 With the extra-wide gear ratio...  With the extra-wide gear ratio spacing and increased power output, the stock twin-disc clutch didn't last long. HP Performance worked with the guys at Spec Clutches to engineer an aftermarket, high-performance piece. |
 Since Joe takes the GT out...  Since Joe takes the GT out only for full-throttle action, it is fed a healthy diet of Sunoco C16 race fuel. |
 |
 |
"We wanted to see how the car ran with the turbos and how the calibration was," Gene says. "A few of us had hypothesized doing a turbo version of the GT, and this was our chance to experience the real thing. The turbos were oversized as there was quite a bit of turbo lag for daily driving, but the raw power was unbelievable."
Leave it to the performance-minded after-market gearheads to go all out in the name of horsepower. "I've never driven a faster street car," Gene says. "The performance is similar to the American Le Mans Series Viper that I drove, which had about 850 crank horsepower and weighed only 2,400 pounds. I was very impressed with the craftsmanship and tuning. It ran great and never overheated. They are a great bunch of guys that are really enthusiastic, and we really appreciated their excitement over the car."
Joe and his build team were gratified that the SVT personnel were so interested in the twin-turbo GT. If you're a car guy, like most of the folks at SVT, it's hard not to like the sheer performance that this 1,000hp, 3,500-pound car can offer.
This isn't where the story ends, however, as Joe and his merry men of mechanical mayhem aren't resting on their laurels. Joe, along with Dwight and Tony have already built a second motor and plan to turn up the wick.
As we began this story, the factory long-block was stashed and a new bullett was slid into the chamber. Al Papitto at Boss 330 Racing in Vero Beach, Florida, built a new 5.4 mill, filling the aluminum block with a stock GT crank, Carillo billet-steel I-beam connecting rods, and CP pistons. The four-valve cylinder heads were ported and polished by Chris Starnes at Champion Racing Heads in Palm Coast, Florida. The engine's compression ratio was bumped from 8.4 to 9.4, and Chris and Al spec'd out some custom Crane camshafts, which would seem to be mild, judging from the exhaust note.
The fuel system finally needed to be upgraded to cope with the insane power. Two more GT pumps were added to the factory pair for a total of four-two of each feed -8 braided stainless steel line that floods the Stage 6 custom fuel rails. The GT's stock 32 lb-hr injectors were also upgraded to 60-lb-hr units.
With the GT35R turbochargers set for 25 psi of boost, the GT produced 1,181 rwhp and 1,068 lb-ft of torque on C16 race gas, which by the way is the only high-octane diet the GT is fed these days.
"For the Stage 2 setup, we're going with a pair of GT4067 turbos," Dwight says. "They're good for 750 hp each, and should make a very efficient 28 pounds of boost." Beyond that, GT42s are an option.
Tony credits HP technician Jason Combs for his assistance in the twin-turbo project. "Jason has had the clamshell off of that thing more times than I can count," he says. "His help, along with Steve Duncan's and Sean Story's, has been paramount in getting the car to where it is today."
With the help of Stage 6 Motorsports and HP Performance, Joe has been able to take his GT to performance levels unheard of, and they are expecting 1,500-or-so horsepower once the bigger turbochargers go on.
Having had a number of high-performance automobiles in his stables over the years, we asked Joe what was next on his list. "How do you top this?" he replied. "I'm really lucky that my wife, Christina, supports me in my speed hobby." Christina got her first glimpse of what they had done to the GT when she watched the IMV Films documentary on it-she thought what they did was pretty neat.
If you would like to keep up with the progress of this light-speed supercar, you can Google twin turbo GT or just go to www.turbofordgt.com and check out the latest information. You can be sure we'll be keeping an eye on this icon of Ford performance.