Ford's racing Mustang for the road

The Mustang GTD has been ‘engineered to go like hell’, according to Ford. It’s hard to argue with that simple claim just on the basis of the 600kW of grunt under the bonnet. But there’s much more to this wild horse than simply horsepower.
In essence, it’s the GT3 racing Mustang re-engineered into a road-legal, high-performance car. A Mustang to take on the best of European sports cars.

“Mustang GTD represents the very best of Ford Motor Company and what our team needs to do every day,” said Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO. “This is what happens when we take what we’re good at and push the boundaries to see where the bubble stops. It represents the essence of the transformation we’re going through at Ford, from software to special edition cars.
“This is a new approach for us. We didn’t engineer a road car for the track; we created a race car for the road. Mustang GTD takes racing technology from our Mustang GT3 race car, wraps it in a carbon fibre Mustang body and unleashes it for the street.
“…This is our company, we’re throwing down the gauntlet and saying, ‘Come and get it’. We’re comfortable putting everybody else on notice. I’ll take track time in a Mustang GTD against any other auto boss in their best road car.”

The supercharged 5.2-litre V8 is tuned to deliver ‘more than 800 horsepower’. It’s the highest output street-legal Mustang ever developed by Ford. Uniquely for a road-going Mustang, the engine is dry-sumped.
Like the GT3 – but unlike any other Mustang – the GTD drives through an eight-speed, dual clutch transaxle. The driveshaft is lightweight carbon fibre which, combined with the rear-mounted transmission makes for a near 50/50 weight distribution. So in terms of vehicle dynamics the GTD is streets ahead of any other road-going Mustang – and that’s before you get the matter of downforce.
Visually, with its bulbous sides and huge wings and spoilers, the GTD is rather extreme. But it’s about performance as much as looks, because the active aero package (that huge rear wing is hydraulically adjustable) delivers a substantial amount of downforce. To take advantage of that, the car sits on 325mm front and 345mm rear tyres. The wheels are 20-inch forged aluminium (forged magnesium wheels are also available). The wheels are of a similar design to the GT3 race car.  
The GTD also features a semi-active suspension that can vary both spring rates and ride height. The adaptive spool valve damper technology with hydraulically actuated dual spring rate and height suspension provides two unique states which enhance on-road and on-track performance independently. The suspension settings allow for nearly 40mm lower ride height in Track Mode. That’s a far more involved system than your average performance car track mode, which mostly amounts to the ‘blunt instrument’ measure of simply stiffening everything up.
Of course, every effort has been made to keep weight out of the car, and to that end whatever can be remade in carbon fibre has been: body panels, guards, bonnet and bootlid, door sills, front and rear facias, etc.  The rear seating area has been removed to reduce weight – but also to provide some cargo space, given that where once there was luggage room in the boot there is now a transaxle transmission and an oil cooler.    
Inside, the _cockpit features are finished in premium materials including Miko suede with leather and carbon fibre. Seats are Recaro track day-style. The 3D-printed titanium paddle shifters, rotary dial shifter and serial plate are all made from retired Lockheed Martin F-22 titanium parts.
“We obsessed about the racing technology under its skin,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director of Ford Performance Motorsports. “What makes it go is even more compelling than what you can see when it passes you by. When you look at the engineering, the aerodynamics, how the powertrain works, the Mustang GTD is a rocketship for the road.”
Production of Mustang GTD will be limited, and pricing is expected to begin at approximately US $300,000 and available in late 2024/early 2025.