I Saw New Ford Gt40
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 674
From: Vero Beach, Florida
[quote name='Dysfnctnl85' date='May 18 2005, 06:34 PM']It'd be tough...according to Motortrend, the GT does 0-60 in 3.6s and the 1/4 in 11.78.
[/quote]
Apparently even quicker than that in putting Ford out of business.
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Apparently even quicker than that in putting Ford out of business.
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 3,867
From: Maryland
Here's some good **** I found on the Car and Driver website:
At issue were flaws. Although 15 crude mules were built and tested on racetracks across America, using a different chassis, different engine, different gearbox, and different body, and further tests were run on preproduction "'03 models," apparently all these tests failed to sniff out problems cropping up on production models. The shocker now being reported is cracks found in a suspension control arm. The warning letters sent out by Ford were chilling, reportedly telling owners not to drive the car under any circumstances. Almost 400 cars were recalled for replacement arms. New arms cut by Roush from billet stock were a quick fix until new forged aluminum ones could be engineered.
There were other problems: a defective electrical component that caused the battery to drain, a climate-control bug, power-steering and engine-coolant leaks, a steering-column rattle.
At the point the first cracked A-arm was discovered last December, only 448 GTs had been produced, according to Automotive News. Of those, 289 had been shipped to dealers and just 106 had reached owners' hands. Ford had the cars trucked back to the factory for the fixes.
So Ford had taken a chance on a new-for-Detroit method of manufacturing the A-arms, and now it is paying the price—$5000 per car for the fix on the recalled ones. GTs built since then have new arms. But what will most likely annoy those first buyers even more is that some GTs have now been discovered to have an oil leak caused by an improper finish on the crankshaft. The leak on recalled cars was fixed with a device called a Speedi-Sleeve, a commonly used device in engine rebuilding that enlarges the diameter of a part of the crank so the engine no longer leaks. Cars made since this discovery will get cranks with the correct surface finish.
On the problem cars, Ford's solution will require the dealer to remove the transaxle and install a new rear main seal, retainer, and Speedi-Sleeve on the crankshaft. Ironically, the Speedi-Sleeve is a low-cost item, but the labor involved to get at the crankshaft is a big-ticket item.
But wait a minute—do buyers of those first cars want their 550-hp engines to be running with Speedi-Sleeves? Not to knock a tried and true product, but it sounds like a fix someone might use on an old pickup truck to squeeze another 100,000 miles out of it rather than just buy a rebuilt engine. So owners of those first cars may feel they're getting damaged goods instead of a perfect new car.
At issue were flaws. Although 15 crude mules were built and tested on racetracks across America, using a different chassis, different engine, different gearbox, and different body, and further tests were run on preproduction "'03 models," apparently all these tests failed to sniff out problems cropping up on production models. The shocker now being reported is cracks found in a suspension control arm. The warning letters sent out by Ford were chilling, reportedly telling owners not to drive the car under any circumstances. Almost 400 cars were recalled for replacement arms. New arms cut by Roush from billet stock were a quick fix until new forged aluminum ones could be engineered.
There were other problems: a defective electrical component that caused the battery to drain, a climate-control bug, power-steering and engine-coolant leaks, a steering-column rattle.
At the point the first cracked A-arm was discovered last December, only 448 GTs had been produced, according to Automotive News. Of those, 289 had been shipped to dealers and just 106 had reached owners' hands. Ford had the cars trucked back to the factory for the fixes.
So Ford had taken a chance on a new-for-Detroit method of manufacturing the A-arms, and now it is paying the price—$5000 per car for the fix on the recalled ones. GTs built since then have new arms. But what will most likely annoy those first buyers even more is that some GTs have now been discovered to have an oil leak caused by an improper finish on the crankshaft. The leak on recalled cars was fixed with a device called a Speedi-Sleeve, a commonly used device in engine rebuilding that enlarges the diameter of a part of the crank so the engine no longer leaks. Cars made since this discovery will get cranks with the correct surface finish.
On the problem cars, Ford's solution will require the dealer to remove the transaxle and install a new rear main seal, retainer, and Speedi-Sleeve on the crankshaft. Ironically, the Speedi-Sleeve is a low-cost item, but the labor involved to get at the crankshaft is a big-ticket item.
But wait a minute—do buyers of those first cars want their 550-hp engines to be running with Speedi-Sleeves? Not to knock a tried and true product, but it sounds like a fix someone might use on an old pickup truck to squeeze another 100,000 miles out of it rather than just buy a rebuilt engine. So owners of those first cars may feel they're getting damaged goods instead of a perfect new car.
