GR-1, Possible replica?

[ERA Chas]

Featured in Comer's book "Shelby" on page 234, the Ford concept GR-1 is shown in four stunning photos. It really should have been the successor to the Daytona.

My questions to knowledgeable builders and manufacturers is; can this car be legally replicated and what would be involved from a technical standpoint?

I know the car belongs to Ford but there is no indication that it will resurface as a production vehicle.

Sheet metal and glass fiber manufacturers please discuss your thoughts.

[Gunner]

Honestly? It looks like half the kit cars out there and has no real Shelby or real-world heritage that makes it desirable. Just another concept executed while Ol' Shel' was taking a fee.

[Jac Mac]

Chas, I like the car a lot, but one thing that makes it a no go for me is that it needs a fairly 'plush' ( for want of a better word ) interior to do it 'right'. The Daytona Coupe & Cobra were simple no frills ex race cars, a bit of vinyl & matt black paint and you have most of the trim done!! Thats where the $$$ would go on one of these.
But your right, out of all the Ford Concept cars in recent times, this is the 'one' that should have made it, even over the 'GT'.

[vector1]

looks like the pantera.

[ERA Chas]

Jac,

I appreciate your view as a constructor and racer and it has merit. The proportions and stance are not outdone even by the F-GT, in my opinion.

I have seen some SPF/Brock coupes that also have a high level of 'plush' compared to the original Daytona-but admittedly- not the level seen in the concept car. Of course the Daytona was a race car, not a concept car. The key phrase is 'concept car' which would display a fairly 'comfy' interior.

Myself, if one were available, I would build it sparse but neat as any business-like road racer/GT car should be.

[RedBarchetta]

Damn...I thought my 20 car dream garage was going to be big enough. I better call up my architect and tell him to make it 21.

-Dean

[*13*]

It's a nice looikng car, not much history attached to it though. It would have to made in aluminum if a replica were to be made. I like the car & the idea but it wouldn't be that high on my list, personally. I bet ford would throw their lawyers at it, being that it was more or less a concept, correct?

[Sharroll Celby]

Ford SHOULD make the car, and call it the Lincoln Mark Coupe, or even the Thunderbird! That GR-1 is one of the BEST-looking cars to come out of Detroit in MANY years.
IF Ford built and sold it, (at the right price!), they would sell hundreds of thousands of them!

[*13*]

I agree with you! I bet the price would be quite high, though. Probably similar to the GT. I think as a production car with a warranty it would be a huge seller with high initial demand like the GT & the Early Vipers

[Gunner]

Originally Posted by Sharroll Celby

Ford SHOULD make the car, and call it the Lincoln Mark Coupe, or even the Thunderbird! That GR-1 is one of the BEST-looking cars to come out of Detroit in MANY years.
IF Ford built and sold it, (at the right price!), they would sell hundreds of thousands of them!

All of the makers turn out beautiful concept cars by the handful every year. This one is pretty, yes. It's also pretty impractical, on the order of the Vette... which does not sell hundreds of thousands a year. (20-35,000 in most recent years.) I also can't see it selling at anything but a premium price, on a par with the Vette or higher, which would further limit sales.

I doubt that Ford could have sold many more GTs than were made. Maybe another few thousand a year.

Bottom line is that the next ten years are not going to be a good time for a limited-production exotic vehicle from automakers struggling to regain a solid financial footing and respectability in the eyes of buyers.

[rustyBob]

its a cool looking car but i would rather have a Daytona Coupe.........

[*13*]

Maybe we're running with SoCal blinders on Where just about every 5th car on the road retails at more than $75k They would sell quite a few here...

[Sharroll Celby]

The GR-1 does NOT have to be sold at a premium price. Let Ford put their 310 HP V6 in it, at $25,000, with an optional V8 at $30,000, and watch them FLY out of the lots.

[ERA Chas]

The course of this discussion, while valid, has strayed away from my original question.

I'm not asking for a production car that a secretary could buy with a V6-there are retro Mustangs wall to wall for that.

From my first post:
"My questions to knowledgeable builders and manufacturers is; can this car be legally replicated and what would be involved from a technical standpoint?

I know the car belongs to Ford but there is no indication that it will resurface as a production vehicle."


I'm seeking input from the builders like Kirkham, Bruce, Jac, Nick, Chesnut, Hudgins plus any of the current major replica mfgrs on the pros and cons of trying to replicate this car-for guys like us here on the forum, not the general public.

Is this car a valid candidate for that?

[1985 CCX]

I always though Ford should have made this a production car for the masses. A "Miata" killer with a supercharged V6, IRS and daily driving touches. This may not have been a world class collectable however I feel it could have been a great $30k sport car for the masses....

Simple, fast with low frills ie: techno junk, a sports car.

Today's version of the Mustang?

[RedBarchetta]

An honest question: So why is Ford so fearful to make a car (like the one above, albeit with less exotic materials and more true production oriented) to compete with the CORVETTE? And don't go down the Ford GT track...that was a purpose built supercar with limited production numbers.

-Dean

[Gunner]

Originally Posted by ERA Chas

Is this car a valid candidate for that?

I'd say no. To recast my prior answers, this car is purty... real damn purty. But it has no other compelling feature and would become one of many purty kit cars, with its fan and owner base but a small one. Probably not enough to repay Kirkham or ERA level engineering to put it on the road.

Frankly... I'd like to see a well-engineered, original-but-better replica of a Tipo 61, built around a supercharged Ford 2-liter. Or - a worthy replica of the original Countach, all planes and angles without a wing in sight.

Another pretty-pretty longnose coupe... it would be a painful waste.

[Gunner]

Originally Posted by RedBarchetta

So why is Ford so fearful to make a car...to compete with the CORVETTE?

Because Chevy has a 50-year head start. No matter that Ford could engineer a Vette-killer at about the same price point... it won't have the immense cachet of a Vette (or, in its stratum, a Mustang). You'll note that Mustang competition comes and goes, comes and goes, and the real pony just keeps on sellin' and winning hearts.

I'm a third-gen Ford man and loathe bowties... but I don't care to see a Ford "Vette." In fact, it was a close toss between 707 and a Z06... and 33 years of wanna won out. This time.

[Jac Mac]

You have to think along the lines of what it might look like if Ford were to have built it, or could yet. I would guess that for mass production that it might have 'lost' the transaxle in the process & been built on a Mustang or Aston Martin floorpan, remember the aussie? modular V10 convertible experiment.

But how would 'you' as a replica builder want it done, on chassis similar to what we have now, or grafted on to a donor car floorpan as intimated above. For me it would be on a chassis similar to current replicas or perhaps an alloy mono type chassis like the RCR cars adapted of course to the front engine/transaxle deal. Im not a fan of adapting to an existing unit body floorpan like some of the GTO F****** car lookalikes, too much corrosion waiting to happen when the f/glass is bonded to the steel structure & while its a relatively inexpensive way to build the car initially, in the case of accident damage its a nightmare to rebuild other than buying another donor floorpan & starting again.

[mr bruce]

To answer the original question, could this car be built as a replica, yes, nuthin' to it, send me $5k a month for 12 months and I'll build you a running, driving replica of that car. Keep in mind that's FoMoCo's design, so you pay all legal fees too.