More and more rumors keep pouring out of the mill about a new Ford GT, but there's something weird about them. We're not hearing monstrous power or engine specs, but rather one thing consistently – Ford plans to take it racing.
Autoweek reported today that they heard that Ford plans to take the new GT (whether it's called a GT or something else) racing in the GTE category, and we've heard the same from our sources. We've also heard that Ford plans to debut the car in Detroit next month, which also squares with what everyone else has said.
But here's where things get tricky.
A bunch of the rumors have pointed to Ford wanting to use some variation of their "Ecoboost" turbo technology, likely in V6 form, even though I myself am I fan of the incredibly unlikely 1.0-liter 3-cylinder motor for every wheel. But current rules in the GTE category don't allow turbochargers, and though the regulations will be updated before 2016, it's unlikely that Ford would go ahead and develop an Ecoboost engine for this car, whatever it's called, if there's a chance they may never get to use it. (UPDATE: As Bakkster points out, there may be a way to slip a turbocharged engine in, but it needs to be under 4.0 liters in size.)
So what then? Well, Ford obviously has a long history with the V8 engine, especially as a supercharged one starred in the last Ford GT. Plus Ford's got a lot of money riding on the flat-plane crank in the new Shelby GT350, so it would make sense to get a version of that engine into something else.
Or maybe Ford knows something about the upcoming GTE category regulations that no one else does. And this is racing, so it's always possible somebody knows something under the table.
And that's where we stand right now. If you know anything else about the possible street version of the new GT, or just want to go make a render of whatever oozes out of the orifices of your mind in MS paint, have at it in the comments below.
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