Ask Ford Engineers Questions About the GT350

[VoodooBoss]

I'm going to attend the Monterey Motorsports Reunion Historic Races this coming weekend. I'm told there will be some Ford GT350 engineers there and I'll ask them questions regarding the GT350. If you have specific questions please post and I'll add them to the list:

1. What are the differences in suspension between the GT350 TP and GT350R?
2. Why are the grille openings different on the R?
3. Why not use Pirelli Trefeo R tires like the Z/28 and P1 vs. Michelin Sport Cup 2 tires for the R? (probably availability but I'll ask anyway)
4. Why does the design of the rear wing on the R look so much like the wing on the Boss 302 LS?
5. Why such limited production on the R?
6. Why not offer the CF wheels as an option on all GT350 models?
7. Will Ford offer a flat plane crank "Aluminator" crate engine?
8. Why were the oil gauges deleted from the base R?
9. Is special equipment needed for mounting tires on the CF wheels?
10. Are the wheel studs upgraded over the regular S550 cars?
11. Are there brake ducts for cooling built into the car?
12. Is the drive train warranty voided by driving in HPDE events? Reference track pack comment in the supplement. Not time trial or racing.
13. Will this engine benefit using a 302S breather like the Roadrunner/Coyote does?
14. What changes are needed to run a square tire setup?
15. Can you completely turn off the nannies?
16. How will wheel weights affect the suspension calibration? Can it be changed?

 

[TMSBOSS]

Will Ford offer a flat plane crank "Aluminator" crate engine

 

[VoodooBoss]

Added. Next?

 

[fuhrius]

are there existing accommodation fro tow hooks?
were the wheel studs improved over the boss cars? (give that that proved to be a weak point right of the gate for folks tracking the boss)
is there / what is the special equipment needed for replacing ties on the R's carbon wheels?
There is mention in the info manual that they're using a brake pad compound that will easily work for both street and track...will they recommend a more track-specific pad for extended track use? / Recommend brake fluid / brake line swap? (for the boss, they recommended a fluid swap)
Is Ford considering offering a factory-build (or Watson-built) set of safety equipment (rollbar, seat / seat mounting, harnesses)
Will you let me take few rips around the track in that AG one in between qualifying for the historic cars?

 

[VoodooBoss]

are there existing accommodation fro tow hooks?
were the wheel studs improved over the boss cars? (give that that proved to be a weak point right of the gate for folks tracking the boss)
is there / what is the special equipment needed for replacing ties on the R's carbon wheels?
There is mention in the info manual that they're using a brake pad compound that will easily work for both street and track...will they recommend a more track-specific pad for extended track use? / Recommend brake fluid / brake line swap? (for the boss, they recommended a fluid swap)
Is Ford considering offering a factory-build (or Watson-built) set of safety equipment (rollbar, seat / seat mounting, harnesses)
Will you let me take few rips around the track in that AG one in between qualifying for the historic cars?

I'll add a couple of these to my list but I know the answers to most plus you can talk to them if you're going. BTW if you haven't downloaded and read the sourcebook you should.

are there existing accommodation fro tow hooks? No

were the wheel studs improved over the boss cars? (give that that proved to be a weak point right of the gate for folks tracking the boss)They are longer on the R to accommodate the mounting of the CF wheels. They are not APR race quality studs so they will need upgrading.

is there / what is the special equipment needed for replacing ties on the R's carbon wheels? I'll ask

There is mention in the info manual that they're using a brake pad compound that will easily work for both street and track...will they recommend a more track-specific pad for extended track use? / Recommend brake fluid / brake line swap? (for the boss, they recommended a fluid swap) Edit: the car does come with DOT 4, I'm impressed 8)

Is Ford considering offering a factory-build (or Watson-built) set of safety equipment (rollbar, seat / seat mounting, harnesses) The GT350R-S goes into production in early 2016 and WR, not Ford, will be offering these products to the public as they have done in the past

Will you let me take few rips around the track in that AG one in between qualifying for the historic cars? You're on your own there. ;D

 

[cloud9]

Clarify the overrev condition and how to manage it during track duty.

 

[cloud9]

With a 150 ft/lb. torque spec on the lug nuts, can we safely assume the wheels studs are as strong as ARPs and don't need to be upgraded??

 

[TMSBOSS]

150 ft/lbs??

Are they still 1/2 inch studs?

 

[fuhrius]

With a 150 ft/lb. torque spec on the lug nuts, can we safely assume the wheels studs are as strong as ARPs and don't need to be upgraded??

good catch. that makes me more comfortable.

 

[ChopSui]

Might as well ask but I'm pretty sure the over rev function has been debunked. The Owner's Manual supplement doesn't mention it. It does say that until the coolant temp has reached 190 degrees, you can't rev past 8000.

Also, I'm pretty sure I read that it does come with brake cooling duct work but it might be like what's on the regular GT Performance Pack which is just some channels built into the under tray to direct air towards the font brakes. Again, might as well ask for details. EDIT: I found this at Car and Driver from back when Ford did the show and tell about the brakes/suspension. "To minimize fade, dedicated brake ducts front and rear feed air to the ventilated rotors."
http://blog.caranddriver.com/ford-mustang-shelby-gt350gt350r-chassis-detailed-the-more-we-learn-the-more-impressed-we-are/

This kind of goes along with the question about the oil gauges, but I'd like to know why we can't get the toggle switches in the track pack. Sure would make switching the suspension/exhaust modes quicker than fiddling through a menu via steering wheel buttons.

 

[fuhrius]

the sourcebook says:
"Shelby GT350-specific brake ducts are integrated into the lower grille and are unnoticeable to the customer"

 

[fuhrius]

what the heck are these (from the steering section):

– Pull-drift compensation
– Active nibble control

sounds like some sort of weight loss aid ;-)

I don't really need an engineer to comment...just found them curious.

 

[jas427]

Really want to know what if anything needs to be done to a R model to run a square tire set up???
I know for a fact the break pads work great but you could confirm it please. And will they be offering a square wheel set up for track use. Thanks for the Help. We all need to know certain things to best track are cars.
John

 

[Grant 302]

what the heck are these (from the steering section):

– Pull-drift compensation
– Active nibble control

sounds like some sort of weight loss aid ;-)

I don't really need an engineer to comment...just found them curious.

Crap! I hope that stuff gets disabled in track modes, etc. That's the stuff that's wrong with the '11-'12 EPAS units!!!

 

[VoodooBoss]

Really want to know what if anything needs to be done to a R model to run a square tire set up???
I know for a fact the break pads work great but you could confirm it please. And will they be offering a square wheel set up for track use. Thanks for the Help. We all need to know certain things to best track are cars.
John

Yea that's a good question. I'm planning on running 305 square and I suspect a slightly smaller RSB should do it. Added.

 

[cloud9]

I didnt see anything in the Source Book or Supplement that indicated you could completely shut off the nannies. Jamaal Hameedi mentioned it was possible in the svtperformance.com interview so can you ask about that?

 

[ChopSui]

I'd like to know how much lighter or heavier a wheel needs to be before it adversely affects the Magneride calibration. Also, is the calibration something that can be adjusted for wheel/tire weight?

 

[VoodooBoss]

I didn't get all the answers and I didn't want to bug the engineers any more than I already did. : I'll start a separate thread on the differences between the R and TP.

One thing the engineers stressed was to buy the cars and take them to the track stock. Yes cloud9 that includes the brake pads. After looking at the cars they look ready to go.

For any Ford GT350 engineer reading this thanks for letting me ask all the questions. ;D

1. What are the differences in suspension between the GT350 TP and GT350R?
The dampers have a different vehicle dynamics module, or VDM, programming and the slot gap is smaller on the R. They units are not interchangeable. The slot gap is the opening where the oil flows through. I believe smaller slot means potentially stiffer. The R front springs are stiffer as we already know and approximately 1/2" shorter. More on this in the upcoming differences between the R and TP cars.

2. Why are the grille openings different on the R?
It's for aero only. Might have to add this to my TP car.

3. Why not use Pirelli Trefeo R tires like the Z/28 and P1 vs. Michelin Sport Cup 2 tires for the R? (probably availability but I'll ask anyway)
Said the PSC2 is faster and the Trefeo R would be a step back. The special tires have larger blocks on the outside of the tires. I'm finding this hard to believe but I'm going with it.

4. Why does the design of the rear wing on the R look so much like the wing on the Boss 302 LS?
Coincidence. They did test the aero and it works.

5. Why such limited production on the R?
Just a smile.

6. Why not offer the CF wheels as an option on all GT350 models?
Didn't ask.

7. Will Ford offer a flat plane crank "Aluminator" crate engine?
Didn't ask.

8. Why were the oil gauges deleted from the base R?
Didn't ask. Weight I assume but I question this decision.

9. Is special equipment needed for mounting tires on the CF wheels?
No but you'll want a good tire change guy to be careful. They beat the crap out of the wheels during testing and there were no failures.

10. Are the wheel studs upgraded over the regular S550 cars?
Yes. 14mm vs 12mm. During testing they went through hundreds of tire changes with no failures. Just run the stock ones until cloud9 breaks one then replace them.

11. Are there brake ducts for cooling built into the car?
Yes, I posted photos elsewhere. Actually this is pretty slick and a much better solution than the hoses for many of us.

12. Is the drive train warranty voided by driving in HPDE events? Reference track pack comment in the supplement. Not time trial or racing.
Didn't ask.

13. Will this engine benefit using a 302S breather like the Roadrunner/Coyote does?
The Bob's oil separator on the yellow car is there as part of their Track Tour prep. They stated the voodoo doesn't have the oil ingestion problem the coyote has. Yet they installed them anyway.

14. What changes are needed to run a square tire setup?
Didn't ask.

15. Can you completely turn off the nannies?
Yes. My driver had it turned off during my hot laps and had the suspension set to Track mode.

16. How will wheel weights affect the suspension calibration? Can it be changed?
We discussed this but they didn't give a specific answer. They stressed both the R and TP are setup as a package and just drive the cars stock on the track. They did agree to my statement that the R's PSC2 tires on a TP would lower track times.

A few other items:

A. While the rotors are two piece they are one unit and you must replace the whole rotor. Might be interesting to see if for example a Stoptech two piece rotor might be cheaper in the long run. Depends on the replacement price of the stock rotors. Also let's hope the drilled holes don't cause cracks and I don't expect them to. If the stock rotors hold up and are affordable we're set. The brakes are impressive!

B. The brake pads don't need upgrading. Really. Brake pads are a personal choice but I'll give the stock pads a go. At least they don't squeal. I don't expect ANY brake fade from the stock setup.

C. I asked if you could install the R front springs on the TP. They said it was not a good idea as the cars are setup properly as they are delivered. But they didn't completely close the door on this and I think someone should try this. Cloud9 maybe when you install CC plates?

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

The "R front springs on TP" thing might indicate that the TP dampers don't have the damping range to deal with the stiffer front spring in the R (think back to where they talked about the damper "slot gap/orifice" being smaller on the R--likely to increase damping stiffness as it will be more difficult to push fluid through the smaller orifice).

So if you put the stiffer "R" spring on w/ the TP damper, you may end up with some unwanted oscillation in the front due to it compressing too much and releasing too fast.

Ultimately I guess we'll have to wait for someone to try it

 

[VoodooBoss]

It's a pretty easy piece to test so hopefully CorteX or Vorschlag give it a try.