The first Ford Mustang GTD – the Blue Oval’s answer to the Porsche 911 GT3 – to come to Australia has been handed over in the US, where Mustang Motorsport and Crossover Car Conversions founder Craig Dean took delivery of the hardcore limited-edition muscle car last week.
Following a highly competitive application process in which prospective owners were required to complete a detailed submission and undergo an interview outlining their passion for the Blue Oval brand and intended use of the vehicle, Mr Dean took delivery of his GTD at South Bay Ford in Los Angeles, California.
Production of the Mustang GTD – the fastest and most advanced street-legal production Mustang ever released – is currently capped at 1700 units, but could be increased.
It’s understood more than 7500 people applied for the first batch of allocations, before GTD production began early last year, when just 271 examples are reported to have been built.
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Underlining its exclusivity, Ford has banned Mustang GTD buyers from selling their vehicles within two years of taking delivery, in an attempt to stop speculators from immediately ‘flipping’ the cars for profit.
Like all Mustangs, the GTD starts life at Ford’s Flat Rock plant in Michigan, before vehicles are completed by Multimatic – the same company responsible for producing the second-generation Ford GT supercar, as well as GT3- and GT4-spec Mustang race cars – in Canada, where production will end this year.
CarExpert understands Mr Dean, who is now an ambassador for Mustang Motorsport following his retirement, was the driving force behind the Mustang GTD being recently placed on the Specialist and Enthusiast Vehicles Register (SEVS), which allows the personal importation of rare and high-performance vehicles.
The GTD is produced only in left-hand drive and at this stage it’s not clear whether Mr Dean plans to have it converted to right-hand drive by his former Crossover Car Conversions business, or whether it will remain an unregistered, track-only vehicle.
Mustang Motorsport’s new owner and managing director, James Johnson, told CarExpert that either way, the first Mustang GTD to arrive in Australia will make a series of public appearances, starting with a Phillip Island track day later this year.
Mustang Motorsport remains the official distributor of Shelby and RTR products in Australia, where later this year it will launch the Shelby Super Snake-R, a limited-edition wide-body version of the Mustang Dark Horse.
While Mr Dean’s GTD will be on its way to Australia soon, we understand at least one other Aussie has applied to purchase a GTD, but it remains unclear whether that application was successful.
After his application was accepted, Mr Dean worked closely with his dedicated Ford concierge to configure his vehicle, specifying Lightning Blue exterior paint, the exposed carbon-fibre package, and the Performance Package featuring active aerodynamics including an adjustable rear wing and both front and underbody aero elements to maximise downforce.
“What a sharp, stunning machine – I absolutely love it,” he said. “Where’s the racetrack? I can’t wait to drive it.”
Priced at US$325,000 (A$508,000) in North America, the track-focused Mustang GTDis powered by a 5.2-litre supercharged ‘Predator’ V8 producing 608kW of power and 900Nm of torque, driving the rear wheels through a rear-mounted eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transaxle to deliver near-50:50 weight distribution and improved handling dynamics.
The GTD’s motorsport-derived chassis incorporates pushrod rear suspension, coil-over springs and Adaptive Spool Valve shock absorbers at both ends.
It also features Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes and 20-inch wheels shod in Michelin Cup 2 tyres.
Inside, there’s a purpose-built driver-focused cockpit to underline its track-ready intent, featuring unique Recaro seats, bespoke display graphics, titanium gear paddles, a ‘track apps’ button, front suspension lift system, and a clear window rather than seats behind the front occupants.
In December 2024, the Mustang GTD became the first US production vehicle to lap the Nürburgring Nordschleife inless than seven minutes.
Later that month, the GTD’s chief engineer Greg Goodall told CarExpert that the model’s track focus made right-hand drive manufacture a compromise the Blue Oval brand was unwilling to make.
“That’s a difficult question to answer,” Mr Goodall said when asked why right-hand drive was off the cards for the GTD.
“There’s a finite amount of money, there’s a finite amount of time. We really needed to have the team focused on delivering a single variant that was just everything it could be.
“The right-hand drive [version] just isn’t something that we were able to accomplish.
“We’re really proud of what we have and we hope that Australians can get to drive it somehow, because we care about you, but unfortunately there’s just no right-hand version at this time.”