The 2017 Ford GT supercar made a surprise appearance in production guise during last weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
This year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans was a very significant one for Ford as it marked the manufacturers’ return to the endurance race, 50 years after achieving a historic one-two-three finish with its iconic GT40.
Ford entered four race cars based on its new GT into the LM GTE Pro class and one of them managed to win its class, beating entries from Ford and Porsche in the process. Two of the other GT race cars achieved a third and fourth place class finish.
Before the race got underway, Ford surprised attendees of the Le Mans race by showcasing its new GT road car in production specification. With Ford’s executive vice president Raj Nair behind the wheel, the GT led a parade of Fords including the original trio of GT40s that dominated the 1966 Le Mans race.
Ford previously showed the production version of its new GT at the 2016 Detroit Motor Show back in January. However, the parade at Le Mans was the first time Ford’s new supercar has driven in public view.
The production version of the Ford GT is almost identical when compared to the concept version which first debuted at the 2015 Detroit Motor Show and also appeared at last year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Differences include larger side mirrors, redesigned headlights, a modified front splitter and upgraded rear diffuser. The 3.5-litre V6 engine, which produces around 600bhp, now also comes with a plastic cover which reads “EcoBoost”.
Available to order now but limited to just 250 units per year, the Ford GT is set to be priced from over £300,000.
