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2016 mustang; ford; flat-plane crank

2016 Shelby GT350 Offer Heads Up Display Shift Light

2016 Shelby GT350 Offer Heads Up Display Shift Light

It seems that the Ford media machine likes to keep us up to speed almost on a weekly basis these days about new "trick" features being offered on the new 2016 Ford Shelby GT350.

Last week it was the GT350R lightweight carbon fiber wheels (see our Carbon Fiber Wheel story here)and before that it was all about the new powerful 5.2L engine with the flat plane crank.
Now Ford are teasing us with an interior feature that will be standard on the Shelby GT350 and the GT350R. It offers race inspired technology with a fully Customizable Shift Light Indicator to Help Drivers Optimize Track Time.

It Includes:

• Shelby GT350® Mustang features Performance Shift Light Indicator display with Track, Tach and Drag mode

• Performance Shift Light Indicator provides the benefits of a shift light while allowing drivers to keep their eyes on the track at all times

• Heads-up shift light was developed by reimagining existing hardware and is standard on all-new Shelby GT350 and Shelby® GT350R

Official Ford Press release below:
DEARBORN, Mich., July 23, 2015 – When driving the high-revving, 526-horsepower Shelby GT350® Mustang, drivers would do best to keep eyes on the road.

So that's where Ford put the Performance Shift Light Indicator.

For decades, race drivers have used shift lights that signal the perfect engine speed for the shift point for maximum acceleration and lower lap times during the intensity of on-track driving.

Shift lights allow drivers to concentrate on the road in front of them rather than watching a tachometer. However, most shift lights either obscure the forward field of view or are located low in the instrument cluster where the driver must look down to see it.

The Performance Shift Light Indicator is a heads-up display located in front of the driver. It can be controlled through the driver information center in the gauge cluster, and customers can set shift points, light intensity, select from three different modes, or turn the feature off entirely.

In Tach mode, the amber LEDs light up sequentially from left to right as engine revs build to provide an easily viewable tachometer. Track mode is quite different – when engine revs build, LEDs light up from the outside ends to the center until the shift point is reached, then the whole LED bar flashes.

The third option is Drag mode. Much like Track mode, the customer sets the shift point, but in this configuration the entire LED light bar stays dark, then flashes repeatedly when the engine reaches the preset rpm threshold. "Given the conditions of a drag race, we found drivers wanted maximum simplicity in a performance shift light," said Mike Makled, electrical engineer for Shelby programs.

Innovation through lateral thinking
Makled is a self-described at-home tinkerer. The 10-year veteran and third-generation Ford employee has been with Ford Performance since 2010. "I like taking things apart, modifying how they work and creating new things," he says. "It's a hobby."

Dreaming up innovative performance features is one of the fun parts of his job, and inspiration struck one day on the road. Makled was driving his Ford Taurus SHO when he came to a quick stop in traffic and the car's collision warning with brake support system flashed its red LED heads-up display. The system bounces upward projected light against the reflective inner surface of the windshield so the driver can see it as a warning of impending danger. This got him thinking.

"I thought, 'Wait a minute, why don't we use that technology for our shift light on the GT350?'" said Makled. "With a few tweaks, it could have a big effect on high-performance driving."

Over the course of three months, Makled worked with a supplier to build a new prototype with special circuitry, amber LEDs, and software he installed into his own car. When satisfied with the progress, he invited management into the driver's seat to see what he'd been working on – they loved it, calling it a "brilliant reimagining of existing technology."

After getting the green light, Makled handed the project over to then-Ford Corporate Graduate Zac Nelson for development and release. Nelson worked with OpenXC to quickly build a working prototype for driver testing and feedback. Makled and Nelson worked closely with the heads-up display supplier on the production-level software and display modes for the new Shelby GT350 and Shelby® GT350R.

The feature has been lauded by Ford testing personnel. "All of our drivers love this feature," boasts Makled. "They can't believe how much it reduces the distraction of having to look away to a tach or a shift light in the cluster."

This entry was posted in News and tagged 2016 mustang gt350, shelby gt350, 2016 mustang; ford; flat-plane crank, 2016shelby gt350r, ford mustang gt350r, heads up display, ford hud on July 27, 2015 by Brothers Performance.
Shelby GT350R-C Hits The Track At Watkins Glen

Shelby GT350R-C Hit The Track At Watkins Glen

Ford announced today the all-new Shelby GT350R-C hits the track At Watkins Glen International this weekend in the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge. There will be no mistaking the wicked sound of the 5.2L V8 as it screams around the famed North American road course with its flat-plane crankshaft and tuned exhaust. With the help of Multimatic Motorsports, Ford will leap forward with its production-car road racing program, competing against world-class sports cars including the Chevrolet Z/28, BMW M3, Porsche 911, Nissan 370 Z and the Aston Martin V8 Vantage.

Building race-winning Mustangs is something Ford has done for decades, and it still does so today. Mustang have been winning championships dating back to the 1965 Shelby GT350s, the Trans Am boss 302s, and the more recent winners like the Ford Racing Cobra Jet, the Championship-winning FR500C, as well as the FR500S and Boss 302S models.

Billy Johnson

"Like so many Mustangs before it, the Shelby GT350R is a car born to race,” said Dave Pericak, director, Global Ford Performance. “We’re taking it to the track as the GT350R-C and we’re ready to see what it can do against the best competition in the world.”

And like many Mustangs to come before this one, both the production GT350s and race versions feature similar powerplants. In this case the 526 hp dual-overhead cam V8 from Ford, featuring the unique flat-plane crankshaft gets the call. Ford touts the all-new engine as the most powerful naturally aspirated V8 it has ever produced in a production car. Features include high-flow heads, a robust rotating assembly capable of sustaining 8,000-plus rpm, and high-flow exhaust. In this case, the production model will have more output, as IMSA has handicapped the Shelby GT350R-C with a 58mm restrictor plate.

Underneath, the GT350R-C is enhanced with tweaked version of the fully independent suspension that’s based on the GT350R. It’s fitted with revised spring rates and antiroll bars, lower ride height, track-tuned alignment settings, revised (stiffened) bushings and cross-axis ball joints in the front. Interestingly, the race version does not use the electronic Magneride dampers, as they are deemed illegal by the series. In place, conventional race shocks and struts control the ride.

To gain the winning edge, Ford is utilizing the talents of Multimatic Motorsports, a long-time partner of Ford, to handle race operation. Multimatic was a key element in returning the Mustang to IMSA Grand Sport competition in 2014 and it has worked on many development projects as well. Another edge will come from the experienced Billy Johnson, Scott Maxwell, Austin Cindric and Jade Buford, who will share driving duties when the GT350R-C debuts at Watkins Glen this weekend.

“Ford is committed to the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and we’re very happy to be campaigning its product here,” said Larry Holt, team principal, Multimatic Motorsports. “We like the endurance format, and the racing is always intense. Strategy plays a big role; the cars must be fast and reliable, and there are always at least 10 contenders running door-to-door for two and a half hours. It is the perfect home for the GT350R-C.”

Production car endurance racing is important to Ford, as the trickle-down technology has helped improve the breed. In fact, many components developed for track use, or versions of those parts, can be found on our shelves (or on line) here at Brothers Performance. As the relatively new S550 Mustang is developed and raced, we’ll unlock performance advantages that will keep you ahead of the competition.

“The biggest change over the outgoing Boss 302R is the IRS,” said co-driver of the No. 15 Shelby, Billy Johnson. “It gives the GT350R-C better handling and a high level of feel and control. The GT350 rolls through the corners better—the platform control is so stable and refined and it remains flatter and more controlled [during cornering],” added Johnson, who with 11 wins, has scored more victories in a Mustang than any other GS driver.

“American muscle cars have a storied history in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge, and we eagerly anticipate the start of a new chapter with introduction of the Shelby GT350R-C,” said Scott Atherton, president of IMSA. “Mustang has earned icon status through its racing heritage going back to the competition Mustangs of the 1960s, and this new race car will undoubtedly add to the legend.”

This entry was posted in News, Ford Mustang, 2015 Ford Mustang News, 2016 Mustang News and tagged Shelby, ford, mustang, evan smith, cobra jet, shelby gt350, evan j smith, 2016 mustang; ford; flat-plane crank, ford performance, revan media, watkins glen, the glen, multimatic, imsa, road racing on June 24, 2015 by Evan Smith.
Photo Extra of the 2016 Shelby GT350 Ford Mustang

Photo Extra of the 2016 Shelby GT350 Ford Mustang

Social media exploded yesterday with news of the all-new 2016 Shelby GT350. Information trickled out and enthusiasts salivated at the aggressive looks of the Mustang that carries Carroll Shelby's and continues his legacy of performance. Naturally, we wanted to offer you a Photo Extra of the 2016 Shelby GT350 Ford Mustang. Ford added all new sheet-metal from the firewall forward, the Shelby GT350 sits about two inches lower and has a long nose accentuated with a smartly designed front fascia that promotes downforce, but with reduced drag.

There is an endless list of features that will raise the enthusiasm. It begins at the heart with the all-new 5.2-liter VooDoo powerplant. The engine was treated to a complete makeover, as Ford engineers bumped the displacement and most of the hardware.

There’s a huge 90-plus mm throttle body, a revised composite intake with large runners, and recast cylinder heads with revised valve sizes and valve placement to optimize flow. The cams are larger than the typical Coyote. We hear the flow numbers are unreal, some say these are the best cylinder heads Ford has ever made!

Down below, there’s the flat-plane crankshaft that has garnered much attention in the media (most American V8 engines use a cross-plane crank). Flat-plane cranks are generally lighter so they allow the engine to rev faster than cross-plane cranks, which have larger counter-weights to “balance” the rotating assembly. Traditional V8 engines have the connecting rods attached to the crankshaft at 90-degree intervals. The flat-plane design spaces all crank pins evenly at 180-degree intervals.

This layout permits a cylinder firing order that alternates between cylinder banks, reducing the overlap of exhaust pressure pulses, which leads to improved exhaust scavenging and flow. These enhancements push the envelope of performance and should help the 5.2-liter Ford Mustang VooDoo engine to roughly 520 horsepower, with a torque peak above 400 lb-ft.

The engine is backed with a Tremec 3160 six-speed manual transmission. This was originally seen in the Cadillac ATS, but was revised for the Shelby GT350. According to Ford, it was not necessary to go with the heavier and bulkier Tremec 6060 from the outgoing 2014 Shelby GT500 due to the lower torque output of the VooDoo. All 2016 Shelby GT350 Mustangs will come equipped with a 3.73 and a Torsen differential. We speculate that with drag racers will swap in 4.10-4.56 gears for much improved acceleration. Be sure to check out our Photo Extra of the 2016 Shelby GT350 Ford Mustang. For more great Mustang information, be sure to follow us on Instagram @brothersperformance and on Facebook.

This entry was posted in Ford Mustang and tagged Shelby, mustang, shelby gt350, gt350, 2016 shelby gt350, 2016 mustang; ford; flat-plane crank, voodoo on November 18, 2014 by Evan Smith.