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2010 Ford Shelby GT500: Riding the wind
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Power and handling are good, but if the car's aerodynamics isn't good you’re just spittin’ into the wind.
Spittin’, we’ll note, isn’t something the 2010 Ford Shelby GT500 does in the wrong direction.
“We worked hard to get as much downforce as possible,” said Kerry Baldori, chief functional engineer for Ford’s Special Vehicles Team (or SVT), the company’s high-performance skunkworks. “We worked to seal off the air that comes in from the front so it can’t go underneath the car. We spend a lot of time sealing components such as the radiator and intercooler to get rid of all the leak paths.”
The splitter, a horizontal lip protruding out from the lower edge of the front airdam, was redesigned from the previous GT500, helping keep air out from under that car as well. The design of the front fascia and the car’s “flush” hood—the mesh of the grille meets the leading edge of the hood rather than being recessed—and “...the fascia defines the entire front of the vehicle.” Jamal Hameedi, chief nameplate engineer for SVT, explains, “That’s very hard to do from an engineering standpoint, but it really sets the Shelby off as very, very different from the base Mustang.”Inspiration for the grille, ironically enough, came from the gaping maw of the Shelby Cobra 427 that George Saradakis, exterior design manager for the Mustang and Shelby GT500 said appear ready to swallow the road.
Yet airflow management reached smallest elements. The top grille directs air to the radiator; a rubber flap inside the engine compartment that helps seal the system. The lower grille guides air to the supercharger’s intercooler. Even specific diamonds of the GT500’s mesh grille were blocked off to obtain the best balance of cooling and aerodynamics. The aluminum hood’s power dome isn’t there just for appearances either but also aids engine cooling via the hood extractor.At the other end of the car, the rear spoiler is laid back for minimal drag. But to maintain the downforce of a more inclined spoiler, the GT500’s has a vertical lip called a “Gurney flap.” It’s a subtle aerodynamic device discovered by racer Dan Gurney after he retire from being a driver and because a team owner of open wheel racing cars in the early Seventies. The lip is on the high pressure side of the airfoil, increasing pressure while creating minimal drag. (It’s said to be the only aerodynamic device that was transferred from automobiles to aircraft and not the other way around).
It’s not all function, however. “Racing stripes made their mark on 1960s-era Ford performance vehicles,” explains Hameedi. “That’s something we feel is a key part of the Shelby performance DNA—maybe more so that some of our competition.” In addition to the standard car, the wide racing stripes will now also be available on the convertible Shelby GT500.
Of course, the 2010 Ford Shelby GT500 shares the profile of the ordinary 2010 Ford Mustang except where it doesn’t, but as much as the exterior adds to performance and just looks good, it’s not where you live. That, of course, is the interior, and we’ll invite you back to Examiner.com for pictures and info on the insides of the 2010 Ford Shelby GT500. Or subscribe (it’s free) below to be notified when that and other items are posted by Examiner.com’s National Auto Review Examiner.
You might also enjoy these:
- 2010 Ford Shelby GT500 overview
- 2010 Ford Shelby GT500 engine and suspension details
- 2010 Ford Shelby GT500 interior details
- 2010 Ford Mustang photos and facts
- 2010 Ford Mustang interior photos and facts
- 2010 Ford Mustang engine and suspension photos and facts
Photos courtesy Ford Motor Company.
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