Manoli Katakis 
This is it. Whereas Dodge shows us how to go fastest in a straight line with the 1,025 hp Challenger Demon 170, Ford Performance is showing what a muscle car is capable of being around a road course. Dissecting all of the details and data on this street-legal race car has made one thing very clear: the 2025 Ford Mustang GTD will be the pinnacle of the Mustang family. Beyond any Shelby, beyond any performance pack, beyond any other special edition. And this is because the Mustang GTD is highly, highly based on the the recently-revealed Mustang GT3 race car that will begin competition next year. Much like the Ford GT before it, the Mustang GTD is a radical homologation special that destined to be the poster car of just about any young car enthusiast, and we’re here for all of it.
Similar to the origin story of the latest Ford GT, the Mustang GTD was formulated in an underground room deep within the bowels of the company’s Allen Park campus. It all started in 2021, just as the Ford GT was approaching its end of life cycle. And once again, Ford’s called upon the might of Multimatic Motorsports to build and sell these radical cars, just as it did with the GT. And, perhaps most importantly, the Mustang GTD has something the Ford GT never had: a V8 engine. And not just any V8: a next-generation Predator 5.2L supercharged V8.
Engine Details Of The S650 Ford Mustang GTD
While not a street-legal version of the M-Sport 5.4L Coyote V8 found in the Mustang GT3, this new 5.2L supercharged V8 delivers record horsepower for a Mustang, targeting 800 hp. Likely more, when it’s all said and done. The engine features dual air inlets, fed by the supercharger, sending forced air into a combustion chamber where titanium-rodded pistons will push as fast as 7,500 RPM. From there, the air is sent to a titanium active-vale exhaust system, producing music. To accomodate for cooling, much of the front engine bay has been cleared out, allowing for superior airflow. The 2025 Ford Mustang GTD also features a dry-sump oil system to keep the engine appropriately lubricated during high-G cornering events. Hopefully many high-G cornering events. Power is sent through an 8-speed rear-mounted transaxle, where the trunk used to be, in an effort to achieve near-perfect 50/50 weight distribution.
The targeted Nurburgring time for the 2025 Ford Mustang GTD? Under 7 minutes. And probably well under 7 minutes. For the record, the current Porsche 911 GT3 RS can do the dance in roughly 6:55. But even that supercar looks like a junior varsity attempt compared to this newly hatched carbon-fiber bodied fire-breather.
The horsepower, carbon fiber body, and radical aero work are all one thing. Here’s the real party piece: the interior features (optional) parts from a retired Lockheed-Martin F-22 Raptor, the most formidable fighter jet known to mankind. The 3D-printed titanium paddle shifters, rotary dial shifter and serial plate, are all crafted from the titanium of the F-22. Missile lock, baby.
Chassis Details
The chassis, as expected, is radically different from the standard S650 Mustang. Where there once was a trunk is now the semi-active suspension, a hydraulic control system, and a transaxle cooling system that uses a race-inspired cover that replaces the trunk lid and includes two air scoops to funnel air off the back glass into the area and through the heat exchangers. Its track is 4-inches wider than an S650 Mustang GT. The rear suspension is now an inboard pushrod design with Multimatic spool valve dampers. And the front tires are even wider than what we saw on the rear of the bygone Ford GT: 325-mm wide Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires. These rubbers are barely street legal, and will allow for absurd grip upon corner turn-in. In back the tires measure 345-mm wide, the same width as the C8 Corvette Z06. Same tires, too.
This thing is a carbon-bodied supercharged steam roller that will do to Porsches on the track what Sidewinder missiles do to MiGs: obliterate them. As for cross-town rival Corvette, there are still quite a few things coming, so we’ll have to see how well the Ford Mustang GTD stacks up against the likes of a C8 ZR1 or even the Zora hypercar. Certainly, for the price, the pony will have to do well. That’s because the hand-built Mustang GTD will start at $300,000 USD.
Ford Mustang GTD Price, Availability And Ordering
Yup, $300-grand, for a Mustang. A Mustang that will start production at the Ford Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan, before its sent to Multimatic in Markham, Canada, where the real work will begin. The 2025 Ford Mustang GTD will be available in late 2024 or early 2025. So it will be a bit, but potential customers are invited to visit Ford.com for more. As for whether or not the Ford GT approval process is going to be applied here, that’s TBA. As is the build volume.
