(Ford)
A stunning Ford sports car concept from 2005 will finally enter production in a couple of years, but Ford won’t be the one making it.
(Ford)
California-based Superformance has announced plans to sell a replica of the Ford Shelby GT-1, which made its debut at the 2005 Detroit Auto Show, resplendent in polished aluminum bodywork.
(Ford)
The retro-modern coupe was inspired by the Shelby Daytona of the 1960s and powered by a 605 hp 6.4-liter V10 engine. It was being considered at the time as a successor to the 2005-2006 Ford GT supercar, with which it shared a spaceframe architecture, but never made it past the auto show circuit.
(Ford)
Enter Superformance, which specializes in building recreations of classic sports cars, including the Daytona and Ford GT40. As first reported by Car & Driver, it has secured an official license from Ford and is teaming up with Shelby American to develop a platform that will be offered with both gasoline and electric powertrains.
TEST DRIVE: SUPERFORMANCE SHELBY DAYTONA:
Exact specifications have not been revealed, but Superformance CEO Lance Stander said he wants it to be able to accelerate to 60 mph in two seconds. Superformance will build as many as 200 GR-1s, but not until the Low Volume Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Law of 2015 goes into effect, which will allow small manufacturers to build up to 325 historic-inspired cars annually without having to meet all federal safety standards.
Since the GR-1 was essentially a one-off homage to the Daytona, Superformance is confident it will meet the definition provided by the law, but NHTSA has yet to move forward with its implementation.
The original GR-1 is still owned by Ford and currently on loan to Superformance to help the team there design its version. Stander said they are scaling it up by about 10 percent to provide better passenger space. A full-size model of the original also exists that was shown at the 2004 Pebble Beach Concours and was sold at a charity auction for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in 2011 for $82,500.
RM Sothebys
And it won’t be the only old Ford you’ll be able to buy new in the coming years. Gateway Bronco of Hamel, Ill., was recently granted a license to build new 1966-1997 Ford Broncos, while Florida’s Revology Cars makes several classic Mustang models with the Blue Oval’s stamp of approval.
This story has been updated with new details from Superformance CEO Lance Stander