First Production Ford GT Leaves the Factory, Failed Applicants Can Only Look on and Wait

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky

Ford Motor Company has started production of its 2017 GT supercar.

The first example of Ford’s next-generation halo car completed assembly earlier this morning at Multimatic Incorporated in Markham, Ontario. Vehicle number one rolled off the factory floor today to go home with Executive Chairman Bill Ford.

“When we kicked off 2016, we had two primary objectives for our Ford GT supercar — to excel at Le Mans, and to start deliveries before year-end,” Raj Nair, executive VP and head of Ford’s product development, said at the event. “We’ve achieved both.”

Ford has taken a Ferrari-like approach to the application process, aiming to limit ownership to Ford loyalists and ensure the new cars won’t be immediately flipped for profit. The company has informed applicants that they may only purchase a new GT if they “ agree to retain ownership for a minimum of 24 months after delivery and not to re-sell the vehicle within this period of time.”

Ford limited production to a scant 250 units a year, despite receiving thousands of applications for the initial run. With the first 500 spoken for, Ford says it will extend production through the 2020 model year. The next ordering window won’t open until early 2018.

The 2017 Ford GT is powered by a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V6, which is claimed to make over 600 horsepower. The engine makes use of direct dual fuel injection and an extremely low-friction valvetrain. Ontario’s Multimatic, which also produced the De Macross GT1, is building the cars largely by hand. Starting price for the GT tops $400,000.

Surreptitiously developed in a basement design studio by a small team, the prototype GT was a massive hit in 2015. A lightly modified version won this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans on the 50th anniversary of Ford’s first victory. The GT40, which serves as the inspiration for the modern GT, dominated the French endurance circuit from 1966 to 1969.

[Images: Ford Motor Company]

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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  • DeadWeight DeadWeight on Dec 17, 2016

    These cars are very derivative looking for the segment. I'd much prefer a mid to high-end Ferrari. Not only that, but these are Ford in name only, excepting for the (majorly tuned) motor. It almost feels as if Ford cheated here (because Multimatic actually is the builder, per Ford's specs). Prognosis meh.

    • See 4 previous
    • Ronnie Schreiber Ronnie Schreiber on Dec 18, 2016

      @DeadWeight Ferrari is ramping up to 9,000 units a year. Ford is going to sell 250 GTs annually. "Most Ferraris" are sold in greater volume than that. Most Lamborghinis too. I'm surprised you don't complain that the higher performance versions of GM's LTx V8 are built with cylinder blocks cast by a specialty supplier, not a GM foundry. In any case, Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche have had, as part of their operations from the beginning, the capacity to do limited production runs. Companies like Ford don't. The BMW M1 was initially jobbed out to Lamborghini. As for Pagani, like Koenigsegg, it isn't really an automobile manufacturer in the traditional sense. They build fewer functional cars than Metalcrafters does.

  • Skor Skor on Dec 18, 2016

    Once upon a time Ferraris, Shelby Mustangs, Yenko Camaros, etc could be purchased by mere mortals....well, mortals with good jobs. Who can afford any of the current crop of 'super' cars? Hedge fund managers? Founders of high-tech companies? Members of Trump's administration? Not only will I never be able to afford a Ford GT, I've never actually seen one in the wild, and I live only 10 miles from New York City. Cars made of unobtainium are as relative to my interests as is a Russian gangster's Titanic-sized super yacht.

    • See 6 previous
    • Skor Skor on Dec 19, 2016

      @skor A new Lincoln or Cadillac cost around $6K back in 1970. So a new Ferrari at that time was worth two Cadillacs. Expensive to be sure, but still within the realm of an an ordinary doctor, or lawyer or owner of a trash hauling business. Today a price of a new Ferrari is around half a dozen new Cadillacs. Yes, as a percentage there are more wealthy people around today than in 1970, there are also more people people. Fact is that the middle class has shrunk over the last 40 years. Some of the former middle class has moved up, but the majority have moved down. Those numbers come straight from the US Census Bureau. I stand by but I said. Back in the day a fairly well to do professional or business owner could buy a new Ferrari, today only the hedge fund managers, Saudi princes, rap stars and the like can manage the sticker price. It's why I don't care even to look at 'super' cars anymore. Even if I won the Powerball, I don't think I'd buy one only because I wouldn't want to be in the company of the kind of people who currently own super cars.

  • SCE to AUX I've never been teased by a bumper like that one before.
  • 3SpeedAutomatic R&T could have killed the story before it was released.Now, by pulling it after the fact, they look like idiots!! What's new??
  • Master Baiter "That said, the Inflation Reduction Act apparently does run afoul of WTO rules..."Pfft. The Biden administration doesn't care about rules. The Supreme Court said they couldn't forgive student load debt; they did it anyway. Decorum and tradition says you don't prosecute former presidents; they are doing it anyway. They made the CDC suspend evictions though they had no constitutional authority to do so.
  • 1995 SC Good. To misquote Sheryl Crow "If it makes them unhappy, it can't be that bad"
  • 1995 SC The letters on the hatch aren't big enough. hard pass
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