The oft-told motorsports marketing mantra of “win on Sunday, sell on Monday” is rarely true in the age of exotic composites and hybrid power units. Ford aims to reverse this trend with its new street-legal supercharged Mustang developed in parallel with Her upcoming Le Mans GT3 pony car. Although, I seriously can’t say it’s just a road-going version of the GT3 racer, because the 2025 Ford Mustang GTD is even better.
The Mustang GTD moniker is a reference to IMSA GTD class, North America’s most popular class for GT3 racing. Aerodynamically, the two Mustang models share different similarities to maximize performance. The GTD is wrapped in carbon fiber body panels to lower the car’s center of gravity, and it sports a massive rear spoiler. “Our design team worked alongside the Mustang GT3 design team and aviation team, swapping solutions between race cars and road cars, and vice versa. This is an aerodynamically driven design,” said Anthony Collard, Ford Performance design director, in a statement. The GTD is even more intimidating under its carbon-clad skin.
The 2024 Mustang GT3 will be racing with a naturally aspirated 5.4-liter V8, which will produce around 500 horsepower. The Ford Mustang GTD is unhindered by the rules and regulations imposed by the racing governing bodies. Ford has equipped the street-legal GTD with a supercharged 5.2-liter V8 that will generate an estimated 800 horsepower.
Ford’s attempt to build a two-seater Mustang supercar doesn’t stop with the powertrain. Storage space in the truck has been removed to house several other components: the inboard-mounted semi-active rear suspension and hydraulic control system, transmission cooling system. The GTD will be available with an optional active aerodynamics package with hydraulically controlled rear spoiler and front hood.
Ford hopes the Mustang GTD will run a seven-minute lap around the Nürburgring. The limited edition GTD will become available in late 2024 for a staggering $300,000. The price of the most technologically advanced Mustang might be worth it.
“Typical beer trailblazer. Hipster-friendly web buff. Certified alcohol fanatic. Internetaholic. Infuriatingly humble zombie lover.”