GTD allocations should be this week

[MAGS1]

Imagine if it lost 1K pounds, like it needs to.

I was hoping for ~3,700lbs initially. The GT500 CFTP curb weight is just over 4,000lbs. Figured it’s basically the same engine and adding a bunch of CF panels to the car, no rear seat, magnesium wheels, etc and the fact it was going to be a barely street legal race car, they’d find a way to make it lighter than the 500. I was way off on that guess.

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[Tomster]

For the majority of owners weight will not be an issue. It’s just a number.

It's one of the most important numbers pertaining to the car.

Cars and coffee folks probably don't care.

 

[Bikeman315]

It's one of the most important numbers pertaining to the car.

Cars and coffee folks probably don't care.

Exactly! You care, obviously. Others who actually plan on tracking the car care. Those who do lots of spirted driving may care. To everyone else, is will be a rich man’s car.

And Tom, two serious questions. All the armchair quarterbacks want it to lose 500 to 1000 pounds. 1. Exactly how would that be accomplished knowing you have to start with a S650 (otherwise it wouldn’t be a Mustang)? 2. Do you not believe that if Multimatic could have saved some weight and not have it effect performance or reliability wouldn’t they have?

 

[Tomster]

Exactly! You care, obviously. Others who actually plan on tracking the car care. Those who do lots of spirted driving may care. To everyone else, is will be a rich man’s car.

And Tom, two serious questions. All the armchair quarterbacks want it to lose 500 to 1000 pounds. 1. Exactly how would that be accomplished knowing you have to start with a S650 (otherwise it wouldn’t be a Mustang)? 2. Do you not believe that if Multimatic could have saved some weight and not have it effect performance or reliability wouldn’t they have?

1. I think this is the problem. They started with a darkhorse Mustang that weighs in at about 4000 pounds from the start. Add a bunch more weight and then take some off, we find ourselves at almost 4400 pounds. The heavier the car, the harder it is to turn, stop, and accelerate. Keep in mind the price tag of this car. Why? It seems that the car was priced relatively to the competition and not so much about how much it costs to manufacture the car. $100,000 cheaper, no matter the weight, would have been a home run. Change the focus to the ZR1. That thing is out breaking records at some of the most notorious tracks. It will be interesting to see what they do at the Ring.

2. Yes. But the problem goes back to number 1 above. You start with a car that is heavy already. Your hands are tied. I get the whole GT3 racecar thing, but the GTD is not a GT3, it only has some commonalities. The differences tip the scale at almost 4400 pounds.

The way forward should have been weight savings from the start. The GT had a CF tub and was purposebuilt to keep the weight down for obvious reasons. This probably would mean that they didn't use a Darkhourse as the basis for the car. Maybe a CF tub like the GT??? Who knows. Yes, I'm aware of cost.

Some elaboration on weight and fuel consumption.......

Driving that 500 around Daytona is a lot of fun when you get to the outside and put your foot on the floor. Not much can touch it. However it's a different story on the inside course. That 4000 pounds can't turn and accelerate like the lighter cars out there. The 5.2 supercharged V8 gobbles the gas down at rates that doesn't let you go all out for a 30 min session. Between the weight of the DCT and supercharger it took a 3700 pound GT350 and turned it into a 4000 pound porker. I go through 2 sets of brakes and 2 sets of tires in a weekend. Turning and stopping a 4000 pound car eats stuff up.

The GTD has the same challenges. Same engine, supercharger, DCT transaxle, but the car started heavy via the Darkhorse. Unfortunately, the chassis weight can not really be overcome.

Everywhere that weight could be saved has been done so. CF body panels (except the steel doors) carbon brakes, CF driveshaft, etc. It's just a heavy car.

The part that I can't go along with is the 16 gallon tank. Even if multimatic re-engineered the fuel supply system to be able to extract the last drop of fuel with no starvation issues, the car won't have enough gas to run flat out at the car's namesake track. I run into fuel starvation with a supercharged 5.2L and a 16 gallon tank.

Most won't have that problem. They drive in the groups that have slower traffic with lots of cars on the track along with with point by's and no passing zones. That essentially keeps a drivers foot off the gas and keeps them from having this issue. However, put the car on the Daytona Speedway, driving unrestricted and flat out, and it will not be able to go 30 minutes. It's right around the 20 min mark that the engine suffers from intermittent starvation.

This particular issue won't affect most people at most tracks, but in this instance, it will effect me. $400,000 is a lot of money for what I perceive as a 4400 pound car with problems.

For this reason, I have asked to defer to the next model year in hopes that some of this stuff is worked out.

 

[K4fxd]

Tom at this point I think you will be better served if you spend the same money on a dedicated chassis for your 500. The weight could be dropped to the 3200 pound range and they could design in a larger fuel tank.

At 4400 pounds even if I could buy it from my savings account I'd pass.

 

[Tomster]

Tom at this point I think you will be better served if you spend the same money on a dedicated chassis for your 500. The weight could be dropped to the 3200 pound range and they could design in a larger fuel tank.

At 4400 pounds even if I could buy it from my savings account I'd pass.

That's not happening, lol. At this point, it's defer, wait and see, and either get a ZR1 or (fill in the blank).

 

[ZLwhat]

Exactly! You care, obviously. Others who actually plan on tracking the car care. Those who do lots of spirted driving may care. To everyone else, is will be a rich man’s car.

And Tom, two serious questions. All the armchair quarterbacks want it to lose 500 to 1000 pounds. 1. Exactly how would that be accomplished knowing you have to start with a S650 (otherwise it wouldn’t be a Mustang)? 2. Do you not believe that if Multimatic could have saved some weight and not have it effect performance or reliability wouldn’t they have?

But it's not...

 

[MAGS1]

But it's not...

The price tag says otherwise…

 

[ZLwhat]

The price tag says otherwise…

Yeah for those that overpaid with dealerships outrageous markups, those numbers tend to show how dumb some were to purchase at exuberant prices

 

[Johnny maverick]

That's not happening, lol. At this point, it's defer, wait and see, and either get a ZR1 or (fill in the blank).

Just living vicariously through this thread but if I had the money.....

 

[Tomster]

Just living vicariously through this thread but if I had the money.....

Like i said..... fill in the blank.

 

[Epiphany]

One thing is for certain...the pressure is very high for sub 6:50 Ring time. Larry Holt implied this was almost a given and I don't believe he intentionally tried to mislead. If Dirk can execute to the best of his abilities, the weather and track conditions are optimal, and the car they choose to run is without fault, I'm fairly certain that it'll happen. But holy cow, that seems a lot to ask. If any one of those conditions isn't met I think Ford may not pull it off after all.

 

[ZLwhat]

One thing is for certain...the pressure is very high for sub 6:50 Ring time. Larry Holt implied this was almost a given and I don't believe he intentionally tried to mislead. If Dirk can execute to the best of his abilities, the weather and track conditions are optimal, and the car they choose to run is without fault, I'm fairly certain that it'll happen. But holy cow, that seems a lot to ask. If any one of those conditions isn't met I think Ford may not pull it off after all.

And if they don't they won't disclose the final time either, they didn't take the GT500 to the ring if I recall?

 

[Epiphany]

And if they don't they won't disclose the final time either, they didn't take the GT500 to the ring if I recall?

What?

 

[ZLwhat]

What?

Ford tends not to release any official ring times, I don't believe that they ever took the GT500 to the ring, and if they did I don't believe they released it

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