Did the Ford Mustang GTD Run a Sub-7 Nürburgring Lap Time? Find Out December 10
December 6, 2024We’ve reported on it, and you’ve probably seen it here and elsewhere: The Ford Mustang GTD will be the ultimate iteration of America’s original pony car, and one of its primary objectives, which Ford kept no secret, is to set a sub-7-minute lap time of Germany’s famed Nürburgring, a feat that we’ll know if a Mustang is capable of come December 10.
After months of testing, Ford plans to publicly announce the Mustang GTD’s quickest lap of “The Green Hell.” A short teaser trailer showcases a stealthed-out GTD running laps, the roar of its 5.2-liter supercharged V8 interjected by interstitials from various engineers and product officials, including Ford CEO Jim Farley.
The sub-7-minute goal is not an arbitrary measure, used as a benchmark for the world’s most elite performance cars; for example, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS and Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series, just to name two of the top contenders. Check the leaderboards and you’ll see a common theme: European brands on European turf. The fastest American production car is the Dodge Viper ACR MkV, driven by Lance Arnold at an impressive 7:01.30 pace, according to fastestlaps.com.
A full run of the Nürburgring is 20.8 kilometers, or 12.9 miles, making a sub-7-minute time an impressive measure. As you can imagine, a time like that requires high speed and practically zero mistakes; the perfect line, the perfect conditions and, potentially, the perfect Mustang.
If we had to guess, we’d say the GTD was capable of achieving its sub-7 goal. Would Ford make such a spectacle if it didn’t? Unlikely, but we’ll know for sure soon enough.