Need a 550-HP family sedan? Try the Ford Five-Hundred GT-R (http://www.autoblog.com/2006/03/06/550-hp-ford-family-sedan-the-five-hundred-gt-r/)

Posted Mar 6th 2006 10:00AM by John Neff (http://www.autoblog.com/bloggers/john-neff/)
Autoblog

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The students at Washtenaw Community College have taken Ford’s mundane Five-Hundred family sedan (the one everyone complains is underpowered) and swapped out its back seat for the 550-hp supercharged V8 from the $150,000 GT supercar. The result is the Five-Hundred GT-R that debuted last Friday at the Detroit Autorama.

Well, it’s actually not quite that simple, as they really dissected an engineering prototype of each vehicle that Ford graciously donated to the college’s Custom Cars & Concepts program (http://www.wccnet.edu/departments/automotiveservices/customcars.php). The students in the CCC program reassembled this Franken-Ford using the Five-Hundred’s front end, front suspension, roofline and greenhouse and the GT’s entire drivetrain, rear suspension and rear frame members.

Stuffing the GT’s ample ass between the rear fenders of the Five-Hundred just wasn’t going to happen, so the team custom fabricated rear quarter panels from the sheetmetal of an F-150 Flareside bed. The aluminum hood is original Five-Hundred fare but gets an inlaid fiberglass GT hood panel to vent the radiators mounted behind the front bumper. Bathing this beauty in blue and a pair of white stripes pays direct homage to the GT.

There are more pics of this monster after the jump, as well as Ford’s full press release revealing more details on the GT-R’s development. Also check out (http://www.autoblog.com/2005/10/27/college-students-partner-with-gm-to-build-sema-show-car/) what the WCC kids did at SEMA last year.

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading Need a 550-HP family sedan? Try the Ford Five-Hundred GT-R (http://www.autoblog.com/2006/03/06/550-hp-ford-family-sedan-the-five-hundred-gt-r/)

Hah thats pretty neat!

GT-R?

since when has Ford become Nissan?

550hp Ford family sedan.....

...."Only in America...."

all of ya'll in Europe can keep your 1.6L putt putts :).

Man, every day the 200hp of the 4.9 looks weak... shes gonna need an overhaul sometime soon....

oh well, my 4.9 still has the same amount of torque as a Ferrari 360 Modena :).

wow that is pretty cool actually. i would have left it stock looking on the outside but thats cool.

It kinda looks like they were going with a rally look. Why? I do not know

Thats what I was thinking... and the side says "Mustang" atleast the last gen ('Stang)

Man, every day the 200hp of the 4.9 looks weak... shes gonna need an overhaul sometime soon....

Yeah but just think how it felt back when that car was new, seeing as how it was making a full 70hp more than the deVilles that came 6 years prior!

when our cars were new, they were of the fastest FWD cars sold :).

I must say, for a car not inteded for performance... the 4.9 Caddys have aged quite well in that reguard... quite well, holding their own after 15 years. Not counting the Northstar,it was only until recent years that Cadillac has made a faster car (whole car, not engine power) then the 4.9.

Add to that the host of go-fast parts fromt he Fiero guys now... intakes, exhausts, cams, rocker arms, computer chips etc... and damn... the 4.9 will live a long time!

Think about it, tack on another 100hp, and you are now a Northstar... really, 100hp shouldn't be THAT far out, remaining NA and no N2O. Not to mention with torque numbers already nearly matching a Northstar.... I'd say its a safe bet that a 300hp 4.9 will out run a 300hp Northstar :).

I saw a 4.9 Deville literally chasing what I think was an Expedition this evening. An early 80s Monte Carlo was chasing the Deville but couldn't keep up. My friend and I wanted to see what was gonna happen at the end of the chase so we followed the 3 of them in the SHO. At least one person from each vehicle got arrested, and I got to give a cop a statement.

Anyway, I don't think that qualifies as a family sedan now, with the back seat gone and all. I still like the 500ci/TH425 powered Porsche Targa I've seen more.

Hot looking car! What a great project too. The hot-rod spirit is alive and well in young Americans.

I hated the Ford 500 until I saw one in all black (ALL black) looking sort of like an Impala SS...

550hp Ford family sedan.....

...."Only in America...."


Only in America, lol :) You gotta read up on the Brabus Sv12 Biturbo. 730hp, top speed of well over 200 mph....family sedan :) And thats without the optional upgraded turbos :)

Only in America, lol :) You gotta read up on the Brabus Sv12 Biturbo. 730hp, top speed of well over 200 mph....family sedan :) And thats without the optional upgraded turbos :)

Or that one,i think its Peugot, van that has like 900hp,and its a minivan.They have it in the second or third Gran Turismo.Its called the "Espace".Its a real car.

Give me a DTS or STS and $50K and I will wash the streets and racetrack with a that 500...

Give me a DTS or STS and $50K and I will wash the streets and racetrack with a that 500...rrrrrrrright:bigroll:

Blackout come on. It's not like it would be hard to beat 550hp with $50 grand in your pocket.