Ford GT Mk IV claims Nürburgring American record from Corvette ZR1X
The track-only GT Mk IV posted a 6-minute, 15.977-second lap in the Prototype class, beating the Corvette ZR1X by more than 33 seconds and becoming the fastest ICE-powered car at the circuit.
Shane Riley
Ford has claimed Nürburgring bragging rights with the GT Mk IV, posting a lap of 6 minutes and 15.977 seconds in the Prototype class. That's enough to make it the fastest American car ever around the famous German circuit, and the fastest car running solely on an internal combustion engine.
It's third-fastest overall. The only vehicles quicker are the electric Volkswagen ID.R (6:05.335) and the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo race car (5:19.546).
The time also demolishes the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X's 6:49.275, which was set in the same Prototype class. Ford and Chevrolet have been trading record laps for months, with the Mustang GTD previously setting a time before Chevy's ZR1 variants responded. This latest effort from the GT Mk IV blows that gap wide open.
Introduced in 2022, the Mk IV is the most extreme version of Ford's mid-engine supercar. It uses a bespoke carbon-fibre Multimatic chassis with a longer wheelbase and a long-tail body, generating more than 2,400 pounds (roughly 1,090kg) of downforce at 240km/h.
Power comes from a twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre EcoBoost V6 producing more than 820hp, a step up from the road car's 3.5-litre, 660hp unit. Each GT Mk IV is priced at around USD$1.7 million, with Ford opening order books for the last remaining examples last August.
If you're keeping score on the Ford-Chevy rivalry, this one isn't close.
