Sure they got alot right, but...

[jbyrnes]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who is immensely satisfied and impressed by the overall execution of the GT project, but at the same time feeling that a few short cuts or concessions (all for justifiable reasons I'm sure - $$$ or meeting production schedules) were taken that shouldn't have been for a car of this calibur. Here's my short list of faults, at the risk of sounding whiney:
>non-functional air intakes for front brakes (c'mon - no 200 mph car should have fake scoops).
>cast exhaust manifolds and a 40lb muffler (I see how the retro bundle-of-snakes may not have worked with cats and mufflers, but the aftermarket has shown that headers can coexist with cats on the street).
>trans oil cooler - aftermarket add on?? This had to be the result of the bean counters facing off against the designers.
>and then there's lesser one's like the tilt front end that morphed into the "tilt" trunk lid, and the rear bumper that shouldn't have been.
Did I miss any? Am I wrong (or just whiney)?

 

[2112]

Just whiney. :biggrin

It is also a car that can be pleasurably modified and still retain or even gain in value. What happens when you "fix" the shortcomings of an F car?

 

[BlackICE]

Just whiney. :biggrin

It is also a car that can be pleasurably modified and still retain or even gain in value. What happens when you "fix" the shortcomings of an F car?

You get "F" in the resale value

 

[Kayvan]

I think there was a spreadsheet with +/- column.......ie,

-front cam shell would have meant leather/vinyl match v. ALL leather;
-oil cooler or inlet attachment v. CIBIE fog lights;
-Muffler, bumper, etc. was easy off-rack solution v. engineered Govt regs / hi-cost options

My take is they got 99.5% right, and cool details like gas lid, fogs, release latches, seats, dash, tunnel they nailed.

The only thing, and its VERY minor is the plastic plug on the charger-lighter receptacle. I would of liked a machined hinged cap like tops of A/C controls or toggle.

But, I know they had like 3 cents in the budget and someone found a shop in china that could deliver 4038 for 3c/ea. and that worked and they spent the leftover savings from all choices on the free charger.

 

[HHGT]

Very few cars are executed perfectly when they leave the assembly line. The Enzo Ferrari is definitely one of those examples, but honestly for the $ our GTs are very close.

 

[HHGT]

But, I know they had like 3 cents in the budget and someone found a shop in china that could deliver 4038 for 3c/ea. and that worked and they spend the savings on the free charger.

It may have been a 3 Cent part, but I'm sure it cost $300 by the time the union workers touched it...

 

[Nardo GT]

It may have been a 3 Cent part, but I'm sure it cost $300 by the time the union workers touched it...

Well said.

Rear bumper seems like it could have been "bumperettes"....whatever would have been min. gov't std. just to get by...and the owner's could easily have removed without any cost.

It is A "GT" and I drive mine....so how about a cruise control?. Even a stalk or dash mounted would be nice.

Yes Dr Frank....cupholders would have been nice and there is sufficient room above the gas tank for small indentions with a few inches protruding above on each side of the tunnel.

Who's idea was it to put reverse right beside first. Anybody backed away from a redlight yet?

Plastic should not have been used for vents on the engine area....regardless of cost.

Nardo has functional front brake cooling ducts. I don't see why this would have cost hardly anything.

A $4000 radio option. Give me a break. And I like music.

Plastic headlight covers facing directly at the sun? Yes, my car is outside a lot. Have you seen plastic headlights on used cars lately? I just sold a 97 Jag XK8 Conv and it had GLASS headlight covers. They looked like new. So, obviously plastic is not a gov't requirement.

$5000 for stripes? C'mon. A really good bodyshop would do them for less than half that...and better quality.

But you know, when they designed the car nobbody called or even asked me my 2 cents.:frown:lol

Oh and none of you better give me that crap about "they were trying to hold true to the orig. GT40.:bs
Have you seen power windows & locks on an original? Darn few made with a/c too. So where do you draw the line...right before cruise and cupholders I suppose. :confused

 

[Empty Pockets]

The cast exhaust manifolds were likely chosen over headers for their longevity and ease of fit…not to mention a supercharged engine doesn’t gain that much h.p. using headers anyway…especially thru cats & mufflers. The muffler was probably built beefy to withstand the blower pressures.

Shadowman can attest to the ridiculously complicated task of getting air to the brakes thru those dummy ducts. I would assume the cost of designing/installing such a system was deemed too prohibitive for a feature most owners likely wouldn’t have the need for anyway.

The GT does have provisions (fittings on the transaxle, etc.) for mounting a tranny oil cooler…and there is (was?) a factory ‘cooler kit available. But, again, the cooler was probably deemed overkill for the typical buyer and therefore was not included as standard equipment in order to keep the “sticker” down. (I seem to recall someone here on The 'Forum saying the cooler WAS origionally going to be standard equipment.)

The rear bumper as installed was probably the best compromise between looks and federal requirements.

'Just my $.02 ...and worth just about exactly that.

 

[fjpikul]

I just drove my car 2K miles + to and from the Rally. Ralphie, HiloDave and Jeff Larson just drove cross country TWICE. WE have no complaints.

 

[PL510*Jeff]

I just drove my car 2K miles + to and from the Rally. Ralphie, HiloDave and Jeff Larson just drove cross country TWICE. WE have no complaints.

NONE!

I am not a whiner or a complainer. In my opinion those actions only create mis-trust and discontent. Life is too short as it is, so all the little things that can and do go wrong or need attention, really distract from my enjoying life.

Everyday is a Good Day. Just some are better than others.

As far as the GT is concerned - there's seems to me a few GT owners and GT fans, on this Forum and others, that love to electronically complain, chip their teeth, and generally must have a negative attitude on life. The get stressed out and puff their proverbial chest over things that they "think" should have been done better. And that the $150k Ford GT should be as perfect as a $1.3m Veyron. My advise to the folks is to sell their GT, if they own one, and go find another supercar that meets their personal expectations and get the hell off of this Forum. If you have a question about the GT, ask it. And it will be answered. With honesty and all the background around the decisions that were made along the way of the GT program.

I for one, and I'm sure I am not alone, like my GT. And I acknowledge that it is not perefect and isn't always trouble free. But it is mine, it is paid for, and I get to use it as I want. So far 80,000 miles of fun and smiles.

And that my GT friends is my $ 0.02 X 8,000,000. (do the math)

Regards to All, and get your GT out of the garage and drive it,

Jeff







btw- as I remember The Story - brake cooling was being considered. However the person who was on this item took a vacation near the end of the design project. And when he came back to work the a/c condensor was in the way of the brake duct. He was not present to protect his turf, time was short to prototype build date, and thus no brake ducting.

btw#2- the c.i. exhaust manifold is very, very efficient. And there was no need or space for tube type headers and bundle of snakes exhuast.

btw#3- the extremely fast track nature of the GT program and budget constraints coupled together made for some unusuable trade-offs. The red Start button is not illuminated. Why not I asked - The John Deere tractor it came from didn't have illumination. Interior door handles came from Ford Explorer interior tailgate release. Escort window buttons and door locks.

 

[Kingman]

NONE!

I am not a whiner or a complainer. In my opinion those actions only create mis-trust and discontent. Life is too short as it is, so all the little things that can and do go wrong or need attention, really distract from my enjoying life.

Everyday is a Good Day. Just some are better than others.

As far as the GT is concerned - there's seems to me a few GT owners and GT fans, on this Forum and others, that love to electronically complain, chip their teeth, and generally must have a negative attitude on life. The get stressed out and puff their proverbial chest over things that they "think" should have been done better. And that the $150k Ford GT should be as perfect as a $1.3m Veyron. My advise to the folks is to sell their GT, if they own one, and go find another supercar that meets their personal expectations and get the hell off of this Forum. If you have a question about the GT, ask it. And it will be answered. With honesty and all the background around the decisions that were made along the way of the GT program.

I for one, and I'm sure I am not alone, like my GT. And I acknowledge that it is not perefect and isn't always trouble free. But it is mine, it is paid for, and I get to use it as I want. So far 80,000 miles of fun and smiles.

And that my GT friends is my $ 0.02 X 8,000,000. (do the math)

Regards to All, and get your GT out of the garage and drive it,

Jeff

WOW!!!

Good morning!

Can I get you a cup of coffee?

Paper?:biggrin






BTW - Well said.

 

[skyrex]

Buy and F-car or a lambo, drive it hard for a year and after the inevitable high dollar maintenance/repair bills let me know what you think of your GT then. :cheers

 

[Specracer]

+1 on my memory, as well, that a vacation, tom reikenback (apologize for the butchering of the spelling Tom!), greatly impacted the functional brake cooling ducts, IE lines were run in the way, and NO time to redo.

On the bumper, a story that I have been told, is that it was made intentionally ugly early, to hopefully be properly addressed, but never happened, again time and $.

Transaxle cooler, was indeed part of an 11th hour "decontent" cost savings, that is why there is an OEM part available, as it was designed and done, when removed from the program.

I love the car as is. It is what it is, and makes me smile every time I hit the Red button.....

 

[Thugboat]

I really do love this discussion. And the car. This thread reminds me of the old adage, "Even with the most beautiful woman in the world, after a while someone is tired of her imperfections" The language was cleaned up to protect the innocent. Everyone has heard that many times.


My issue is the trim ring around the inside door panels! YUK.

Larry

 

[Kayvan]

I love the back bumper, center speaker, and rubber matts

 

[dbk]

NONE!

I am not a whiner or a complainer. In my opinion those actions only create mis-trust and discontent. Life is too short as it is, so all the little things that can and do go wrong or need attention, really distract from my enjoying life.

Everyday is a Good Day. Just some are better than others.

As far as the GT is concerned - there's seems to me a few GT owners and GT fans, on this Forum and others, that love to electronically complain, chip their teeth, and generally must have a negative attitude on life. The get stressed out and puff their proverbial chest over things that they "think" should have been done better. And that the $150k Ford GT should be as perfect as a $1.3m Veyron. My advise to the folks is to sell their GT, if they own one, and go find another supercar that meets their personal expectations and get the hell off of this Forum. If you have a question about the GT, ask it. And it will be answered. With honesty and all the background around the decisions that were made along the way of the GT program.

I for one, and I'm sure I am not alone, like my GT. And I acknowledge that it is not perefect and isn't always trouble free. But it is mine, it is paid for, and I get to use it as I want. So far 80,000 miles of fun and smiles.

And that my GT friends is my $ 0.02 X 8,000,000. (do the math)

Regards to All, and get your GT out of the garage and drive it,

Jeff

Well, I was gonna say that every car has compromises and the GT's are few and far between, but that'll do :lol

 

[RV King]

The car is not perfect, but probably the nicest car made by an American manufacturer. For $150,000 though, you would think that they could line the doors up properly. :frown

 

[Chris A.]

While we're at it. The front splitter and rear diffuser look like cheapest of the cheap IMO. Not befitting of this car at all.

 

[Kayvan]

Rear diffuser is Carbon-fibre...quite expensive; u want the front cheap....so its disposable!

 

[Chris A.]

Good comment...but still "looks" cheap IMO. With gaps and rivets:frown The car looks spectacular from the outside, until you get to the ground effects. I’ve seen EVO’s and WRX’s with better looking set-up's.

Front can be cheap...without being cheap "looking".