SUPERCHARGED MUSTANG GT?!!! John Coletti's interview

John Colletti needs no introduction to most of you. To those who have never heard of him, he's the most colorful, funniest, and trash talking car executive on the planet. Unfortunately, he's also the head of Ford's SVO operations!

A very very shocking slip came out of an interview with him at Autoweek:


Question (regarding the upcomming Lightning's air conditioner based intercooler system): Can the supercooler be used on other Ford products?

Colletti: "Anything that is boosted (with a supercharger or turbocharger) and has an intercooler. The Mustang Cobra has that setup. The GT has it. You draw your own conclusions. :eek: If we need more power, it's on tap."

I think we have a confirmation here! :eek:
http://www.autoweek.com/cat_content.mv?port_code=autoweek&cat_code=carnews&loc_code=index&content_code=00834102

I think he means the Ford GT as in the official name for the new GT40.

How does the supercooler work?
It uses the air conditioning compressor to generate a short blast of supercold air. Air from the supercharger is about 250 degrees Fahrenheit. The intercooler takes it down to about 150 degrees, With the supercooler, we can get temperatures of about 50 degrees. You are creating a denser charge for each power stroke. It works like a nitrous oxide system and adds between 50 and 60 horsepower. The system is self-contained and never needs recharging.
That's interesting. Years ago when I was in college dreaming up my own custom intake setups I toyed with the idea of using the AC system to cool-down the temperature of the air-fuel mix via some custom intake plumbing. lol I guess that wasn't that crazy of an idea afterall!

Hmmmm??? :confused:

Yeah, meant the GT not the Mustang GT................That is a terrible name for a car, it causes too much confusion.

like stormangel said, must be talking about the gt40.

that supercooler is great !!!

Originally posted by StormAngel
I think he means the Ford GT as in the official name for the new GT40.

Exactly, that was the impression I got when I read it.

yea the A/C thing...that was in my head too...everyone thought I was stupid and now look...:think:
I dodnt know how it was going to be done but now Ford has done it...grrr...if only I had a patent for it.. :(

guionM, quit spreading misinformation.;)

Originally posted by SNEAKY NEIL
Yeah, meant the GT not the Mustang GT................That is a terrible name for a car, it causes too much confusion.

Couldn't agree more. It should be called the GT-40 like it is supposed to, but somebody has the reda$$ and decided to sue over infringements...:rolleyes:
You'd think they would be happy the car was getting newfound attention and publicity, potentially driving up the price of originals and their legacy.

But now Sneaky, how can we say GT is confusing because of the GT-40/Mustang GT thing, but not have a little issue with the new SS? :D

That GT is the Ford GT, not the mustang. It makes sense since the the GT/40 is blown. Having 50 horses on tap is sweet. That's like having a 50 shot of nitrous hooked up to your car. And all it takes is 2minutes for the supercooler to recharge by itself.

I saw this in testing back in the summer of 2000 (don't ask how!). The one I saw looked basically like a metal storage canister in the front passenger area of the engine compartment. I never thought it would make it to production, but it looks like I was wrong! I guess that DOHC 5.0 could be a reality too then!:cool:

Originally posted by Sixer-Bird
guionM, quit spreading misinformation.;)

Doh!

Alright.... the GT-40 is called the the Ford GT! Got it!

*Burys face in embarrassment* :o

The GT40 needs to be called the GT44.The 40 in GT40 is because the roofline was @ 40 inches.The new GT is 44 inches so there you can make it the GT44.........:bow:

Originally posted by guess who
The GT40 needs to be called the GT44.The 40 in GT40 is because the roofline was @ 40 inches.The new GT is 44 inches so there you can make it the GT44.........:bow: While technically correct, that name probably wouldn't sell. As much as this car is going to cost and as few of numbers that will be produced, I'm not surprised that Ford was unwilling to pay the rediculous royalty fees.

One thing to ponder though, with Carroll Shelby's rumored involvement in the car, perhaps there is still room for another name change.... Ford Shelby GT has a nice ring to it. ;)

The supercooler sounds like a reat idea for a quick punch. Also probably helps the SC'd cars keep from loosing all their power to heat. I wonder if the new SVT Cobra will have this?

I wonder if it can be sold to current blown 03 Cobra and Lighning owners??

Originally posted by jg95z28
While technically correct, that name probably wouldn't sell. As much as this car is going to cost and as few of numbers that will be produced, I'm not surprised that Ford was unwilling to pay the rediculous royalty fees.

One thing to ponder though, with Carroll Shelby's rumored involvement in the car, perhaps there is still room for another name change.... Ford Shelby GT has a nice ring to it. ;)

Ford Shelby GT maybe,Shelby GT (refering to the Mustang)Dont hold your breath.Youll get more from holding yourself.

Originally posted by guess who
The GT40 needs to be called the GT44.The 40 in GT40 is because the roofline was @ 40 inches.The new GT is 44 inches so there you can make it the GT44.........:bow:

I thought the same thing when I heard the name GT40 wasn't going to be used.

Originally posted by ProudPony
Couldn't agree more. It should be called the GT-40 like it is supposed to, but somebody has the reda$$ and decided to sue over infringements...:rolleyes:
You'd think they would be happy the car was getting newfound attention and publicity, potentially driving up the price of originals and their legacy.

But now Sneaky, how can we say GT is confusing because of the GT-40/Mustang GT thing, but not have a little issue with the new SS? :D

Since Ford messed up and lost the rights to the name of THEIR MOST FAMOUS RACE CAR, THE "GT-40", I think they should call the new car the "GT-Fordy.";)

as for this super cooler thing, sounds like it could work(yeah, i thought of it to), but that would be putting alot of stress the a/c or whatever they all it, i'm sure they have worked out the bugs in the system, but it would be better to just have the thing work like a fridgerator, maybe chevy should do that, if you opened a fridge for a while the ELECTRIC motor would burn out, but if you got an actuall engine behind it, you could just run another belt to the crank or whatever, plus this would constantly cool the air instead of being let out in intervals

Originally posted by jg95z28
That's interesting. Years ago when I was in college dreaming up my own custom intake setups I toyed with the idea of using the AC system to cool-down the temperature of the air-fuel mix via some custom intake plumbing. lol I guess that wasn't that crazy of an idea afterall!

Hmmmm??? :confused:

You're not the only one dreaming this up :D

Originally posted by number77
as for this super cooler thing, sounds like it could work(yeah, i thought of it to), but that would be putting alot of stress the a/c or whatever they all it, i'm sure they have worked out the bugs in the system, but it would be better to just have the thing work like a fridgerator, maybe chevy should do that, if you opened a fridge for a while the ELECTRIC motor would burn out, but if you got an actuall engine behind it, you could just run another belt to the crank or whatever, plus this would constantly cool the air instead of being let out in intervals

The airconditioning units used in Australian cars are of a much heavier duty than the units here, and have a far greater output. So I don't think it would be much of an issue boosting AC capacity for a intercooler.

Any AC&R guys here want to chime in?

The cooler wont always be on guys,It is for short bursts.Imagine going to the strip with that,It would kinda be like NOS.It would run out in a couple seconds:D

Everyone knows that whenever the A/C compressor is running it is robbing the engine of horsepower. I wonder if they've figured out how to minimize the amount of power being used to run the compressor before the cold air charge is used. If the engine has to bog down before you get the big burst of power, what's the point? I'd almost find it annoying.

Originally posted by Z28Wilson
Everyone knows that whenever the A/C compressor is running it is robbing the engine of horsepower. I wonder if they've figured out how to minimize the amount of power being used to run the compressor before the cold air charge is used. If the engine has to bog down before you get the big burst of power, what's the point? I'd almost find it annoying.

That's true, but it also robs the engine of some power to make the supercharger turn. It's more than made up for by the power the supercharger adds.
I think this will be the same way. It will take some power to turn the AC condensor or whatever, but it says it adds 50-60hp. I think that should more than make up for the power being leached.

Originally posted by Z28Wilson
Everyone knows that whenever the A/C compressor is running it is robbing the engine of horsepower. I wonder if they've figured out how to minimize the amount of power being used to run the compressor before the cold air charge is used. If the engine has to bog down before you get the big burst of power, what's the point? I'd almost find it annoying.

On alot of Ford products the A/C pump shuts off during W.O.T.:D

Originally posted by jg95z28
That's interesting. Years ago when I was in college dreaming up my own custom intake setups I toyed with the idea of using the AC system to cool-down the temperature of the air-fuel mix via some custom intake plumbing. lol I guess that wasn't that crazy of an idea afterall!

Hmmmm??? :confused:


I also had a similar idea. But mine was a compressed air injection system that channeled highly compressed air (boost) into the engine until the container was empty. The engine would produce small amounts of air that would gradually fill up the container. When full, the system could be activated to send highly compressed air into the engine. I thought it would be cool, although I doubt it would even have a chance of working. lol

Originally posted by guess who
On alot of Ford products the A/C pump shuts off during W.O.T.:D

I realize that, in fact I believe most of today's cars are designed to stop the A/C compressor while the engine is at WOT. However at cruise or with a slight jab of the throttle the compressor won't stop. I realize that the car will already have monsterous levels of power as-is so it won't be a big issue to most, but you can probably still feel the difference. :think:

Originally posted by Z28Wilson
I realize that, in fact I believe most of today's cars are designed to stop the A/C compressor while the engine is at WOT. However at cruise or with a slight jab of the throttle the compressor won't stop. I realize that the car will already have monsterous levels of power as-is so it won't be a big issue to most, but you can probably still feel the difference. :think:

Fords with A/c made after '79 all had relay-controlled A/C clutches. The control of the clutch has gotten more complex through the years, going from a straight switch on the control panel, to a Vacuum secondary switch, to the TPS sensor when EFI came in around '86, to the current mix of manual switch, EEC-IV computer, and driving condition sensors.

The cold shot ONLY works at WOT, not all the time or even 3/4 throttle. Likewise, the TPS activates a relay that controls the electric clutch on the A/C, disengaging it. The disengagement can be...
1)controlled by the EEC system when WOT is detected and then re-engaged after a period of time, or
2)switched back on when the TPS is at 1/2 throttle or less AND the vacuum and torque requirements are below a preset value. (The same parameters currently control automatic tranny's electronic shift into OD and converter lock-up BTW.)

The whole point is that it takes some time for the A/C unit to pre-cool the air-to-air heat exchanger PRIOR to it's being used, this cold shot is ONLY used at WOT, and the A/C compressor will NOT be operating while at WOT. So by the time you get the pedal all the way down, you should already be well "hooked-up" and able to take all the power to the street. If you're having a hard time keeping hooked-up at 3/4 throttle, this ain't gonna do you a bit of good, and in fact may hurt you at hard shifts. :eek:

It's actually a pretty cool idea. But as a mechanical engineer, I tend to be skeptical of "gadgetry", and this system depends on MANY gadgets to function properly. I have to say that I am questioning it's long-term reliability. NOT the engine/blower mind you, just this "blow-me-cool" A/C-on-demand system.

BTW, you guys are all OK in my book...
How in the world we took this thread from a misunderstood GT comment to discussing the next gen Lightning motor is amazing. You've all got some pretty open minds and are thinking outside the box.
KUDOS.:bow:

I'm gonna start a motion to have all GM management ousted, and have you guys in this forum installed as the board of directors and product steering committee members. I'll get back to you all as soon as I have some results to report...:D

Just an off-topic thought: What if the whole name rights ordeal with the GT40 happened to the Camaro or Firebird. It would suck to have some third party company refusing to allow the Camaro to have its name back.

Originally posted by Sixer-Bird
Just an off-topic thought: What if the whole name rights ordeal with the GT40 happened to the Camaro or Firebird. It would suck to have some third party company refusing to allow the Camaro to have its name back.

I doubt GM would lack the forsight to sell those names to any third-party company.

Originally posted by guionM
The airconditioning units used in Australian cars are of a much heavier duty than the units here, and have a far greater output. So I don't think it would be much of an issue boosting AC capacity for a intercooler.

Any AC&R guys here want to chime in?

We make the A/C units for the Cobra in my plant. In fact, we make the entire frond end cooling module (basically everything except the compressor, which gets bolted onto the engine at the B&A plant). This system would need higher capacity system than normal to work, but it could easily be taken from another model. The Cobra already has a pretty good sized condenser, so it should be fine. The compressor would probably need to be beefed up (Expedition??).

It is pretty impressive the improvements that will be coming in this particular sector over the next couple of years. Using CO2 instead of R134 is just one of those technologies...