Ford GT Racecar Sounds Like It Means Some Serious Business Testing on Sebring

In fact, the Ford GT had only seen about one year of development ahead of its public debut, so they didn't really have to keep silent for that long. But now the rabbit is out of the hat and, by the looks of it, is running very fast on the Sebring track.

The '600 plus' horsepower hypercar looks at home on the track's asphalt, and even more so in its racecar guise. With its rear air diffuser and front splitter barely an inch or two away from the hard surface, you get the feeling there's so much suction going on underneath the car you could even use it as a vacuum cleaner.

Let's just concentrate on the sound for a moment. It's a proper race car sound. The 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost engine delivers the kind of purposeful, mechanical whirl which is pretty distinct from the more muscular V8 growl, while the exhausts are happy to crack and bang, especially during those sweet downshifts. It's not as raucous as other race cars, but maybe it's a case of letting the performance speak, instead of shouting out how powerful the car is.

And there's the way the car drives. It's clear the driver isn't pushing it, but even at these relatively low speeds the new Ford GT racer looks like it can handle a corner, to use a euphemism.

The car is being prepped for its highly anticipated debut at next year's 24 Hours of Le Mans where a total number of four Ford GTs will compete. Also next year, two of the four will take part in the United SportsCar Championship, while the other two will race in the FIA World Endurance Championship.