Detroit Auto Show – Karl on Cars

Ford GT Le Mans Winner at 2017 Detroit Show

On May 28, 2019

Ford GT Le Mans Winner Detroit Auto Show Race Car

A grimy Ford GT race car sat in Ford’s booth at the 2017 Detroit Auto Show

Beyond the debut of a new Ford GT in Liquid Red there was another special car in Ford’s booth at the 2017 Detroit Auto Show. It was the 2016 Le Mans-winning Ford GT race car driven by Joey Hand, Dirk Muller and Sebastien Bourdais. It was covered in dirt and displayed several scrapes and breaks throughout its body panels. Many people wondered why the race car would be displayed at the Detroit Auto Show looking so beat up and grimy.

New Ford GT at 2017 Detroit Auto Show

By Karl Brauer

On May 27, 2019

In Ford GT, New Ford GT, New Ford GT Ownership

New Ford GT Detroit Auto Show Liquid Red Front

The New Ford GT debuted in Liquid Red at the 2017 Detroit Auto Show

At the 2015 Detroit Auto Show the new Ford GT debuted in Liquid Blue (still one of my favorite colors for the car). A year later the new Ford GT showed up for the first time in Frozen White in Detroit, and looked stunning yet again. For its third appearance at the Detroit Auto Show the new Ford GT debuted in Liquid Red.

New Ford GT Debuts at Detroit Auto Show

By Karl Brauer

On July 24, 2018

In Ford GT, New Ford GT

Bill Ford Jr. and Mark Fields introduce the new Ford GT in Detroit

Starting in the fall of 2014 there were vague-yet-recurring rumblings about Ford building an all-new Ford GT. This rumor resurfaced every couple years after the 2005-2006 Ford GT ended production in October of 2006, making it hard to take this one seriously. At first…

But the rumors went from vague to specific as the the Detroit auto show approached. By December 2014 I was hearing the GT rumor from highly reliable sources, gradually wearing down my skepticism and inspiring me to get up early on January 12, 2015. That was the first press day of the 2015 Detroit auto show, and Ford had the first press conference that day.

Awesome Ford GT40 Concept Debuts…Now What?

By Karl Brauer

On April 17, 2018

In 2005-2006 Ford GT, Ford GT, Ford GT40

Ford GT40 Concept Car in Gulf livery. (Photo courtesy Ford Motor Company)

When Ford debuted its GT40 concept at the Detroit Auto Show in January 2002 it completely stole the show. Nobody knew it was coming, and nobody (including yours truly) thought Ford would actually build a production version. It was less than 6 months after the September 11th attacks. A new level of uncertainty had gripped the nation. Car companies didn’t know what the economic fallout would be. GM’s “Keep America Rolling” campaign started a few weeks after the attack, with major price cuts that actually kept Americans visiting dealer showrooms versus locking up their bank accounts. Most automakers joined the effort, the government instituted several automotive tax incentives, and 2001 ended up being a healthy year for new car sales. But could Ford, a company that was already struggling financially in the early 2000s, really afford to build a single-minded, low-volume sports car?