The Ford GT is a supercar with a legendary racing heritage, but is a V8 the only engine option?
The origin story of the Ford GT is the stuff of legends. Like many sports cars, the grand tourer (GT) traces its roots back to racing. Today, the Ford GT is a noted purpose-built car with high-performance and a superior engine. How and why the Ford GT40 came to be is one of the most amazing stories in the automotive and racing world.
It began in 1963 with a heated cross-continental rivalry between Henry Ford II and Enzo Ferrari. After negotiations to buy the Italian automaker failed, Ford decided it would beat Ferrari on their home turf: the racetrack. After a few misses, Ford teamed up with Carroll Shelby to develop a proper Ford endurance race car. And the result was the Ford GT40 MK II.
Ford then conquered Le Mans in a most dramatic fashion, even portrayed in Ford v Ferrari. While it is a tale full of triumph and tragedy, it resulted in an iconic sports car. Ford retired the car into history when the GT40 left the race track for good.
However, fast forward to the early 2000s and Ford was looking for a great way to celebrate its heritage ahead of its centennial anniversary.
After the GT40 concept car debut in 2002, Ford realized that did not actually own the name “GT40,” which still belonged to a small British engineering company that had continued making GT40 continuation vehicles. The name was shortened to “GT” and the Ford GT was born.
Created by Carroll Shelby, and designed by Camilo Pardo, the Ford GT echoes the shape of the original world-winning race car. Unlike its namesake, the GT was built to be a streetcar, however, and was produced for the 2005 and 2006 model years.
Sadly, only 4,038 were made, powered by a 5.4L (329.5 cu-in) supercharged Ford modular V8 engine.
Fast forward a decade and the GT made a triumphant return for its second generation. Marking exactly 50 years since the original Ford GT40 won the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, a new race version debuted in 2016. The race version celebrated the 50th anniversary in style, taking 1st and 3rd in class at the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Debuting in 2017, the version of the GT sold in dealerships was also powered by a brand new 3.5L twin-turbocharged Ford EcoBoost V6. The updated Ford supercar made 647 horsepower (660 horsepower starting in 2020) and 550 lb.-ft. of torque.
So, V8 or turbo V6, which was best for Ford’s legendary supercar?
What are the Specs for the Ford GT’s Engine?
The first-generation 2005 Ford GT made use of an all-aluminum alloy engine, Ford’s 5.4L modular V8. Power output is 550 horsepower at 6,500 rpm and 500 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,500 rpms from the longitudinally rear-mounted unit.
Performance was staggering at the time. Like the GT40 racer, the Ford GT had an impressive top speed. The streetcar would hit 205 mph and would blitz through the 1⁄4 mile in 11.8 seconds and get to sixty mph in 3.8 seconds.
The engine remained the same for both 2005 and 2006 that the GT was produced, the only modification being in the special edition open-top GTX1, where power was raised to an even 700 horsepower.
For 2017, the Ford GT was reincarnated at something similar, but different. Featuring a new swoopy mid-engine racecar-looking body, the V8 was gone and replaced with a twin-turbo V6.
The compact, lightweight, nature of the turbocharged six-cylinder meant that designers and engineers had a lot more leeway with the new car. Immediately recognizable as a GT, it evolved the look into a more modern vision and is an incredibly pretty car.
Also, the use of a smaller non-V8 was controversial at first, much like the use of an EcoBoost in the second generation Ford Raptor, it has proven to be a force to be reckoned with on the street, and on the track.
Are These the Same Engines Found in Other Fords?
Ford has made it look easy to take an engine from a more pedestrian application and turn it into a fire-breathing monster. Both the 5.4L V8 and the 3.5L EcoBoost can be found in other Ford vehicles, but with varying levels of tuning.
The 5.4L V8 in the modular engine family was first introduced in the 1997 F-series pick-ups and went on to be under the hood of tons of Ford vehicles. The largest difference across 5.4L engines at the blue oval is the number of valves per cylinder. Over time, Ford has produced two-valve, three-valve, and four-valve versions.
For example, the performance-focused Ford Raptor used a three-valve single-overhead-cam (SOHC) cylinder head during its first year.
However, the more extreme performance cars at Ford have made use of the four-valve engine found in the Ford GT. Many have erroneously reported that the Ford GT uses the same 5.4L supercharged V8 from the F-150 Lightning pickup truck. While they do share some familiar components, that was a two-valve engine in the Lightning.
The Ford GT’s V8 shares more in common with DOHC four-valve 5.4L engines found in the 2000 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R, the Ford Shelby GT500 (2007-2012), and the Ford Falcon performance line in Australia.
Even though it was introduced in the GT, the 3.5L EcoBoost has been used in numerous Ford applications.
In fact, Ford chose to launch the new GT with this engine partially as a technological showcase as to what buyers could find in other road cars and trucks at Ford dealers.
Since 2017, the updated second generation of the Ford 3.5L EcoBoost (D35) has been used in the Ford F-150 (including the second-generation Raptor) Ford Expedition, and Lincoln Navigator.
However, as you’ll see, the new 3.5L engine has a few tricks up its cylinders.
Ford GT Engine Technical Details
As noted above, the first-generation Ford GT utilized the modular 5.4L V8 and the second generation used the 3.5L EcoBoost V6, so we’ll go into some more detail on each engine.
5.4L V8 Engine
Featuring four valves per cylinder head, this was a modified version of the ones found on the 2000 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R, but with increases in the thickness of the wall casting in the exhaust port. The engine was fitted with an Eaton 2300 Lysholm screw-type supercharger. It featured a forged rotating assembly built inside of an aluminum block designed specifically for the GT.
A dry-sump oiling system means that the engine can sit low in the car’s frame for better weight distribution. The camshafts have unique specs, with better lift and duration than those found in the Shelby GT500 of the same era. Bore and stroke were 3.55 in. x 4.17 in. and the engine had a compression of 8.4:1.
A Ricardo six-speed manual transmission was mated to the engine and featured a helical limited-slip differential to help get power to the ground.
3.5L EcoBoost Engine
At only 3,496 cc, the 3.5L twin-turbocharged Ford EcoBoost V6 engine is not all that similar to the larger displacement V8 engine in the first-generation car. It’s true that it does share many components with the other 3.5L V6 engines including the block, cylinder heads, and fuel system. However, the GT’s engine comes with a host of upgraded components starting with larger turbocharges, but that’s not all.
Critical to the GT’s engine is aluminum, which is used throughout. First, is the aluminum block and heads, additionally, the intake manifold and pistons are both made from cast aluminum. Critical connecting rods are still made of fully-machined forged steel. The valvetrain is naturally a double overhead head camshaft (DOHC) with the aforementioned four valves per cylinder. It features unique twin independent variable camshaft timing plus low-friction roller-finger-follower rocker arms.
Valve diameter and lift are 37.4mm and 9.96mm respectively for the intake and 31.6mm and 11.00mm respectively for the GT’s exhaust. The GT’s EcoBoost also uses a custom 4-Stage external dry dump oil pump. So, as you can see, it’s a pretty amazing machine.
Does the Ford GT’s Engine Require Special Maintenance?
From the perspective of supercar ownership, the Ford GT in any generation is a good investment. The Ford drivetrain and parts-bin elements borrowed from more pedestrian cars mean that it’s an oddly reliable offering.
Noted Ford GT owner Doug DeMuro chronicled 14 years of original Ford GT ownership (his and the previous owner’s) and it came out incredibly inexpensive to own per month. That’s mostly because of the appreciation, but can also be attributed to the lack of extra maintenance costs.
The only element even related to the drivetrain that needed attention was the exhaust gas recirculation valve or EGR valve for short. All other elements were completely unrelated to the engine, and still relatively inexpensive compared to European exotics.
It’s worth noting that in order to service a second-generation GT, Ford dealerships needed to invest around $30,000 in upgrades to ensure that they could properly handle the supercar. It had little to do with the engine though, and more to do with the GT’s very low suspension which requires special trailers for transport and lifts to check out the undercarriage. The great part about owning 3.5L EcoBoost is that the basics of the engine are the same as the F-150 that also came on the same day for service.
However, this is a $400,000 supercar, thus you shouldn’t expect inexpensive maintenance visits since dealers have to use specially trained technicians. Actual numbers are hard to come by since the second generation is still fairly new and produced in such small numbers.
Basically, if you can afford the car, you can probably afford the maintenance!
Which Ford GT Engine Should You Look For?
The answer to this question depends on your access to funds, as the GT is not cheap in any form. The first generation GT cost a “fairly reasonable” $145,000, which was a lot of car for the money.
Today, they have continued to increase in value. Used first-generation Ford GTs are selling up to, and likely more than, $400,000. Even a 2006 Ford GT with higher mileage and minor cosmetic blemishes may go for closer to $270,000. If you had the means to purchase one back in the mid-2000s, it has only increased in value.
For the latest Ford GT, the cost is even higher. Base prices were in the $450,000 to $500,000 and because of their scarcity, they are selling on the used market north of $800,000.
So, if really engine choice is your only decider, you are in a good position and have done well. Regardless of your choice, you’ll have one of the most capable supercars ever built with the Ford GT.
Photos: Ford
