Ford has updated its GT for 2020 with more power from its 3.5-litre EcoBoost V6. The mid-engined supercar has an additional 13hp and a wider window of peak torque, enabled by the use of motorsport-derived, gallery-cooled pistons and higher-energy ignition coils. The motor also breathes through an Akrapovic exhaust as standard, freeing up gas flow and reducing the powerplant’s weight by 4kg. Ford’s also added two new options for exterior finish to the palette, including an ultra-light paint-free option, to emphasise the GT’s racing links.
To that end, the performance gains provided by the engine tweaks have been afforded by technology first tested in Ford’s GT racing programme. The American marque doesn’t claim any new stats for the road car, which in pre-update form is good for a 2.8-second 0-62mph time and 216mph top speed. But it does state that the twin-turbocharged engine’s peak is both harder and more easily accessible, so the biggest improvements probably come under rolling acceleration and – when you’re not on it – low-rev stuff. The seven-speed dual clutch gearbox remains unchanged, in case you were wondering.
As for the exterior finishes, the all-new one is called Liquid Carbon, and it applies clear coat to the bare weave of the body panels. It obviously emphasises the lightness of the 1,385kg machine, which has 477hp per tonne. Ford’s also tweaked the GT’s existing and unsurprisingly popular Gulf-inspired livery, with a new black line to separate the orange and blue, and a number six on the door that denotes another of its original Le Mans winners. It may not be an entirely new look – and arguably the Gulf livery is the most overdone in the world of stickered-up cars – but ruddy hell it looks brilliant on an actual GT.
Particularly so, we think, with the fitment of the pictured carbon fibre wheels, which replace the standard-fit aluminium ones. They add to the racy look and shed a few extra grams from the total kerb weight, which on a car that’s more prototype racer than supercar in its technical make-up, should actually have a measurable impact on performance. Expect all of the £500,000 cars still unaccounted for to be snapped up in quick succession. The 1,350 production run will end in 2022.
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