Ford has done it, as promised, setting the fastest lap around the Nurburgring for an American car. It lapped the famous German circuit in 6:57.685 in its new track-focused Mustang GTD.
That lap time means it also enters into an exclusive club of stock vehicles that have completely a lap in less than seven minutes. In fact, it is the sixth production car to join the team and the fifth fastest sports car. The blistering lap was piloted by Dirk Muller.
If there was ever an American muscle car to achieve the title as quickest American car at the ‘Ring, it’s the GTD. This is a track-focused model derived from the GT3 racing program, featuring crazy active aero, carbon ceramic brakes, active suspension, and a carbon fibre body.
Power comes from a 5.2-litre supercharged V8 that belts out 608kW (815hp) and 900Nm, with a redline of 7650rpm. This is matched to a transaxle eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, with a top speed of 325km/h. Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO, spoke about the effort, saying:
“The team behind Mustang GTD took what we’ve learned from decades on the track and engineered a Mustang that can compete with the world’s best supercars. We’re proud to be the first American automaker with a car that can lap the Nurburgring in under seven minutes, but we aren’t satisfied. We know there’s much more time to find with Mustang GTD. We’ll be back.”
Ford has put together a documentary on the achievement called The Road To The Ring, and is available on Ford’s website and YouTube channel.
