Ford on Thursday stated its plans to increase the production of its Ford GT supercar. The boost in the production of the $400,000 car is in a bid to allow the automaker meet the number of demands it has been receiving. It is worthy to note that the supercar, Ford GT is the automaker’s response to high-performing sport cars from other automakers including Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Porsche, among others.
The company reports that the orders it has continued to get for the car have outgrown its supply. The increase has in turn necessitated an increase in the company’s planned production from the initial 1,000 GT supercars as announced in 2016 and it has added 350 cars. In addition, Ford is reportedly increasing its production deadline from the previously announced 2020 to the year 2022.
Unprecedented Response
According to Ford Performance’s director, Hermann Salenbauch, the public’s response to its Ford GT is the first of its kind with an original demand that outgrew supply with over 6 to 1. Salenbauch added that by the company’s extension of the supercar’s production for a definite period, they have been able to sustain the supercar’s exclusivity while also offering the opportunity to own the car to more interested customers.
With the way things are, it is impossible for a driver to go to a dealer’s store to pick up a Ford GT. In essence, drivers are expected to submit their applications for review by Ford. Sources indicate that the automaker will reopen the application submission on the 8th of November for specific markets and the process will last for thirty days after the opening. People who at the moment already submitted their applications will need confirmation or modification of the original applications for those applications to be put into consideration.
This isn’t the first time when Ford will increase GT’s availability. When it declared open the order bank for the car in 2016, it planned to produce only 500 GT supercars. However, it later doubled the production as it extended the production period by 2 additional years.
Model History
This GT model was first unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show sometime in 2015. Over time, Ford has maintained a level of strictness as regards its buyers selection. For instance, the automaker has reportedly stated that it wants the GT to be sold only to people who actually have the intention of driving it rather than selling to speculators and collectors whose sole intention is to acquire the supercars and park it.
It is reported that applicants who already own other vehicles from the automaker have an additional edge, particularly if their vehicles include any of its earlier GTS. The original Ford supercar was called the GT40. However, some legal disputes caused Ford to implement a change of name to simply Ford GT. The automaker’s earlier version of the car unveiled sometime in 2002 and only 4,000 supercars were produced conceptually and were subsequently sold in 2005 and also 2006 model years.
It will be recalled that on the 10th of October, Ford recalled nearly 200 Ford GT cars owing to leaks of hydraulic fluid that could lead to fire outbreak.
Ford GT Specifications
Ford GT is engineered and designed by Ford. Multimatic, the Canadian supplier built the car by hand.
The engineers evidently concentrated on making the car lightweight and so they used a mixture of aluminium, carbon fiber as well as other materials that are also very light.
They also used Gorrilla Glass windshields which marks the first use. The use of this variant of windshield reduces the supercar’s weight by 12 pounds than if they had used a traditional windshield. Its swoppy scoops, wing and body panels all had the influence of aerodynamics. The designers had the goal of reducing and also enhancing down force so as to ensure that the Ford GT remain glued to pavements even when speeding at high speeds.
The car’s top speed is at 216 mph and it has an EcoBoost engine. An Ecoboost engine refers to a series of enginesdeveloped by Ford which are expected to adequately provide power while also conserving fuel at the same time.