Mustang GTD Gallops To Glory On The Green Hell With Sub-7-Minute Lap

When Ford President and CEO Jim Farley saw the Mustang GT3 in development, it inspired the creation of a road-going version unfettered by the rules of the racetrack. Instead of converting a road car into a racing vehicle as is traditional, Ford’s engineers took a purpose-built race car and transformed it into a street-going supercar in Mustang clothing.

We’re proud to be the first American automaker with a car that can lap the Nürburgring in under 7 minutes, but we aren’t satisfied… — Jim Farley, Ford Motor Company

As a result, the company partnered with Multimatic Motorsports to develop the Mustang GTD, a limited-production vehicle powered by an 815-horsepower, 5.2-liter supercharged engine. Imbued with carbon-ceramic brakes, active aerodynamics, a semi-active suspension, and carbon-fiber bodywork, this street-going supercar is the pinnacle of pony car performance.

Inspired by the Mustang GT3, Ford set out to bring racing performance to the street in the form of the Mustang GTD — a supercar in carbon fiber Pony car clothing. After teasing the reveal of the Mustang GTD’s Nürburgring, Ford finally revealed the results of its attempt to run the famed 12.9-mile, 73-turn course in under 7 minutes. (Photo Credit: Ford Motor Company)

To test its mettle, the company set out to challenge the European elite on their home turf, the Nürburgring. Intending to run where only a handful of elite production cars, Ford engineers dedicated their work to running a lap time of under 7 minutes on the 12.9-mile, 73-turn known as The Green Hell, as its conditions are notoriously fickle and where one mistake can lead to a crash.

To do so, they needed a driver who was up to the challenge, and one of the drivers in their stable not only has a history behind the wheel of the most recent Ford GT supercar’s exploits at Le Mans but also has intimate knowledge of the Nürburgring track, having won a Formula 3 race on the track some 28 years ago.

“We have a lot of great race car drivers, but Dirk Müller was the obvious choice to put into the driver’s seat to set this lap time,” Mustang GTD Chief Program Engineer Greg Goodall said. “He knows that place like the back of his hand.”

Despite making his attempt in less-than-ideal conditions, driver Dirk Müller piloted the production Mustang GTD to a 6:57.685-minute lap, which is officially the fifth fastest time by a stock production sports car as of this writing. This was also only the sixth time a production vehicle broke the 7-minute barrier and the first time an American brand accomplished the feat.

Ford’s confidence in the Mustang GTD’s engineering and its pilot were well-founded. Even though the track saw rain on the day meant for the big test, Müller delivered the goods with a 6:57.685-minute lap, which is documented in the “Road to the Ring” film released today on Ford’s website and YouTube channel.

“I tried so much. I was so much faster than ever before,” he reflected. “I just drove by feel. I just laid everything on the line into the last lap, and it was really cool.”

The Mustang GTD joins an elite list of cars — from the likes of Mercedes, Porsche, and Lamborghini — in becoming the sixth production vehicle and the first American brand on the official sub-7-minute lap list. Given that the track wasn’t perfect during this test, the team of engineers are confident the car can run an even quicker lap. However, for now, the smell of success is sweet enough.

The run was made with the safety equipment required to run on the legendary course, which included a racing seat five-point harness and a roll cage.

“The team behind Mustang GTD took what we’ve learned from decades on the track and engineered a Mustang that can compete with the world’s best supercars,” Farley added. “We’re proud to be the first American automaker with a car that can lap the Nürburgring in under 7 minutes, but we aren’t satisfied. We know there’s much more time to find with Mustang GTD. We’ll be back.”