--- title: "Secret Shared: The Ford Mustang GTD Gave Its Wing to the Mustang GT3" description: "Race (and win?) on Sunday, sell on Monday. That's the old saying, right? Turns out [Ford]() flipped the script and its latest race car's aerodynamics actually came from its street car." date: "2025-08-25" modified: "2025-08-25" authors: - name: "Joel Feder" job_title: "Director of Content and Product" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/joel-feder" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/secret-shared-the-ford-mustang-gtd-gave-its-wing-to-the-mustang-gt3" categories: - "Ford News" - "News" - "News by Brand" tags: - "Coupe" - "Ford" - "sports car" --- # Secret Shared: The Ford Mustang GTD Gave Its Wing to the Mustang GT3 ![Mustang GTD]() *\Ford\* Race (and win?) on Sunday, sell on Monday. That's the old saying, right? Turns out [Ford]() flipped the script and its latest race car's aerodynamics actually came from its street car. At the the launch of the [2025 Ford Mustang GTD]() Chief Program Engineer Greg Goodall and Design Manager Anthony Colard told *The Drive* the [Mustang GT3 race car]() was set to have a traditional decklid-mounted wing like other race cars. Then came the GTD and everything changed. The design and development went Darkhorse, then GT3, and then GTD. But the last two, GT3 and GTD, were developed in tandem once the projects were underway. That is, once the GTD was green lit. The GTD? It exists because Ford CEO Jim Farley and Bill Ford saw the Mustang GT3 and told the team, "we need to do a road-legal version of this," Colard recalled. Six months into developing the road car Colard said a designer came up with the idea of a swan neck design with a C-pillar mount for the rear wing for the road car, which would come to be known as the GTD. The race car was still being finalized in CAD. ![Mustang GTD DRS active aero]() *Mustang GTD DRS, *Ford** Colard said the team already knew how much pressure from downforce was going to be applied to the rear wing and it was going to make mounting it on the trunk lid "a difficult task." Mounting it via swan necks on the C-pillar instantly made things easier as the pillars are already reinforced. This is all before the [use of active aerodynamics]() entered the chat. Once the team checked to make sure it would perform on the race car, the decision was made to harmonize the two together. It doesn't just look cool, it's functional both Goodall and Colard noted. "Not only does it look cool, it can manage the loads a lot better, and hides the features better, later on, much later, we figured out the active aero and said 'oh yeah, thank God we made this choice because it makes the active aero easier.'" Goodall said. The reason it makes the active aero easier is because all the wiring and lines can be run to the wing through the C-pillar, which is stationary unlike a trunk lid, which needs to move up and down to access the trunk. Colard said there was a world the GTD would not have gotten active aero. It was not in the original plans. Goodall said active aero was a debate, but in the end it made the car better and faster, noting it contributed to the GTD lapping the [Nürburgring in under 7 minutes](). "We would have still got under 7-minutes (referring to the 'Ring lap time) without it, but then we were like, hey, we can get some time with the active aero, and we should just do this," Goodall said. "It would have definitely been tighter" Goodall said, in regards to getting under the 7-minute mark at the 'Ring without the active aero. Without that rear wing and active aero, there's no way the GTD would've shaved 5.5 seconds off its original 6:57.685 'Ring time to [conquer the Green Hell at 6:52.072]() six months after the fact. *Got a tip about aerodynamics? Shoot us a note at tips@thedrive.com* ## Author Overseeing what you see, read, touch, hear, and interact with from the vast lakes of Minnesota, Joel Feder shapes how The Drive looks and operates as the head of content and product initiatives. On a daily basis, Joel leads the newsroom and editorial staff playing point on both short-term coverage and long-term strategic plans. His mission is to help ensure The Drive shapes the future of automotive media by helping the team execute original reporting, breaking news, and exclusive opportunities. Regarded as an industry insider and recognized by colleagues, fellow journalists, and manufacturers as a point-person and leader in the industry, Joel owns and runs the largest automotive professionals group on Facebook in an effort to serve and help others. Joel serves as a juror for the World Car Awards. In addition, he is the board chair and chair of the governance and nominating committee for Move Forward MN, a local non-profit that helps at-risk youth with barrier-free mental health and housing services. While you’re reading this he’s either on his computer or iPhone chasing the latest news or drafting a story. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]() [Bluesky]() [Email]()