Manufacturer Ford Class Supercar | Production 1995 Transmission 5-speed manual | |
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Related Engine quad-turbocharged V12 engine DOHC | ||
The Ford GT90 is a high performance concept car that was developed and manufactured by American car maker Ford. It was unveiled in January 1995 at the Detroit Auto Show as "the world's mightiest supercar". Performance included a top speed 253 mph (407 km/h) completing a quarter mile at 140 mph (225 km/h) from a 720 hp (537 kW;730 PS) quad-turbocharged V12 engine DOHC, the exhaust of which was claimed to be hot enough to damage the body panels, requiring ceramic tiles similar to those on the Space Shuttle to keep the car from melting.
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The mid-engined car is a spiritual successor to the Ford GT40, taking from it some styling cues, such as doors that cut into the roofline, but little else. In regard to angles and glass, the Ford GT90 was the first Ford to display the company's "New Edge" design philosophy. The GT90 was built around a honeycomb-section aluminum monocoque and its body panels were molded from carbon fiber.
The GT90 was built as a secret project by a small engineering team in just over six months. It shared components from another high profile stablemate—the Jaguar XJ220, as Jaguar was also owned by Ford at the time. The engine was a 90-degree, forced induction i.e. quad-turbo V-12, unique to the GT90.
The GT90's 48-valve V12 has a six-litre engine displacement and produces up to 720 hp (537 kW). It is equipped with a forced induction system i.e. four Garrett AiResearch T2 turbochargers. The engine architecture was based on the 90-degree Ford Modular engine family utilizing a layout similar to that of a paired set of 4.6l V8 engines of which each had 2 cylinders removed. This yielded a 90-degree V12, with 90.2 mm bore and 77.3 mm stroke with the cylinders arranged in two banks in a single casting.
Jacques Nasser, then a Ford executive and eventually CEO, was very proud of the car, and kept a model of it on his desk, as seen in a documentary on the U.K. television network Channel 4 on the Firestone tire incidents.
It also appeared in the video games Need for Speed II, Sega GT 2002, Ford Racing 2, Ford Racing 3, Gran Turismo 2, Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA, TOCA Race Driver 2, TOCA Race Driver 3, Project Gotham Racing 3, and Ford Street Racing. The car was featured in original Top Gear in a 1995 issue, while the car was still planned to enter production.