Interview with Pericak on the GT350R

[jrease]

Ford Shelby GT350R Mustang

http://www.automobilemag.com/auto_s...director-dave-pericak-talks-gt-raptor-gt350r/

AUTOMOBILE: Moving on to the Mustang GT350R—were the GT350 and GT350R developed side-by-side?

DP: Absolutely. We always knew we were going to have an “R” version of the GT350. The GT350 is already an incredible machine, but with the GT350R, anything that doesn’t make the car go faster around a racetrack is gone. It’s not a car that’s going to have the creature comforts people want, but it’s made for racing. You barely can put a license plate on that thing, it’s that much of a race car. But why? Because that’s what Ford Performance is all about: pushing the envelope. We’ve done this with Mustang over the years. Every time we do something new, the question is, “Oh, what’s next?” And here we go. We’ve just introduced a 2015 Mustang and, look, we’re already showing you a GT350 and GT350R.

AUTOMOBILE: What are some of the coolest changes to the GT350R over the stock GT350?

DP: The MagneRide dampers are fantastic, and it’s a technology that we finally have in Mustang that is critical to doing a car like the GT350R. Now that we have independent rear suspension and the chassis set up the way we do, we can take full advantange of MagneRide, really allowing us to dial that thing in for the track when we want to and giving you more of a comfortable ride when you’re going home from the track. And the carbon-fiber wheels: We’re the only high-volume manufacturer to put carbon-fiber wheels on a car. They reduce over 50 lb of unsprung mass, which is huge in making the car feel more nimble, precise, and agile. It was a challenge to do it—no other OEM has done it—but our engineering team figured it out. And then the overall tuning of the vehicle is significantly different from the GT350. Everything is tighter, more precise, and ready for racing.

AUTOMOBILE: No extra horsepower in that thing?

DP: No, right now we’re saying it has equivalent horsepower to the GT350 [500-plus].

AUTOMOBILE: But there’s room to go up?

DP: We’ll see when we get closer to launch.

AUTOMOBILE: I noticed a rear-seat delete. The Boss 302 Laguna Seca had a crossbar. This one doesn’t.

DP: The overall stiffness of the Mustang is better than the outgoing car, so we felt we didn’t need that in the GT350R. When you get behind the wheel, you’ll realize that it’s not needed. The car is extremely stiff. There’s not a lot of compliance in that car.

AUTOMOBILE: What’s your favorite thing on the GT350R over the GT350?

DP: The sound. It’s phenomenal. We removed the resonators. Again, resonators weren’t required to make it go, so it has a very sharp, distinct exhaust note. It’s fantastic.


​

The Future of Ford Performance

AUTOMOBILE: Looking at this trio—Raptor, GT350R, GT—what does each car mean to Ford Performance? What does each do for this brand-new brand?

DP: They all play their role in sending the message that we’re going to drive innovation through performance. And that we will have smartly executed performance vehicles, whether they’re high-performing cars for a racetrack or whether they’re going into the desert to climb over rocks. Performance can be interpreted in many different ways, but all of these vehicles serve as a proof-point that we’re willing and able to do innovation through performance.

AUTOMOBILE: What are some of the first innovations we’ll see come from Ford Performance that will then trickle down to the rest of Ford?

DP: Larger use of carbon fiber, for instance. The Ford GT that we just showed has carbon-fiber body structure—tub, if you will. We showed carbon-fiber wheels on the GT350R. Different techonologies you’re going to see come through, some of which we’re not ready to announce right now…Ford Performance is going to be the test bed for all of the new technologies we want to use at Ford.

AUTOMOBILE: Tell me about what Ford Performance is going to do to all of these brands? RS is really well known. You’ve just introduced ST on the Fiesta and Focus, and that’s starting to catch some ground. But now what does Ford Performance do to those?

DP: The nameplates of the cars themselves, whether it be a Shelby or an RS or an ST, that’s not going away. We’re still going to use those and leverage those—we have a lot of equity in those names—but we’re not going to confuse everyone on what was produced by Ford Racing, what did SVT do, what did Team RS do in Europe. It’s going to be one group that produces all of those fantastic products we’re talking about.

AUTOMOBILE: Let’s talk about the racetrack. What are the first racing efforts we should be looking for from Ford Performance? What’s Mustang going to do—will we see a GT3? Are we going to see this new Ford GT racing anytime soon?

DP: We’re not here to talk about our racing plans today. We’re here to show new product and, clearly, they are products we expect people will race. But our plans—where we’re going to race and where we’re going to put our energy—we’re finalizing that right now. I’ll tell you this: Wherever we race, it’ll be done right because either we’ll be all-in or we’re not going to do it. So “all-in” means you’ve got the right funding, you’ve got the right engineering support—everything you do is to make that successful. Whatever we do in racing is not only going to support our goals in Ford Performance but also in Ford Motor Company, so we need to make sure there’s a return on our investment.

AUTOMOBILE: Ford Performance will get its hands on about a dozen Ford vehicles in the next five years, right?

DP: That’s correct. We’ll bring twelve vehicles to market by 2020.
​

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[xlover]

Natural fit to promote Pericak into that role as head of all ford performance cars.

Also its worth noting from the GT conversation that they believe the 7speed DCT could filter down the lineup

 

[Topnotch]

Ford Chief Engineer Jamal Hameedi and Powertrain Manager Paul Seredynski Interview

http://www.hotrod.com/news/1501-ford-answers-all-our-2016-gt-and-2015-gt350r-questions-sort-of/

We posted earlier about the reveal of the 2016 Ford GT and the raciest 2015 Mustang yet, the GT350R.. The press conference left us with tons of questions, so we sat down with Jamal Hameedi, Ford’s Global Performance Vehicle Chief Engineer and Paul Seredynski, Global Powertrain Technology Communications Manager. Basically, that means we had a smart engineer and a smart PR guy at our service. The problem with early reveals like the GT and even the 350R is that a lot of the little details aren’t set in stone yet. Big car companies don’t like to let a single number, weight, or power promise slip out without going through numerous internal checks, so a lot of our questions were met with practiced blank looks from Jamal and cheerful non-committed smiles from Paul. Still, if you read between the lines, you’ll get enough info about the new performance line-up from Ford to feel pretty confident that the next two years are going to be good ones for the blue oval.

On Flat Plane Cranks:

HRM: How did you guys balance this engine? Does it have internal balance shafts?
PS: No, it’s balanced just like any V8.

HRM: So, externally? Internally? It’s just counterweights?
JH: Internally. Lamborghini doesn’t use balance shafts, McLaren doesn’t. The whole car is a system, so it all works together. It’s not just putting a crank in old architecture.

HRM: Why did you go with the flat plane crank in the first place? What’s the benefit?
JR: Flat plane is about engine breathing. It’s easier to package, to get a broad torque plateau.
PS: Having usable power so high up the rpm range might mean one less downshift on track, that’s one less chance of messing up, so that’s a benefit. The design allows for a tuned exhaust, a clean separation of intake and exhaust. We’re also able to package the catalytic converter right up to the end of the manifold, which makes a cleaner burning car. This isn’t just about emissions, but emissions aren’t getting any easier…

HRM: You gotta plan for emissions now or you’ll really have nowhere to go later…
PS: Yes, exactly.


On the GT350R

HRM: What visual cues separate the 350R from the regular GT350?
JH: Well, our show car is Liquid Blue, so it’s not exactly like the production cars. On the production car it’s all about red highlights—brake calipers, the snake badge, red stitching in the interior, a red pinstripe if the owner gets the stripe package. Then of course it has the bigger spoiler and front splitter.

HRM: But the rest of the body is the same as the GT350?
JH: Yes, same sheet metal. A-pillar forward is aluminum and door and body sides are steel.

HRM: Could you put the 350R spoiler and splitter on a 350?
JH: Not all the mounting holes are the same.

HRM: But with a drill and some bondo….
PS: With a drill and bondo you can do anything!

HRM: What about those carbon fiber wheels? Do you make those? Does someone make them for you? Will they be painted like on the show car?
JH: They will be black in production. The wheels are a joint development with a company in Australia. They pass all our criteria for aluminum wheels.

HRM: How do you test wheels?
PS: All kinds of ways, hitting objects at different speeds, at different angles…

HRM: Is the carbon in the wheels a unidirectional or a woven material?
PS: Both. We’re being a little cagey about it, it’s a new process. These are the first carbon wheels to be made in any volume for a production vehicle.

HRM: What percentage of GT350s are going to be the R model?
JH: We think it’s going to be a low volume.
PS: When we introduced the GT350, we said it wasn’t going to be a limited edition, but we do expect this to be a niche car.

HRM: What’s it going to cost?
JH: It will be more than the GT350.

HRM: Like, another tax bracket more?
JH: (laughing) When people find out the price we think they’ll be pleasantly surprised.

HRM: What does it weigh?
JH: 130 pounds less than the track pack GT350.
PS: More than 130 pounds!

HRM: Who do you want to beat with that car?
JH: The GT350 and GT350R were developed side-by-side. We spent a lot of time looking at Porsche 911 numbers, Z/28. This is a track car.


On the Ford GT

HRM: So that thing is amazing. Are you really doing it? That’s not a prototype?
PS: It’s production intent

HRM: So the production car is going to look just like that?
PS: Maybe small changes, but pretty much just like that.

HRM: The GT40 was 40 inches tall. How tall is this version?
JH: Final ride height isn’t decided, but it will be taller than the GT40, not as high as the previous GT, which was, I think 43 inches…

HRM: So, 41 or 42. Not much else to choose from.

HRM: When did you start working on it, and how did you keep it a secret?
JH: We started work about 12 months ago, maybe 14. December of 2013.

HRM: Who designed it?
JH: It was a team of designers. No lead designer. Everyone worked together.

HRM: Why did you choose to go with the Ecoboost V6 instead of a V8? Don’t you think people are going to joke that it’s just a truck engine?
JH: The 3.5 is the engine we’ve been running in the Daytona Prototype class with Ganassi. It won Sebring, Long Beach. A lot of what we did in DP last year is in this engine. It’s very efficient power, plus the packaging size allows for the body design. If you see the GT from above, you’ll see the fuselage tapers in. You need a compact engine. I’m pretty confident that when you sit in it, you won’t be thinking about trucks.

HRM: Are you going to race this car?
JH: We’re just going to talk about the production car.


HRM: How about the interior? The seats look like they are part of the floor.
JH: The seats are fixed, they are integrated into the carbon tub.
PS: The wheel and pedals are adjustable, but the seats don’t move.

HRM: Will they adjust enough for me to drive it? I’m really short.
PS: I promise they will.

HRM: So is the entire car carbon fiber?
PS: Everything you see inside is the carbon tub. There is no carbon trim at all. In the front are some aluminum crash structures, where suspension pickups are, then the body panels are all carbon.

HRM: What kind of suspension did you use?
JH: Torsion bar suspension. It has adjustable ride height, inboard active dampers.

HRM: How about transmission details?
JH: 7-speed dual clutch transaxle. Paddle shifters.
PS: All the controls are on the wheel. There is nothing on the column. Shifter, turn signals, everything.


HRM: Speaking of wheels, are the actual wheels carbon fiber too?
JH: On that car are 20-inch forged aluminum wheels, but we’re looking at carbon. The brakes are carbon ceramic.

HRM: How big are the brakes?
PS: Big.

HRM: Who do you consider the competition for this car? Corvette? LaFerrari?
JH: This is a track machine. We consider it a supercar, but not a hypercar. It’s performance capability will be astounding.

HRM: What’s it going to cost?
PS: It’s going to be more exclusive than the previous generation…

HRM: The design of the car reminds me a lot of the original GT40 Mark III, which was the street version with the trunk that people called the “warming drawer.” Does this have a trunk?
PS: (pauses) The rules for Le Mans require a trunk…

HRM: So are you going to race Le Mans?
He smiles, but pretends not to have heard me.

 

[1320']

"The rules of LeMans requires a trunk.."

"So you're racing at LeMans?"

*pretends to not hear*

 

[Rated R]

"The rules of LeMans requires a trunk.."

"So you're racing at LeMans?"

*pretends to not hear*

I'd love the see this car race against Porsche, Ferrari, Aston, Corvette etc.

 

[Twin Turbo]

Also its worth noting from the GT conversation that they believe the 7speed DCT could filter down the lineup

Silly question......would that gearbox not be specifically designed for mid-engined/RWD applications? Could it be used in a front engine/RWD application? If so, perhaps this would suit GT350 in a year or 2.......or GT500

We already know the torque converter 10-speed auto has been developed for RWD applications, so that makes sense in the rest of the line-up.


BMW's M4 uses a 7-speed DCT, whilst the rest of the range uses an 8-speed ZF, so it's not out of the question for 2 "autos" to be used for a single model type.

 

[xlover]

Silly question......would that gearbox not be specifically designed for mid-engined/RWD applications? Could it be used in a front engine/RWD application? If so, perhaps this would suit GT350 in a year or 2.......or GT500

We already know the torque converter 10-speed auto has been developed for RWD applications, so that makes sense in the rest of the line-up.


BMW's M4 uses a 7-speed DCT, whilst the rest of the range uses an 8-speed ZF, so it's not out of the question for 2 "autos" to be used for a single model type.

its a unit they are sourcing from getrag and depending on the layout who knows if that specific unit could be transferable but at least it gives ford experience tuning and setting up a high performance DCT. Pericak was the one who said it could filter to other models and the GT350 would make the most sense

AUTOMOBILE: Where does the GT’s seven-speed dual-clutch transaxle come from?
DP: It’s going to be coming from Getrag, and we’re working with them right now. I think the DCT is going to be a fantastic part of this machine, and another opportunity for us to use new technologies that could potentially make their way through the rest of the Ford lineup in the future.

 

[IGJoe2192]

From the sounds of it... This car is going to be super light (GT)... I cannot wait for this thing to be released!

Also I am very happy how they keep mentioning that we should be surprised at the pricing of the GT350 which keeps me believing that it will be obtainable to me =D

 

[thePill]

I love how Ford is trying to adhere to the rulebooks. That is about a race-bred as your gonna get today.

 

[9secondko]

The car is so tiny and light that it doesn't need the v8.

Still wish they'd have included a TT Voodoo @ 1000hp...

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