Future CarsIf you built a street-legal, two-seat version of the open-wheeled racers that scream around the Indianapolis oval at 200 mph, what would it look like? Something like the Ford Indigo, no doubt.
But there's news even more incredible than the fact that staid Ford Motor Company built this concept car. High-level insiders at Ford looked Motor Trend editors in the eye and told them the company may produce a very limited number (200-300 per year) of these low-slung blacktop blasters. Yeah, an Indy car for the street!
Ford's Design and Product Development groups cooperated on this ultimate sports car. The result, rendered in under six months, is a wedgy, V-12-powered, 2300-pound dream machine that stretches the outer limits of production-car performance, styling, manufacturing, and aerodynamics.
Although the Indigo showcases Ford's "New Edge" design theme, even Claude Lobo, director of advanced design for Ford Automotive Operations, admits that the hard focus is on the roadster's engine. The "go" in Indigo is provided by a hand-built 6.0-liter/435-horsepower 48-valve V-12. Ford engineers calculate that with this engine the car is capable of leaping to 60 mph in just under four seconds.
The V-12 was created by combining the pistons, rings, rods, and much of the valvetrain from two 3.0-liter Duratec V-6 engines. The Duratec is the production powerplant designed for the '96 Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable, which shares its bore and stroke dimensions with the V-12.
The crank is a custom piece formed using an experimental process that Ford describes as "electro-slag" casting. Ford researchers believe this new process ultimately might lead to castings that are as much as 10 percent stronger than forging.
The V-12's custom-made aluminum block and heads were rendered by Ford's race-engine builder Cosworth in Great Britain. The 435 horses are available at a relatively reasonable 6100 rpm. (Consider that the Formula One engines built by Cosworth spool to 14,000 rpm.) Neil Ressler, Ford's vice president of advanced vehicle technology, says the normally aspirated V-12 could make close to 650 horses with some additional development work.
Interestingly, although the peak torque output of 405 pound-feet is provided at 5250 rpm, approximately three-quarters of that is on tap at just 1000 revs. That might make this particular variation appropriate for a large luxury sedan like an Aston Martin, a Jaguar, or even a Lincoln product.
It's worth mentioning that Ford had Cosworth cast five of these engines, and insiders note that the extras are all headed for the automaker's dyno shop. Remarkably, Ford estimates that the 6.0-liter in its present state of tune in an Indigo chassis would get about 20 mpg on the highway.
Power flows to the Fikse three-piece modular wheels (17x11.5-inch front, 18x12.5-inch rear) through a six-speed Indy-style transaxle. The shift mechanism is a race-car, electrohydraulic system; to make a ratio change, the up- or downshift button on the steering wheel is pushed while depressing the clutch-it's fast and accurate.
True to racing form, this V-12 not only motivates the vehicle, but it and the transaxle act as structurally stressed chassis elements and carry the car's rear suspension. The front and rear suspension are Indy-like double-wishbone setups with pushrods actuating in-board coil-over shocks. Both front and rear suspensions were custom built for the Indigo using superstrong chrome-molybdenum tubing. The rear suspension is virtually identical to an Indy car's, but the wider two-passenger interior required geometry changes and slightly shorter front arms than those found on big-oval open-wheelers. Steering is by a modified Taurus rack-and-pinion unit with electric power assist.
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