Ford Performance has revealed the first of its new Mustang Racers in full at the iconic Aussie endurance race
Ford Performance has revealed its latest Mustang racing car, this one designed to compete in the Australian Supercars racing series. It joins an international fleet of racing cars that will compete in global racing series including FIA GT3, GT4 and Nascar, but this ‘Gen3’ racer will be confined to Australia and New Zealand, headlining a new generation of the iconic Aussie racing series.
Ford Performance has partnered with Dick Johnson Racing in the racer’s design and development, utilising their Michigan-based headquarters for its digital prototyping and fluid dynamics development, with the physical engineering and prototyping taking place in Australia by the DJR team.
Unlike previous generations of Australian Supercars, the Mustang will run a brand new V8 engine derived from the production car’s 5.4-litre ‘Coyote’ unit, marking a departure from the 5-litre pushrod V8 that’s been the specification engine in Aussie Supercars since the 1980s. This is joined by a new chassis and body that more closely resembles the road car, with less substantial aero and more power.
The Mustang Gen3 will compete against a similarly-prepared Chevrolet Camaro that’s been designed and engineered by Triple Eight Racing. This will reignite the historical Ford versus GM setup that’s underpinned the Australian Supercar racing series for over 50 years, with two evenly-matched coupes. This pairing will replace the current Mustang and Commodore racers, the latter based on the short-lived Australian-market Vauxhall Insignia that replaced the Australian-built Commodore in 2018.
Ford Performance’s global Mustang racing car offensive
The Australian Supercar entry will join a whole range of competition Mustangs that Ford Performance has been working on, including its upcoming GT3-class racer that will race at Le Mans from 2024 with a factory-supported racing program. It’ll join the reformed FIA GT3 class in the World Endurance Championship, debuting at the Daytona 24hrs alongside rival racers from Ferrari, Porsche and Corvette.
The Mustang GT3 car will be co-developed with Canadian motorsport outfit Multimatic. This continues a partnership that’s already active with the current GT road and race car, which Multimatic both co-developed and currently builds.
The GT3 car will run a modified version of the 5-litre V8 engine found in the road-going Mustang, which will be built by UK-based M Sport who currently operate Ford’s World Rally Championship outfit.
Ford last competed at Le Mans in the GTE Pro class with its GT LM, finishing first in its class in 2016 on the 50th anniversary of its iconic overall victory in 1966 with the MkII GT40. Its outright success beyond this single victory wasn’t quite as bright, however, with the GT LM known for its lack of strength and resilience – two aspects that matter much more in endurance racing in comparison to a short-form F1 race.
Alongside its European program, the GT3 Mustang will also be eligible for American IMSA rounds, and customer racing outfits that run a GT3-class homologation.
Ford Performance has also announced other motorsport programs for its new Mustang, including a GT4-class entry that’s closely based on the road-going Dark Horse model, and a future NASCAR program in the USA.
This article originally appeared at evo.co.uk
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