Racing enthusiasts, the green flag is about to fly for a new Ford Mustang -- and it will have a six-figure price tag.
To satisfy growing public interest in motor sports, and piggyback on the popularity of its redesigned pony car, Ford Motor Co.'s racing division plans to sell 25 specially built 2005 Mustangs.
Designed exclusively for track use -- they will not be street-legal,
Ford says -- the so-called FR500C is expected to become available in
August at select dealerships. Sticker price: $125,000.
"They are fully engineered, ready-to-rock race cars," said Alan Hall, spokesman for Ford's Special Vehicle Team.
They will be assembled by Toronto-based Multimatic Motorsports,
which is running one of a handful of FR500Cs on the Grand-Am Cup
road-racing circuit. A Multimatic Mustang won last weekend's race at
Mosport, Toronto's famed raceway -- the fourth win by a Mustang in six
Grand-Am races this season.
Grand-Am Cup racing features cars such as the Porsche 996 and 997, BMW M3, Cadillac CTS-V and Nissan 350Z.
The FR500Cwill be powered by Ford Racing's 5.0-liter "Cammer R50"
V-8 engine that will generate more than 400 horsepower and 400
pound-feet of torque. The engine will feature the same cylinder heads
found in the $140,000 Ford GT supercar.
It will tip the scales at 3,150 pounds. "That's 200 pounds lighter than the base Mustang, with 100 more horsepower," Hall said.
