The 2011 Ford Mustang is out for blood with two new, more powerful engines this year, but the hottest factory model, the GT500, is poised to strike as well. A leaked product ordering guide reveals the key changes that are coming, including a new SVT performance package.
The updates to the 2011 Shelby GT500 follow along with the upgrades to the regular Mustang, though the 5.0-liter V-8 engine doesn't join the party--that's the 2011 Shelby GT350's role--instead going with a new aluminum-block version of the 5.4-liter supercharged V-8 engine found in previous GT500s. Official horsepower and torque ratings for the engine are still in the mist, however, listed as "TBD" in the order book. We expect the engine to turn out at least the 540 horsepower and 510 pound-feet we saw in the iron-block 2010 model.
Available in both Coupe and Convertible models, the 2011 Shelby GT500 promises to be as good a tire-roaster as ever, but with the addition of the new SVT performance package, it'll handle hard driving as well. A 3.73-ratio limited slip rear axle, unique 19/20-by-9.5-inch front/rear wheels, and custom shocks and springs will help the big and brawny beast put its power to the ground and around the corners. Other upgrades with the SVT pack include unique stripes along the top and sides, a spoiler with a Gurney flap, a shift knob and upgraded Z-rated tires. Opt for the SVT pack and you'll have to do without the Shaker 1000 audio system, but the big V-8's force-fed whine will be music enough for anyone interested in SVT performance anyway.
Other changes for the 2011 GT500 include new Race Red and Ingot Silver Metallic paint colors, replacing the Torch Red and Brilliant Silver Metallic of the 2010 models. Other key exterior cues for the 2011 model include a coiled Cobra badge on the grille and front fenders, an aluminum power-dome hood with working heat extractors, redesigned front and rear bumper clips, plus a rear diffuser and decklid spoiler. 19-inch alloy wheels are standard, as are Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar tires in 255/40 front and 285/35 rear sizes. A glass roof is a new option added to the Coupe, previously only available on the standard Mustang GT.
HID headlamps are also standard this year, along with electric power-assist steering, a single-CD option for the Shaker 500 and Shaker 1000 stereos, and an integrated spotter mirror on the wing mirrors. HD Radio is also now included in the Electronics Package.
For the full details of what's coming, check out the specs in the gallery above, and don't forget our look at the mullet-inducing, wild and woolly 2010 Shelby GT500 Convertible for comparison.
[MotorAuthority]
The highly-anticipated Ford Fiesta S2000 rally car has been unveiled at a launch ceremony at M-Sport's Cumbrian base in the UK. The new rally car, the culmination of nine months' hard work by the design and engineering team at M-Sport, was presented by M-Sport Managing Director Malcolm Wilson. Gerard Quinn, Ford of Europe's Senior Motorsport Manager was present as a special Ford guest during the S2000 launch.
The Fiesta S2000, M-Sport and Ford's first global rally car, which will be eligible to compete in national rally championships around the world as well as the IRC and S2000 World Cup, is due for homologation in January 2010. However, it will make its public debut this weekend appearing as course car at the final round of the IRC series, the Rally of Scotland.
Invited guests were given an opportunity to get a close-up look at the exciting new car which has been designed by M-Sport's award-winning Technical Director Christian Loriaux and his team led by Chief Designer Anthony Brinkman and Test Engineer Chris Gray.
Continuing their close relationship with Ford, the team at M-Sport has worked in tandem with Ford's Motorsport Technical Manager Mike Norton and the Ford small car design team that developed the acclaimed kinetic design of the Fiesta road car, to develop a dynamic and aggressive looking rally car.
The experience gained from developing the record-breaking Ford Focus RS WRC has been used by the M-Sport team to develop the Fiesta S2000 rally car while working within the new FIA Sporting Regulations which means that this car can be used by customers at both national and international level.
The Fiesta S2000 has already completed nearly 3,000 km of testing both in the UK and Europe and that extensive testing programme will continue into the start of the next year in readiness for the car's competitive debut.
The Fiesta S2000 is the latest in a long line of rally cars produced as a result of the successful partnership between M-Sport and Ford, starting with the Escort Cosworth in the 1990s and moving on to the record breaking Ford Focus RS WRC and Ford Fiesta ST.
It follows hot on the heels of M-Sport's extremely successful two wheel drive Fiesta R2, which was launched earlier this year and has already taken class victories in rallies across Europe.
The arrival of the Fiesta S2000 means that together Ford and M-Sport offer a complete ladder of opportunity for rally competitors to graduate with Ford from national level right through to the WRC in Ford cars.
M-Sport Managing Director Malcolm Wilson said:
"Today is a very exciting day for us. This is the first global rally car for Ford and M-Sport, I really believe that we have produced a fantastic rally car and this launch is a big step to seeing it out competing in rallies. It's the first time in five years that we have been able to offer a Ford rally car that can challenge for overall victory in national championships across the world.
"It is also the culmination of a huge amount of hard work not only by Christian Loriaux and his team, but by everyone who works at M-Sport. We have worked closely with Ford on this project, their best-selling road car, the new Ford Fiesta, has been a perfect base car and its award-winning styling and kinematics together with M-Sport's expertise will surely make the Fiesta S2000 a huge global success."
M-Sport Technical Director Christian Loriaux said:
"It's a fantastic feeling today to see the car actually launched to the world after all the hard work and testing behind closed doors. Everyone at M-Sport has had to pull together in order to get the Fiesta S2000 finished in such a short period of time and it has been a great team effort to get to this point so quickly.
"The design team, led by Anthony Brinkman and Chris Gray, has worked incredibly hard and the fact that we have been able to deliver the car to schedule is down in no small part to the commitment of the entire M-Sport team to the success of the project. We have made a very promising start in testing and I am more than pleased with the performance of the car so far; it will be interesting to see how the real pace of the car compares to the competition."
an experimental 3.5-liter GTDI EcoBoost engine modified with E85 direct injection and gasoline port fuel injection run on a dynamometer achieved a BMEP score of 305 psi (27 bar), which translates to approximately 553 pounds-feet of torque and 316 horsepower at 3,000 rpm (flat torque curve from 1,500 to 3,000 rpm). The experimental engine was limited by the engine block's ability to handle higher compression ratios.
[PickupTrucks]
* Fiesta to make its U.S. motorsport debut by the Olsbergs Motor Sport Evolution race team as it brings two Fiesta Rallycross cars for competition at Pike's Peak International Hill Climb in July.
* High-profile event for Fiesta helps brand grow awareness among U.S. racing and performance enthusiasts.
The new Ford Fiesta may not be hitting the streets of America officially until next year, but high-performance motorsport examples of the car will make their U.S. racing debut this summer when the Olsberg Motor Sport Evolution team from Sweden, managed by Andreas Eriksson, brings two new Fiesta Rallycross cars to compete in the annual Pike's Peak International Hill Climb in Colorado on July 19.
"The new Fiesta is an engaging, fun to drive car that is off to a very successful start in Europe and Asia," said Jim Farley, Group Vice President, Ford Global Marketing and Communications. "Thanks to Andreas Eriksson, we're able to introduce the Fiesta to racing fans in the U.S. ahead of its launch in 2010."
The Pike's Peak International Hill Climb dates back to 1916, and is the second oldest motor sports event in America, taking its name from the famous mountain peak that towers above Colorado Springs in the Rocky Mountains and is often referred to as 'The Race to the Clouds."
Ford cars have been at Pike's Peak since the very first race in 1916, when four Ford-powered cars competed. In 1922, Ford scored its first victory when Noel Bullock took his 179ci, OHV, 50 hp Ford Special, nicknamed "Tin Lizzy" by the other competitors, to a surprise victory in the time of 19:50.9.
The two Fiestas will be driven by Eriksson and rally legend Marcus Grönholm in the ‘Unlimited Class' at Pike's Peak, in an attempt to be the first team to break the 10-minute mark over the 12.4-mile, 156-turn pavement and gravel course.
Andreas Eriksson, 35, is a four-time Swedish rally champion, with multiple Rallycross victories, and Marcus Grönholm, 41, is one of World Rallying's greatest drivers, with two world championships and 30 WRC victories on his resume.
"We're pleased to have a top independent team like Olsbergs MSE coming to the U.S. with their Fiesta Rallycross cars to take on the challenge of Pike's Peak," said Brian Wolfe, director, Ford North America Motorsports. "This will be a great chance for enthusiasts here to see in this unique setting what a lot of the rest of the world is already talking about - that the Fiesta is a great road car and a great race car."
Ford Motor Company's director of Global Motorsport Business Development, Jost Capito, said: "The Pike's Peak event is another step forward for the new Ford Fiesta as a core vehicle in Ford's future global motorsport aspirations. We're looking forward to seeing Andreas and Marcus in action on this unique event."
After finishing second in the Swedish championship last year, Olsberg's MSE team debuted its new Fiesta Rallycross car for this season's Swedish and European Rallycross championships, and it scored its first victory in just its second European championship event in Portugal this past month.
The Olsbergs MSE Fiesta Rallycross car is based on both the Fiesta hatchback model road cars. The all-wheel-drive Fiestas are powered by a 2.0-liter Duratec Ford engine capable of more than 800 horsepower.
The Fiesta Rallycross car's suspension system is the result of collaboration between Olsbergs Motor Sport Evolution, Öhlins and Ford of Europe's Team RS engineers, who are responsible for Ford's FIA World Rally Championship program.
"We worked night and day all winter to get the Fiesta ready on time for the European championships, and it was great to see it score a hard-earned victory in Portugal at the start of May," said Eriksson. "We are excited to be bringing the car to Pike's Peak and to be able to see what it can do in such a unique competition. It's a legendary event, and we've already been there to take a look at the challenge we will face. I'm convinced we'll be a top contender to break the 10-minute mark and give the Fiesta a proper racing debut in the U.S."
Ford Racing North America, although not directly involved in the project, will assist the team with logistical support while it is in America.
New Fiesta in Rallying
The Ford Fiesta will be Ford Motor Company's main competition vehicle for rallying in the coming years.
Ford has a long and distinguished history in the FIA WRC (World Rally Championship), the toughest competition in motorsport for production-based cars. The series covers 12 three-day rallies across three continents, with competitors driving flat out on roads ranging from smooth asphalt to rutted, boulder-strewn tracks in conditions ranging from -25°C to 40°C.
Ford has competed in the WRC since 1999 with the Focus RS World Rally Car and won back-to-back manufacturers' world titles in 2006 and 2007. The Focus has claimed 37 rally victories in that period, the latest coming just last weekend when BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally team claimed a one-two finish in Rally d'Italia Sardegna in Italy.
The current generation of World Rally Cars will be replaced by a 'Super 2000' formula by the start of the 2011 season. In April, M-Sport, the team that oversees Ford's efforts in the World Rally Championship, announced it was developing the Ford Fiesta Super 2000 rally car.
In addition, an all-new Ford Fiesta R2 rally car, based on the top-selling Ford Fiesta road car launched last year, was unveiled last week at the Rally d'Italia Sardegna. Designed to replace the successful Fiesta ST rally car, the new vehicle is targeted at competitors in the popular Fiesta SportTrophy series, as well as in regional rally championships.
The Fiesta SportTrophy, launched in 2006, is a one-make championship aimed at career-minded young drivers and pure enthusiasts alike. More than 10 countries host national championships, with a top level international series linked to the World Rally Championship calendar.
The all-new Fiesta R2 conforms to the latest FIA regulations and will satisfy strong customer demand for an exciting yet affordable point of entry into rallying.
The five-speed Fiesta R2 rally car is based on the Ford Fiesta Sport (Zetec S in the UK and Ireland) using the 1.6L Ti-Vct 120PS (1598cc) base engine as in regular production. It is built from a standard conversion kit developed by M-Sport.
Fiesta Movement in North America
Although the Fiesta production vehicle isn't slated to go on sale in the United States until 2010, 100 of the stylish European cars are already in North America in the hands of 100 chosen Fiesta Movement "agents" that are a diverse group of individuals reflective of the Internet's social media community.
The 100 young trendsetters are driving and living with their Fiestas for six months, traveling as "agents" on special "missions," and are documenting their experiences through a variety of social media sites, including Twitter, Flickr, Facebook and YouTube.
The "missions" are designed to be fun, take the "agents" to new places and let them experience new things - all while driving the new European Ford Fiesta and providing feedback to Ford on the product.
Early feedback has been extremely positive, and now there will be a chance for motorsport fans to take early interest in the Fiesta at the famous Colorado event.
Follow the Fiesta Movement at: www.fiestamovement.com.
About Fiesta
In Europe, the Fiesta name has long been synonymous with outstanding driving quality, design and value. The all-new Ford Fiesta is taking that three-decade heritage to U.S. consumers for the first time.
The Fiesta already is a hit in Europe and Asia, where it went on sale last year and earlier this year, respectively. The all-new Fiesta is the fastest-selling Fiesta model ever in Europe, helping boost Ford of Europe's market share in April. In April alone, 43,000 new Fiestas were sold, with more than 151,000 delivered to customers since the start of the year. Fiesta also is Ford of Europe's best-selling model in April and year-to-date.
In 2010, the Fiesta will be produced at plants in Germany, Spain, Mexico, Thailand and China for sale in markets around the world. The Fiesta for the North American market will be built at Ford's assembly plant in Cuautitlan, Mexico.
