mean Ford is known for its V8's. I think a DOHC 427 small block would be extremly cool. But if they could get it to weigh under 3klbs with a OHV I think that would be the weigh to go.

[Silverbullitt]

They ran the GR-1 ad again at the Phoenix Nascar race. They could probably build it for what the ads cost to run.

[fordification]

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too heavy.

I thought that was a typo when I first saw the weight #. how could it be 3900????????

[Silverbullitt]

They ran the ad twice at Talledega yesterday.

[SteveA]

[QUOTE=Silverbullitt;66859]They ran the GR-1 ad again at the Phoenix Nascar race. They could probably build it for what the ads cost to run.[/QUOTE


I've been trying to locate this add and am striking out. Any help out there?:bow

[Silverbullitt]

It has been running once or twice at every race. It starts with a guy driving down the road then every historical racer passes him: 1903 ford, thunderbolt, jackie stewarts f1, red gt40, then th GR-1. Tivo a race and you will find it.

Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__VThJL1RPo

[SteveA]

It has been running once or twice at every race. It starts with a guy driving down the road then every historical racer passes him: 1903 ford, thunderbolt, jackie stewarts f1, red gt40, then th GR-1. Tivo a race and you will find it.

Thanks for the responce. I had viewed it on TV a few weeks back and just now found it on Youtube.

[AtomicGT]

Here are some images I took of the car at the January 2005 LA Autoshow. It was the most amazing looking coupe at the event, and across from it was the red Ford GT on display. Ford looked great at this event! :banana

[AtomicGT]

just one more image. I suspect if they build this car, the mustang sales will significantly drop. It was listed at 80K at the 05 LA Autoshow, and you can bet that is extremely low if it is ever produced. Those kinds of ponies and styling will go for much higher! Magnificent looking machine, renders the Ferrari family equivalent to the KIA.

[Kirby Vieira]

Thank's for the pics. Can never see enough of this incredible car. First time I've seen the left stripe delete on the rear fascia :frown Sure wish Goodyear would make those 345's available for the GT. :cheers

[Fast Freddy]

i hope they build this car. i would buy it for sure

[vyprgt2]

Thanks for the youtube link.

Sure seems like a hint from Ford that the GR-1 is coming! (hopefully not just wishful thinking....)

[Silverbullitt]

They should look at it like a business. Make 1,000 per year forever. Amortize the R&D across 5,000 plus units. Price it at a profit. The sad thing is that most of the R&D dollars have already been spent building the prototypes. If they build the car they have a chance of recouping the dollars that went out the door 2-3 years ago.

If they won't do it license it to Saleen or Shelby so production can happen. We need the Ford corvette or viper!!!!!!!!

[mccarter1369]

Ditto everyone's comments. Please build it.

[Mr. Genaddi]

I had a chance to sit in it at Detroit last year; they will have to do something with the packaging if it were to be built because it was even small for me. The doors were shut and there I was looking out of the windscreen checking out all of the clearances and sight angles, A-pillar vision and overall fit and finish and it is nothing like you think from looking at the outside. But like everyone else, I LOVE the look of it.

First they have to convince the stock holders, the real money behind it all, (which by the way arnt car people), that Ford really needs this car, that the people really need this car. Remember, stock holders are interested in one thing only and it is not low volume expensive sports cars!

[Silverbullitt]

Chevy has the vette, Dodge has the viper. We have the F150?????

Ford needs to build a sports car to compete and possible own the niche.