Ford could soon be set to offer performance vehicle enthusiasts a chance to take to the track in a number of limited edition, road legal Formula Ford models powered by its 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine.
The vehicle recently completed a stunning timed lap of Germany's demanding Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit in just seven minutes and 22 seconds, placing it 11th on the overall lap time leaderboard for road legal cars, but top of the pile in terms of four-cylinder or less vehicles.
Roelant de Waard, vice president of marketing and sales at Ford of Europe, commented at the time: "We wanted to prove that size doesn't matter by showing everyone what an amazingly capable engine we have developed in the 1.0-litre EcoBoost."
According to Piston Heads, this feat has sparked considerable interest among the public, with many people keen to get their hands on one of these extreme performance vehicles.
"There's been much talk about whether we do a limited run of 50 cars. We are looking at it," Roger Ratley, petrol calibration manager and one of the lead engineers on the project at Ford told the publication. "It's certainly feasible and we're looking at the possibility."
Delivering 205 bhp and capable of accelerating from zero to 62 mph in under four seconds, the EcoBoost Formula Ford weighs just 420 kg and is therefore extremely nimble, as well as quick.
In addition, engineers claim the 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine is capable of delivering 57 mpg at up to 75 mph, making it highly fuel-efficient and greener than a host of other top-performance vehicles.
Plans for the creation of this new road-legal version are still however just that, as no specific date for production has been announced by the manufacturer.
It remains to be seen whether the design and manufacturing issues of turning a bespoke dream racer into a production car can be overcome, but what is certain is that should Ford be able to achieve this feat, there is a market ready and waiting to welcome the launch.
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Posted by Mark Thompson
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