A three-year agreement between the Ford Motor Company and the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) will see the EcoBoost-powered Taurus SHO as the official safety car for Saturday's Tequila Patron Sports Car Showcase at Long Beach. This agreement also grants the Blue Oval the "Official Automotive Partner" title in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship and the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge.
Ford's Roush Yates twin-turbo 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 engine won its first race in the TUDOR Championship last month, powering the No. 1 Telcel Chip Ganassi Racing Riley DP. The car was co-driven by Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas and Marino Franchitti to the overall and Prototype class victory in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring endurance race.
It was the Blue Oval's fourth overall victory in the Twelve Hours of Sebring and the manufacturer's first since taking the 1969 Central Floria endurance classic. "When you see the Ford EcoBoost Riley prototypes racing, you're truly seeing Ford Motor Company's latest technology proven on the race track," said Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing. "That's why the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship is an important platform for Ford Racing and Ford. Racing the technology supports the development of production vehicles consumers drive every day, and vice-versa."
EcoBoost units power Chip Ganassi Racing and Michael Shank Racing in the TUDOR Championship. Last October, a Ford EcoBoost-powered Riley DP set the track record on the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway tri-oval at 222.971 miles per hour (40.364 seconds), as well as the FIA 10-kilometer and 10-mile world records (203.010 mph and 210.017 mph).
In addition to the TUDOR Championship, five Ford Mustang Boss 302Rs compete in the 2014 Continental Tire Challenge.
It was the Blue Oval's fourth overall victory in the Twelve Hours of Sebring and the manufacturer's first since taking the 1969 Central Floria endurance classic. "When you see the Ford EcoBoost Riley prototypes racing, you're truly seeing Ford Motor Company's latest technology proven on the race track," said Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing. "That's why the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship is an important platform for Ford Racing and Ford. Racing the technology supports the development of production vehicles consumers drive every day, and vice-versa."
EcoBoost units power Chip Ganassi Racing and Michael Shank Racing in the TUDOR Championship. Last October, a Ford EcoBoost-powered Riley DP set the track record on the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway tri-oval at 222.971 miles per hour (40.364 seconds), as well as the FIA 10-kilometer and 10-mile world records (203.010 mph and 210.017 mph).
In addition to the TUDOR Championship, five Ford Mustang Boss 302Rs compete in the 2014 Continental Tire Challenge.