The GAS: An American Cars And Racing Podcast Apr 24, 2026

How Ford Beat Chevy At The Nürburgring

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Topic

Nürburgring

The Nürburgring is a very famous race track in Germany. It’s known for being tough, so it’s a good place to compare how well different cars are engineered.

Brand

Ford

Ford is the company behind the cars and racing effort being discussed here. They’re the ones trying to set faster Nürburgring lap times with their performance Mustangs.

Company

Mark Rushbrook

Mark Rushbrook is Ford’s racing leader in this conversation. He’s the person explaining what Ford changed to make the cars faster.

Car

The Chevrolet Corvette is an American sports car made for fast driving. People talk about it a lot in racing because it’s known for strong track performance. If someone sets a fast time in a Corvette, it’s often treated as a serious benchmark.

Concept

track-specific performance approach

They’re describing how race teams improve a car for a specific track: make more power, lose weight, improve airflow, and set the car up so it handles well without becoming too slow on straights.

Term

power increases

More power helps the car accelerate harder, especially when you’re exiting turns. But it doesn’t help much if the tires can’t grip or the aero balance is off.

Term

weight reduction

Weight reduction improves acceleration, braking, and tire grip because the car has less mass to move and slow down. On a lap-time-focused car, even small weight changes can help the car respond better through corners and transitions.

Term

downforce and drag

Cars use aerodynamics to help them stick to the road (downforce) while also trying not to waste energy pushing through the air (drag). Faster lap times usually come from finding the best compromise between the two.

Company

Multimatic

Multimatic is a company that helps build and develop high-performance cars. In this episode, they’re mentioned as a partner supporting Ford’s racing work on the Mustang GTD program.

Car

Golf Gtd

Concept

drag reduction system

A drag reduction system is something that changes the car’s aero to make it slice through the air more easily. The tradeoff is that reducing drag can also reduce downforce, so engineers try to balance both.

Part

aero disc wheels

Aero disc wheels are special wheels designed to reduce air resistance. They help the car move through the air more efficiently, which can improve speed and stability.

Concept

carry speed through corners

This means staying fast while you’re turning, not slowing down as much. If the car has enough grip (often from downforce), you can go through corners quicker and then accelerate sooner.

Concept

EcoBoost

EcoBoost is Ford’s name for many of its turbocharged engines. They’re mentioning it to show that the Mustang lineup spans from everyday turbo models up to high-performance versions.

Car

Mustang GTD

The Ford Mustang GTD is a special, track-oriented version of the Mustang. The idea is to take the Mustang and heavily engineer it so it can perform at a serious race-track level, not just be a normal street car.

Concept

transaxle

A transaxle is a combined drivetrain unit that helps put the weight in a better spot. That can make the car feel more balanced and easier to drive fast on a track.

Car

Ford Mustang GTD competition

This is a more track-focused version of the Mustang GTD. The hosts are talking about when customers will be able to buy it and how Ford is collecting interest before it goes on sale.

Concept

track-only version

A track-only version is a model configured primarily for circuit use rather than everyday street driving. These cars typically prioritize cooling, aero, braking, and packaging for sustained high-speed laps, sometimes at the expense of comfort or emissions/legal street requirements.

Concept

hybrid or electric assist

“Hybrid or electric assist” refers to using an electric motor (or battery system) alongside a gasoline engine to add torque, improve efficiency, or help with acceleration. The speaker’s point is that the car’s performance is coming from its combustion setup rather than an added electric component.

Concept

combustion engine

A combustion engine is the classic type of engine that burns fuel to make power. The host is saying this car doesn’t rely on a hybrid battery or electric motor to help it.

Car

Ford GT mark four

Ford’s GT is a high-performance supercar with a racing background. Here, the “Mark IV” version is being talked about as a track-focused setup that’s been pushed hard for Nürburgring performance.

Concept

vehicle dynamics

Vehicle dynamics is how the car acts while you’re driving hard—how it turns, stops, and stays stable. It’s basically the “feel and control” side of performance.

Concept

track day car

A “track day car” is a vehicle that’s set up to be driven on circuits by enthusiasts, typically with performance-focused tires, brakes, cooling, and aero. Here it’s used to frame the Ford GT Mark IV as something that can translate racing-level capability into real track-day use.

Concept

chassis

A chassis is the car’s structural foundation that everything else mounts to, including the suspension, steering, and drivetrain. The segment calls out the “great chassis” as a reason the GT can be pushed to high performance, implying stiffness and geometry matter for lap times.

Company

Red Bull

Red Bull is a major motorsports brand, especially in Formula 1. They’re also known for making bold, viral videos, which is why the host mentions them in this stunt discussion.

Concept

driving upside down

“Upside down driving” is when a car is literally inverted, like during a stunt. It’s hard because the tires don’t normally grip the way they do on the ground, and the car’s balance and airflow are all different.

Topic

Formula One season

The hosts reference being “three races into the Formula One season,” which frames the discussion around early-season development and performance trends. In F1, the first few races are often used to validate upgrades and learn how the car behaves across different tracks.

Term

power unit

A “power unit” is the whole racing power system in an F1 car—basically the engine plus the parts that store and reuse energy. Teams spend years refining it so the car is fast and reliable.

Topic

testing in Barcelona and Bahrain

The segment mentions testing in Barcelona and Bahrain, which are common F1 test/track venues used to evaluate car and power unit behavior. Such testing helps teams understand performance, reliability, and setup changes before and during the season.

Concept

energy management

“Energy management” means the team has to decide when to use stored energy and how to control power so the car stays within the race rules. It’s like rationing a limited resource to go fastest without breaking the limits.

Concept

calibration

Calibration is basically the car’s “settings” inside the computer. Even if the hardware doesn’t change much, changing calibration can make the power system behave better.

Concept

full driveline dyno

A full driveline dyno tests the entire powertrain system—how power flows from the engine/hybrid system through the transmission and drivetrain components. This helps engineers validate drivability, efficiency, and load behavior beyond just engine output.

Concept

engine dyno

A dyno lets engineers test the engine on a stand instead of on the track. It helps them measure power and tune the car so it performs better when they bring it back to racing.

Concept

battery energy harvesting and deployment

Battery energy harvesting refers to capturing energy during driving (often via regenerative braking and other recovery methods). Deployment is how that stored energy is released to boost performance, typically in a controlled way to meet race strategy and rules.

Concept

FIA

The FIA is the organization that makes the rules for Formula One. They work with teams and manufacturers when new regulations are introduced.

Concept

hypercar program

A hypercar program is when a company commits to building a very high-end race car for a top racing class. It’s not just a one-off—there’s a lot of engineering and rule-following involved.

Concept

homologation

Homologation is the paperwork-and-testing step that proves a race car follows the rules for that series. It usually means the car has to be built in a way the rulebook allows, not just designed for racing.

Term

engine design

Engine design is the engineering work of building an engine from the ground up—how it breathes, how it burns fuel, and how it’s cooled. Doing it in-house means the company controls the process and can refine it faster.

Term

GT3

GT3 is a racing category where teams can run cars that are based on real production cars. It’s a common way manufacturers support customer racing without building a full factory prototype.

Term

GT4

GT4 is another racing class for sports cars, but it’s generally cheaper and more accessible than GT3. It’s a way for more teams to race cars that are still based on real models.

Car

Dark Horse SC

Dark Horse SC is a high-performance Ford Mustang that uses a supercharger to make more power. They’re saying Ford has released the official power numbers for it.

Term

supercharged

Supercharged means the engine has a device that pushes extra air into it. More air usually means more power.

Term

795

“795” is used as a target/achieved power level for the engine application being discussed. In context, it’s tied to calibration, cooling, and airflow work needed to deliver that higher output reliably.

Concept

sharing learning across road and race cars

The segment describes a “race-to-road” development approach: using track testing and racing data to improve production cars. The speaker emphasizes that the same teams and even similar hardware/software work across both applications.

Term

aerodynamics

Aerodynamics is the study and design of how air flows around the car. Here, the speaker highlights sharing aero development between Mustang road and race applications to improve performance and balance.

Term

supercharger

A supercharger is a device that packs more air into the engine. More air usually means more power, because the engine can burn more fuel.

Term

powertrain cooling

Powertrain cooling is how the car keeps the engine and drivetrain from getting too hot. When you make more power, you usually need better cooling to keep everything healthy.

Car

Corvette Grand Sport

They’re talking about the Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport. The point is that Corvette uses certain special versions to signal major generational changes, and they’re comparing that to how Mustang does it.

Car

Ford Shelby Gt500

Car

Shelby GT500

The Shelby GT500 is a powerful Ford Mustang variant made for performance. The podcast is using it as a reference point for when one generation of Corvette-era performance is considered to be ending. It’s mentioned because it’s known for being a top-level, high-power car.

Topic

Nurburgring

The Nürburgring is a very famous race track in Germany. It’s known for being tough, so it’s a great place to compare cars and prove engineering.

LIVE

Hello and welcome to The Gas. I'm Gary Gastelou. This is usually the Gary and Alex show, but

unfortunately Alex Nunez could not join us today on the bright side though. You can't spell

Gastelou without gas. So we're just gonna run with that. But listen, don't worry about it. I'm not

gonna sit here monologuing for the entire show because we have a great guest joining us today.

We're gonna get right to him. You know, you've probably been hearing a lot of news about Ford

sports cars and racing efforts lately. It's been back to the Nurburgring, setting new lap times

and records. It's had three races in Formula One now. It's returned to Formula One. And of course,

we got the horsepower numbers for the new Dark Horse SC. Joining us now to talk about all that

and more hopefully our favorite Ford racing global director, Mark Rushbrook. Mark, welcome back to

the show. I'm very happy to be back here. And you've obviously been very busy. I just mentioned a

couple of things. You've been up to there at Ford Racing and there's plenty more of that. No doubt.

But let's get to the fun stuff first. Everybody loves the Nurburgring and the Nurburgring times.

You know, a couple of years ago, you went there with the Mustang GTD, became the first American

car to break the seven minute barrier. Then you pushed that time down to 652 with another lap. Then

your friends over at Chevrolet showed up with the 01 and 01. I had to beat you by a couple of seconds,

649, 650. But now you've been back with a new version of the Mustang GTD called the GTD competition

and Dirk Mueller, your Ford racing driver, threw down a 640 lap with this car. Tell us what's

different about the GTD competition that makes it that much faster than the original iteration.

Yeah, this has been a great program for us. We love going to the Nurburgring. We love

setting some times there. We love the competition, honestly, with General Motors and Corvette. So when

when they put down a time, full credit to them for what they were able to do. But as you saw,

Jim Farley very quickly responded to that and said game on. And that signed us up for this program,

which we were excited to take on. But the approach really is as you need to for any track, any vehicle,

approach the basics. And that is looking at power increases, looking at weight reduction,

looking at aerodynamics improvements, finding the right balance for downforce and drag, given the

track and looking at ultimately tire grip, what the suspension is able to do. And that was the

approach for the Mustang GTD competition was on all fronts, increasing the horsepower, reducing

the weight, improving the aerodynamics and improving the grip. So we had a lot of great people working

on that inside of Ford racing and with our partners at Multimatic and really excited to see what the

team was able to deliver in all honesty. That time was better than we originally had targeted and

expected. But delighted with the results with all the hard work paying off after so much effort.

GTD has 815 horsepower. You're saying this one has more horsepower? You haven't put out a number

yet though. Is it a lot more? Is it a little more? It's more. It's more. And of course,

I'm looking at the specifications on all these cars. GTD weighs about 4,300 pounds. Is that right?

You know, it's about five, 600 pounds more than the zero one, which also has 200 more horsepower.

But I'm guessing downforce is a big part of this, that you're able to make a car like this,

go just as fast as that one. On the order of 1700 pounds of downforce, is this correct? I've heard

a number on like that. On that order. Yep. So when he went back with the GTD competition, was a

more downforce, was it less drag in the drag reduction system? I know you have the aero wheels

as well, the aero disc wheels. Yeah, the net gain is mostly a downforce gain because of, I mean,

yes, there are a lot of straights at the Nurburgring, but there's a lot of time that you spend in the

corners. So to be able to carry speed through those corners, that then gets you onto the straight

at a higher speed already to begin with, adding downforce always helps. So that was the name of

the game. This car has just really got a ton of potential. Again, just considering what you

started with with the regular Mustang and turned it into this kind of high performance machine,

is there anything else left in it or is a GTD competition where we're at now?

Well, as engineers, we always believe there is more in it. But honestly, at this point with

what's been delivered practically for what the road car is and what we're going to be putting

out there on the street, it is an incredible piece and it's an incredible car. We love Mustang

and the platform that we have. We love the full spectrum that we have from an EcoBoost through a

GT, through a Dark Horse, Dark Horse SC to Mustang GTD and now GTD competition. That full spectrum

on one platform makes an incredible statement about what Mustang is, what it is to our customers,

that really people can choose what is appropriate for them depending on what they're going to do.

As an engineer, what's more fun for you starting with a blank slate or someone handing you a car

and saying, here, make this faster? They're both incredible challenges, right? You always love

the blank slate because then you really can make it what it is. You've got the freedom to do what

you need to do for that given purpose. But the challenge, it's a much bigger challenge to start

with an existing platform and stretch it beyond what it ever was intended for. To see what Mustang

has become, when I think back to four years ago when it was started for the Mustang GTD program

originally, there are a lot of people inside the company that said, you can't make a Mustang

customer car do what you're targeting to do. But we certainly did and that was through the hard

work of a lot of great people and partnerships to be able to do that, to come up with all those

ideas with the track width, with the weight distribution, the transaxle, the aero, the

unique packaging that was put into it. It's an incredible vehicle. It was an incredible challenge,

but really good to see it out there. You reopened applications for buying the GTD. When exactly will

someone be able to take their hands on a GTD competition? We have not announced the timing

for that yet. We're just going through that process now of collecting interest to make sure we fill

up the order banks for when it's going to be available. So we'll be releasing that information

soon, but we're excited about it because we love the GTD that we have today and all the different

packages, but really looking forward to getting this one out there. Now that's not the only car

you brought to the Nürburgring. You also dug out the old now GT mark for track car, which is the

track only version of the original 2017 for GT supercar. With this, you're able to do a 615 lap,

the third fastest car ever to lap the Nürburgring Nordschleife, at least among

they don't count competition qualifying laps and that sort of thing. But of the cars on the list,

third fastest of all time, fastest American, obviously, and fastest with just an internal

combustion engine, no hybrid or electric assist on this thing. This car has been on sale a couple

years now. Had you brought it to the Nürburgring before as part of the development process,

or is this the first time you're even there with it? No, it was the first time. And again,

a story of what you can do with existing platforms to stretching them to new levels.

Because as you said, the GT platform, it goes back to racing in 2016 to the street version

available in 2017. And we had a lot of great vehicles and great additions with it. We had the

GT mark two that was a track only vehicle and then the GT mark four. And it was really, again,

stretching an existing platform to even higher levels with horsepower, with aero, with vehicle

dynamics. So we love what we have with the GT mark four as a track day car. It's an incredible

piece of machinery. And I don't think we really saw the opportunity until we were focused with

the Mustang GTD and everything that we were doing at the Nürburgring. And we said, well, if we want

to truly own the ring, that's important for us. What else can we take? We've gone there with our

demonstrators in the past and set some really good times. But when the team came forward and said,

why don't we take the GT mark four? It was one of those moments like, why didn't we think of this

earlier? It's a perfect compliment to take it there with the GTD to make efficient use of having

that track time and to show what that vehicle is truly capable of. So yeah, incredibly happy to see

that 615 time and on the scoreboard there for a Ford Motor Company. Can't believe the GT's been

around for a decade now. I actually got to go to the launch at Miller Motorsports Park, it seems

like yesterday. But it really is a testament to what a great chassis that car is. Talking about

downforce, this one generates 2,400 pounds at 150 and 4,500 at 200 now. And it weighs about 2,700

pounds. Now, anytime I see those numbers, I always think of the fantasy theoretical this car can

actually drive upside down if you could build a track like that. Now, I know you've got your

friends over there at Red Bull now with Formula One. They love making the crazy videos. What do

you think about making this attempt to try to drive this thing upside down? Oh my goodness,

that is a debate that this team has had many, many times. That would be a spectacle and it would

make a great video. But practically to pull that off, you're taking a lot of risks and a lot of

instability concerns if you're driving on the top of a tunnel. So we'll keep talking about it,

we'll keep dreaming about it. I don't know if we're going to see it anytime soon.

I'm picturing a twisty track that goes over water. So if you fall, maybe it doesn't hurt as bad.

And listen, I'm throwing this down. You've got to be on the top for 100 feet. You can do 100 feet.

I'm going to count that as driving upside down. So that's the American Cars and Racing challenge

to do an upside down car if Red Bull and Ford is ever up for it. So again, you guys are three races

into the Formula One season now with the Ford and Red Bull Powertrains operation. So far,

a lot going on in Formula One. But what's been the biggest surprise? What's the thing you've

learned actually in it now that's really kind of jumped out of you like, wow, I didn't expect

it to be this way? Yeah, I mean, a lot of the learning was early on, just the absolute pace

that Formula One works at pushing everything to the extreme limit and the very fast turnaround.

So we've been in this strategic technical partnership with Red Bull in developing the power

units now. It's three and a half years already that we've been working together on that power unit

and incredible learning throughout that process. We knew from the beginning what an incredible

challenge Formula One would be, and especially as a startup power unit manufacturer, what a

tall mountain it would be to climb even to just to get on the track, let alone to be competitive.

So we've taken that very seriously with our partnership. We love Red Bull and what we're

able to do with them. It was great to get on track with the testing in Barcelona and Bahrain,

but when you really know what everybody has was the first race in Australia and then through China

in Japan rounds. So we've learned a lot on track. We didn't expect that we would come on track and

be at the front from day one, but that is still our intent. That is our goal. That's where we want

to be. That's where Red Bull wants to be. So we've learned a lot in these first three races.

Some of that in the power unit, some of that in the vehicle and truly understanding the rules

and what they are with the energy management that's required. So again, we've learned that.

We've already made a lot of changes in the power unit and in the car and looking forward to

getting back on track in Miami. It's a long break, unfortunately, with race four and race five

having been canceled in many ways. So that was a blessing to be able to really focus all of the

upgrades, the improvements into one race at Miami instead of sprinkling them onto the car

in races four and five. So we're looking forward to getting back on track in Miami in just two weeks.

Up to this point, have you been able to make mechanical changes to the power trainers all

been software and tuning? Like you have to take one of those tokens to make the big changes. How

does that work with Formula One? To make those big changes, yes, but just a lot in the calibration.

We've always known that that would be and that's where a lot of where we have focused our resources

analytically and in all the lab testing that we're doing on the engine dyno,

hybrid power unit dyno and full driveline dyno is optimizing that and there was so much it was

learned on track. In conditions, we ran in the rain in Barcelona and learned a lot about those

conditions. So that is we will continue learning there for a long time and implementing those

changes under the track. Some big changes coming up from the Miami Grand Prix next week as far as

battery energy harvesting and deployment is concerned. You have this long break, but I guess

that just got finalized a couple of days ago. How quickly, how hard is it to implement that? And

how do you keep these new rules that are coming into effect? About every racing, well about most

racing series, but including here in Formula One and partnership with the FIA is it's like that

wasn't all done in secret behind closed doors inside the FIA or inside of Formula One. It was

done in partnership with the teams with the power unit manufacturers. So we've been along for that

journey to know or expect what was coming to have a voice in what was coming. So it wasn't a

surprise to us when it was announced. We knew what was coming and the teams been been preparing for

that. So that's part of the sport. It was part of the risk with all new regulations for the car and

the power unit coming in together like this. But it is good to see that the sport with the FIA,

with the teams included, have been able to work through changes to help the sport,

to help the show, to help the competition, to help the engagement of the drivers and what they're

able to do, what they are doing on track. So it's good to see those roll out and we'll see how that

impacts the racing in Miami coming up here quickly. I'm going to put you on the spot. Is there going

to be a Red Bull or Racing Bulls car on the podium, if not on the top step this season?

That is our goal, of course. We are in Formula One. We are in every motor sport that we're in

with the intent to win. That's part of why we chose Red Bull. They have that same intention. So we

love partnering with them and certainly that is the goal to get the Red Bull cars up front where

they belong. Another motor sport you're going to be getting into next year is the hypercar program

in the World Dorns Championship. Bringing this back to the Nurburgring, I'm just wondering,

you know, GT Mark IV sells really well. The GT D Mustang sells really well. Could we see a

customer version of your hypercar follow that program? I know Ferrari's done that with theirs.

Is that something you've got on the table or considering?

Transparenly, right now, our focus is on the factory car and making sure we get our testing

completed successfully this year, homologation, and that we're ready to go racing in 2027. It's

an incredibly important program for us. Again, a massive challenge and doing so much of this work

in-house now. So literally here in Dearborn, that's where the engine design has been completed.

The first engine build here inside of Ford buildings, on a Ford dyno,

a driveline dyno. So much of this work is being done in-house and such. It's great to see the

team stepping up to that challenge. So we're focused on delivering the factory program at this point.

We have considered and will continue to consider whether a customer program makes sense. Certainly

nothing to announce at this point. But if it wouldn't make sense for us, just like you see us in

customer racing with GT3, GT4, Dark Horse R, then of course we would be considering it for this.

And just to talk a little Mustang on the way out the door here as well, Dark Horse SC,

you revealed it back in January. We finally have the power rating for its supercharged

5.2 liter V8, 795 horsepower, 660 pound-feet of torque now. Comparing that to the old Shelby GT

500, which had a version of the same engine. That was 760 and 625, I think. And then of course the GTD

has another version of this engine. How different are the motors? What'd you do to get the 795?

And then how much different is that engine from the one that's in the GTD right now?

The benefit of having so many Mustangs on the road and on the racetrack is the ability to

share that learning. And we do that across Mustangs, whether it's in the baseline architecture,

the suspension, the aerodynamics, and especially now the way we're organized inside of Ford Racing,

that it's the same team working on the race cars and the road cars,

or specifically for powertrains as well. That's all being shared. And that's the benefit of taking

that engine, put it into the GTD in a new application and being able to increase those

power levels and then come along with a dark horse SC. So there's that continual sharing again

in the hardware, the actual components, in terms of what power levels can we deliver to

in the calibration, in the powertrain cooling, the airflow over the car, under the car, through

the car for the cooling to make sure that we deliver on balanced attributes. So I think it's

an incredible statement with being able to deliver a 795 that's higher than we targeted

originally in the program, but I think a great statement of the engineering work that is being

done to optimize in every application. A couple of weeks ago, Chevrolet unveiled the new Corvette

Grand Sport, which is usually the trim that marks the end of a Corvette generation.

Shelby GT500 was traditionally the vehicle that marked the end of a Mustang generation.

Are we going to see something beyond the dark horse SC for this seventh generation Mustang,

or are we now looking forward to the next one for the next big iteration of Mustang?

Yeah, we had a competition with Corvette on track and off track, so it's great for them to see so

many variants coming from them and have that competition with them at the Nurburgring. For

us, we've got a lot of great versions of this existing Mustang. I certainly wouldn't say no

to any further variants off of the existing platform. That's part of what Mustang is. So

we're always looking for what that next product is to bring out to the customer what they're

looking for. Everybody wants something different out of their Mustang, be included. So certainly

look for more to come. All right, Mark Rushbrook, Ford Racing Global Director. Always got a lot of

fun stuff going on. Can't wait to talk to you again. I'm sure there's more coming later this year.

Always, always. Thanks for having me. Thank you. We'll talk to you soon.

And folks, we'll be talking to you again soon. When I say we, I mean myself and Alex Nunez,

because despite my best efforts, can't seem to keep them off the show. So thanks for listening,

and we'll talk to you again on a future episode of The Gas.

The Gas is a production of ACAR Media and American Cars and Ricin.com.

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21:24

How Ford Beat Chevy At The Nürburgring

795

Ford Shelby Gt500

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