The Genaddi Design Group Takes A Ford GT And Assembles A Chart-Topping Hot Number.
writer: Frank H. Cicerale
photographer: Steve Baur
Kids dream of becoming many things: an astronaut, a race-car driver, a fireman, or a police officer. Anyone who's into music has undoubtedly dreamed of becoming a rock star. While many have ambitions of perform-ing onstage, jamming out on a Fender guitar, and whaling out lyrics in front of tens of thousands of screaming fans (and groupies-who could forget about the groupies?), only a few are lucky enough to actually do so.
Take, for example, the band Nickelback and its front man, Chad Kroger. Formed in 1996, the band blasted onto the mainstream with its third album, Silver Side Up. More than 10 years later, Nickelback is still releasing great music along with some really cool music videos. The newest single, "Rockstar," and its accompanying video features cameo appearances by Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top; Kid Rock; John Rich from the country group Big & Rich; UFC fighter Chuck Liddell; NASCAR poster boy Dale Earnhardt Jr.; hockey great Wayne Gretzky; NBA player Grant Hill; Holly, Kendra, and Bridgette from The Girls Next Door; and a host of other actors, actresses, and sports figures.
Much in the same way that Nickelback put together a star-studded music video, Mark Gerisch and the crew from the Genaddi Design Group got together for a jam session of their own. Beginning with a Ford GT owned by a prominent (and secretive) fellow, Mark and the band called up some celebrities of their own to create this wild, lip-smacking ride.
In reality, the GT has become a Ford GTX1, more specifically number 005 out of 500 built. The car's inception came about in 2006, after Mark was contacted by Ford SVT engineer/ designer Kip Ewing about creating an open-air version of the Ford GT. After Mark agreed to take on the task, the first prototype was built, and plans were made to build 500 GTX1s. One day, Mark got a call from a customer asking if he could take his '06 GT and turn it into GTX1. It didn't take him long to say yes-even less time for the car to appear at the shop's front door.
With most of the conversion work surrounding the exterior and interior of the factory supercar, only a few changes were made to the midengine, two-seat rocket ship. For the most part, the 5.4L supercharged Four-Valve mod motor was kept stock, as neither the heads nor the long-block had their seals broken. A swap of the blower pulleys increased the boost figure to 19 pounds, and when com-bined with the Silencer System full exhaust, headers, and a tune from Tony Gonyon at HP Performance (Orange Park, Florida), the GTX1 now spits out 635 rwhp and a stump-pulling 685 lb-ft of torque. While this may seem like a low number compared to other highly modded GTs roaming the streets, Mark says that all 635 rwhp are usable ponies, resulting in low-10-second elapsed times with traps speeds well into the upper 130 mph range.
The Ricardo six-speed manual trans remains, though performance and reliability of the gearbox has been enhanced thanks to a transaxle cooling system and a short-throw shifter. Additionally, the rest of the drivetrain remains stock.
When it comes to the brakes and underpinnings of the GTX1, however, the upgrades are right in line with a rock star-type lineup. Stopping power comes in the form of a set of Wilwood 14-inch, gas-slotted, two-piece rotors and accompanying six-piston calipers, all of which can be found on all four corners of the car. As for the suspension, adjustable coil-over shocks replace the factory pieces. The GTX1 rides on GTX1 Prototype-style rims from Kip Ewing's design. The 19-inch front and 20-inch rear rims are wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero Corsa shoes measuring 230/35/19 forward and 315/30/20 aft.