GT350 News and Predictions

[VoodooBoss]

Let's see how I did on my predictions from early May then updated in early September:

Names:
So far so good. Nothing was mentioned about an R version but it's coming.

Availability:
Hit the announcement on the head and I still expect the car to be available Summer 2015 or possible early Fall.

Engine:
I knew I had it wrong but corrected myself in September. Still no HP numbers but I'm holding at 550 which might be a bit high.

Brakes:
Yep. Look for CCB's on the R. I actually undershot on the front rotors. :

Wheels and Tires:
Off by a little bit on the front tires at 295/35/19 but got the tires correct. The R will have the Cup tires and I'm still holding at 305F and 325R.

Suspension:
Wrong. Oh well the MagnaRide suspension will be awesome for street and track. I'm still holding out for Multimatic DSSV dampers on the R and maybe they will be adjustable.

Differential:
Correct

Trans:
Aren't we glad I'm wrong here! ;D The new Tremec 3160 should be a sweet shifting transmission.

Clutch:
Correct

Driveshaft:
Wrong. Looks to be aluminum and not CF. At least it's not steel.
Edit: maybe the R will have a CF driveshaft.

Ok here's the latest on the GT350 program.

Names:
I'm now completely confident that name will be GT350. The race car versions will follow the same naming convention for the FR500 and Boss 302 programs. This is a SVT car and will also have the Shelby name on it although Shelby America will not be involved. There will be four models:

GT350 – the base GT350 similar to the Boss 302.
GT350 B/PR – similar to the Boss 302 Laguna Seca. This is the higher performance GT350 or street legal track day special. B/P stands for SCCA B Production and pays homage to the original cars. The original GT350 won it's very first B/P race and went on to capture the SCCA 1965, 1966 and 1967 B Production championships.
Turn Key Race Cars
GT350C - for IMSA CTSCC GS class racing, the enduro racer. Updated
GT350S - for World Challenge GTS class racing, the sprint racer.

Ok I was reaching on the B/P name and trying to be creative. But I still got most of this right.

Availability:
The GT350 will be announced at the 2014 LA Auto Show most likely on November 21st the first public day of the show. Look for GT350Mustangs.com to be there for the live announcement. The first we'll see the car at a race will be in the CTSC GS class at Daytona in January 2015. IMSA let Ford race the Boss 302R before production began as they did with GM and the Z/28. Look for the production cars to be available at the earliest in Summer 2015 most likely as a 2016 model. It could be a 2015 model but who really cares?

I'm sticking with this one to the letter although we might see a press release or event prior to the LA Auto Show.

Engine:
Sorry but no flat plane crank. Wrong! I know there's lots of rumors on this but it just doesn't make sense for the price point or for the production class racing. If Ford is working on a FPC look for it in a Mach 1 or GT500 a couple of years down the road. What the engine will have is 520 HP in a 5.2L engine with a redline of 8,000 RPM's. While the Boss engine has been pretty bullet proof the weak link has been the valve springs. Look for improved flow in the heads with hardware that can take 8,000 RPM's during the durability testing. To feed those heads there will be a new intake similar to the Cobra Jet intake but with a few tricks added to it to take advantage of the increase flow through the heads and larger bore. A new larger throttle body will be paired with the intake. Shorty headers will be stock but with slightly larger primaries to take advantage of the increased flow. The really big news will be the GT350 will be the first Mustang with direct injection.

The FPC Voodoo engine is real but I don't have a lot of details. I'm bumping up my initial HP guess to 550 HP. So somewhere between 520-550 and the redline could be 8,500 or higher.

Brakes:
We've already seen mules with carbon ceramic brakes with 15" rotors in the front and 14" rotors in the rear. They will be matched with six piston front and four piston rear Brembo calipers. This time around the B/P will have more track oriented brake pads compared to the base GT350.

No changes here. Look for the CC brakes to be stock on the GT350R and an option on the GT350.

Wheels and tires:
The GT350 will have Michelin Pilot Super Sport in 295/35/19 and 265/35/19 on 11" and 10" wide wheels. This will open up larger rubber on the stock wheels come replacement time.

The big news is the GT350 B/P will have Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tires. It's possible they could show up with Pirelli P Zero Trefeo R's but it will depend on what manufacturer Ford contracts with.

We now know the wheel sizes are 19x10.5F and 19x11R for the GT350 with the R getting 19x11F and 19x11.5R. And as I posted last week the R will have carbon fiber wheels and most likely made by Carbon Revolution as previously shown in the Leno's Garage video. WOW this is huge! Make sure you leave plenty of room on your credit card for replacement wheels. Tires are as I previously predicted but with larger sizes. 305/30/19F and 325/30/19R

Listen to what the guy has to say about an OEM deal at the 4:00 mark.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=gWiTky3zZXQ

Suspension:
The cars will have Multimatic dampers with DSSV technology. The base GT350R and B/P will have different valving but will be identical otherwise. The beauty of this is you can upgrade the base dampers with the B/P cartridge for more damping control. Yes I know the Z/28 has them too but Multimatic uses the same technology in F1 cars so think of it in those terms. The R and S cars will also have DSSV dampers with remote reservoirs on them. The street dampers will have nothing in common with the race dampers other than using a DSSV cartridge and being made my Multimatic.

I don't have any further information on this other than Multimatic has two of the GT350R(S) cars they are prepping for IMSA next year. So for now I'll stick with my original prediction.

Differential:
No electronic controlled diff like the new Stingray. Look for a Torsen similar to the Boss 302.

No change here.

Transmission:
Sorry but the Getrag MT82 remains the stock transmission. Look for improvements in durability and smoothness. The transmission will have an auto blip feature.

I'm beginning to think I'm wrong here and hope I am. Frankly the sky is falling mentality about the MT-82 is unfounded and the clutch on the Boss 302 is the main problem.

Clutch:
Look for a twin disc clutch similar to what Ford uses in the GT500.

No change here.

Driveshaft:
It will have a carbon fiber driveshaft similar to the current GT500.

No change here.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Man their website must be getting hammered! I'm trying to download the pics and they are coming so slow, some are failing....lol.

Noticed the same thing! Media buzz is going crazy today!

Running out at CVR?
https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/asset.embedded.html/content/dam/fordmedia/North America/US/2014/11/17/GT350_Running_HD.mp4.html

You got it!

 

[Grant 302]

You got it!

Going back on Sunday to re-live good times...too bad it won't be as open as the first BMO-West gathering.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Going back on Sunday to re-live good times...too bad it won't be as open as the first BMO-West gathering.

Yea that was fun.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Looks like I'll be there February 7-8 with NASA!

 

[Grant 302]

Yea that was fun.

Open day and 102dB+ at Laguna Seca would be a good follow-up event!

Looks like I'll be there February 7-8 with NASA!

Might have to check it out then!

 

[Noellenchris]

Running out at CVR?
https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/asset.embedded.html/content/dam/fordmedia/North America/US/2014/11/17/GT350_Running_HD.mp4.html

Man that sounds sweet! If it sounds that good on my laptop, I'm gonna get chills hearing that engine....Basically it's gotta be the sickest sounding growl i've heard from a production car....just saying....

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Might have to check it out then!

Yeah buddy!! Rip it up!

 

[VoodooBoss]

My clutch prediction was correct as well.

It has "a low inertial dual mass flywheel and two 15-mm dual disc clutch"

 

[coboss]

My clutch prediction was correct as well.

It has "a low inertial dual mass flywheel and two 15-mm dual disc clutch"

If the flywheel isn't aluminum, I'm shocked. Why go to the trouble of using a FPC to lose rotational mass, then hang a cast iron flywheel off the end of the crank?

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

If the flywheel isn't aluminum, I'm shocked. Why go to the trouble of using a FPC to lose rotational mass, then hang a cast iron flywheel off the end of the crank?

Probably part of their vibration damping strategy combined with the front end crank damper; or it could simply be a driveability concern.

 

[Grant 302]

It's a Ford not a Fawawi.

 

[GOT SVT]

LA Auto Show

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Copy/Paste of an interesting info from 6G and Corner-Carvers:

Mustang6G.com Q&A with Jamal Hameedi on the new Shelby GT350 Mustang

PRODUCTION:

Q: Do you expect it to be a limited production?
A: It will be about the same as a GT500.

Q: Will there be as many built as customers want?
A: …Up to a point.


WEIGHT:

Q: Is the GT350 lighter than the base GT?
A: Yea, we’re not really talking curb weight today, but there was a lot of light-weighting. Much of it went to offset all the mass that we added in terms of power, brakes, etc., but we also went beyond that too.

Q: So you’re optimistic that…
A: Yea, I’m not going to tell you. [laughs]


ENGINE:

Q: Is it dry sump?
A: It’s not dry sump.

Q: Is it direct injection?
A: No.

Q: Where do you get the extra 0.2 liter displacement
A: It’s all bore. It’s got plasma sprayed bore lining. Same lining coating as the 2013 GT500.

Q: Better breathing with flat planes?
A: It’s the rotational inertia that it reduces and also from an exhaust standpoint because you’re going side to side, you’re never disturbing the next cylinder’s firing.
Q: And mass reduction on the crank right?
A: Right.

Q: Where is the crank made?
A. It’s mostly in-house.

Q: You guys forge the crank and machine it yourselves?
A: Yea, there’s bits that are forged…

Q: This is a pretty big motor for a flat plane crank (big displacement). What have you done in terms of crankshaft damping?
A: There’s almost 30 things we did (outside the block) to compensate for it. It’s going to be a whole other story on how we did that.

Q: Challenges with emissions compliance with a flat plane crank?
A: It was harder than usual.

Q: Tell us about the variable loading exhaust valve?
A: It’s got an electric valve. So the valve, depending on what driver mode you’re in, the valve will either be open all the time (track mode) or it will open under certain conditions.
Q: Is it dependent on RPM or back pressure?
A: It’s electronically controlled so there’s algorithms in there that turn valve on in the right point in time.

Q: How much were you able to share with the 5.0L?
A: There are little common parts (i.e. things in the valve train), but it’s pretty much an all-new engine: new heads, new casting, new intake, new crank, new pistons, new rods, new halfshafts.
Q: There were rumors this engine was nicknamed Voodoo, is that the name it’s going by?
A: That was its nickname, yes.

Q: Any chance of seeing this engine in anything else?
A: Right now it’s just in this car. Which we’ve always done, just like the Trinity engine in the GT500. The GT500 was the only place you got the 5.8L.

Q: So it’s exclusive for now at least?
A: Yea.

Q: Is factory top speed software-limited?
A: No, it is drag-limited.

Q: How high does it go?
A: We’re not talking numbers today.


BENCHMARKS:

Q: What were your benchmarks for this car?
A: We had four cars that we bought. One was a 911 Carrera S — that was our main one. But we also bought a Ferrari California and that was mostly for NVH benchmarking. That’s the only flat plane crank front-engine car really out there. And then we bought a C7 corvette and also a Z28.

Q: Relative lap times compared to a Boss 302 around a race track?
A: Not really comparable. Way faster.. an order of magnitude faster.


SUSPENSION:

Q: What is the percentage of stiffness difference on the bushing between the GT350 and the standard GT?
A: Not that much. The bushings are different. The rate, the springs, the swaybars are different.

Q: Is the bushing changes primarily a handling thing or is it for NVH?
A: All for responsiveness and handling.


TRANSMISSION:

Q: Tell us a little about the transmission.
A: It’s a Tremec 3160 transmission that’s been modified fairly significantly to cope with the demands of the flat plane crank engine.

Q: What about the fly wheel and the clutch?
A: It’s got a low inertial dual mass flywheel and two 15-mm dual disc clutch.


WHEELS/BRAKES:

Q: Why black wheels?
A: Actually there’s a reason for that. The brake pads we use, they create so much dust and customers just hate it. You drive the car once with clean wheels and they are dirty after a short drive. So that’s why we got dark wheels.

Q: Why no carbon ceramic brakes?
A: I think you’ll find out later that affordability was a big part of this car.

Q: So keeping price down was a big part of that?
A: Yes. That was a priority with this car.


MISC:

Q: Is it meant to be a Boss 302 replacement or a GT500 replacement? Where is it positioned in the lineup?
A: It is its own beast. Just because the whole flat plane crank is so different than anything we’ve done and anything that’s out there.

Q: In terms of the body panels, how much does it share with the GT and how much of it is new?
A: From the A-pillar forward it’s all new. The whole rear diffuser is new. Rear quarter panels are the same.

Q: Will this be a platform for the GT500?
A: The car has got really good bones so…

Q: How much fun was it working on this?
A: It was awesome. I don’t want to stop.

Sorry if this is a repost!

 

[VoodooBoss]

Yep I've seen that.

I'm still holding onto the R version having 305/35/19 and 325/30/19 Cup tires.

 

[302 Hi Pro]

If the flywheel isn't aluminum, I'm shocked. Why go to the trouble of using a FPC to lose rotational mass, then hang a cast iron flywheel off the end of the crank?

ArazonaBoss is correct in his above post stating balance. The design of the steel/iron flywheel is to assist with vibration and harmonic balance control of the crankshaft and recripical mass. The FPC, (180 degree), by design eliminates or severely reduces the mass of counter weights necessary on dual plane crank, (90 degree). Elimination of the large counter weights allow for high RPM operation.

There are new patents by Ford on the engineering aspects of balancing this engine, and it goes beyond the traditional external methods to balance a dual plane V8 engine. Interestingly, displacement of a FPC engine can be a challenge as well. The larger the displacement the harder it is to balance and at 5.2l, this is one of the larger FPC engine being mass produced.

Very interesting stuff. I read an article on the Voodoo engine reported being redline at 8,000 RPM and this allowed for a 250 RPM cushion.

Not sure if the red line is factual, but it will be interesting to see all of the specs once released by Ford. Wonder if the compression ratio will exceed 11.0:1? Etc.

 

[YellowJacketBoss302]

Didn't that same article say compression ratio would be 12:1?

 

[VoodooBoss]

The GT350 out testing in Colorado. Could it be AWD? JK

http://www.tflcar.com/2014/11/2016-ford-mustang-shelby-gt350-is-elusive-no-more-spied/

 

[GOT SVT]

saw a rumor that the GT 350R will be at the Detroit auto show

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

The front end really looks menacing in black. I wonder if the Colorado bit is part of the "high-altitude" performance testing so they don't run into cooling issues like with the Boss? Probably not gonna get too much useful data in the WINTER, though