Video: Ford Mustang GTD makes roaring debut at 2024 Festival of Speed

It certainly wasn’t shy as it made its first trips up the Hill on Thursday. This Mustang GTD takes inspiration from the new GT3 racing car and it pushed its limits on its way, skimming past the haybales and edging close to the grass, kicking up dust in its wake. Between the striking rich blue livery and the addition of a wing, the Mustang GTD has been easy to spot every time it has roared up the Hill at the Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard.

We said it's most potent because while it’s targeted in terms of track focus and pricing at the likes of the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, it tops it in terms of power output by some 300PS. The Mustang therefore tore at its rear tyres off the line with an 800PS (588kW) wallop, which comes courtesy of a 5.2-litre supercharged V8.

Don’t think it’s ‘just a Mustang with a wing’, either. Underneath that not insignificant swan-neck, Ford has totally overhauled this thing, changing the gearbox out for a transaxle for improved weight distribution.

That meant totally re-engineering the rear end, from the hubs to the subframe, to house the diff and clever inboard Multimatic suspension that you can see at work in the rear-view mirror when driving. This also allows the engine to be positioned further back, making it in effect a front mid-engined car and further improving the weight distribution.

The cabin also features parts made from recycled titanium from F22 Raptor fighter aircraft, because why not. These include rotary dials and even the shift paddles.

The car, of course, was first revealed last August, though serious dynamic testing has been under way for a while, with a sub-seven-minute Nürburgring time reported to be on the cards.

Ford’s taken over 7,500 US applications to buy the GTD in 2025 and 2026, with European applications also now underway. One in five applicants are from the world of motorsport, one in four have a Mustang, and one in five say they have ‘a competitor’s vehicle with a similar level of performance.’ We wonder what those competitors/benchmarks are?

So, this is Ford’s Mustang-flavoured take on something like a Porsche GT2 RS, only even more extreme. It’s fast, it’s loud, it looks awesome in blue and we can verify as much based on its first run up the Hill at the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed. Catch it again twice daily for the remainder of the weekend.

The 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway, and you can watch every moment of the action on our live stream right here on GRR!

Photography courtesy of Toby Whales