Skip to main content

Ford’s new GT has more lines of code than a Boeing jet airliner

The new Ford GT isn’t a car for minimalists. It’s got a lot of power, a lot of grip, and thanks to a racecar-wide stance, it takes up a lot of room on the road.

There’s also one more thing the Ford GT has a lot of: code.

You wouldn’t think a car would require more lines of code to operate than a jet airplane, but the GT beats out a couple of the most high-tech planes in the sky when it comes to code, according to Australia’s Car Advice.

Speaking to the website and other media outlets at a recent technical presentation, Ford Performance chief engineer Jamal Hameedi said the GT has 10 million lines of “mission critical” code.

That’s three million more than can be found in a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, and eight million more than in a Lockheed F-22 Raptor fighter. And Ford didn’t do that on purpose.

The GT apparently has too much computing power. The company was forced to use off-the-shelf components for some of the car’s control systems, which means it wasn’t able to tailor software the way it would have if engineers had started from scratch, Hameedi said.

Aircraft manufacturers are actually working to reduce the complexity of software used in their airplanes. Boeing reportedly made significant cuts in the amount of code used in the 787 compared to previous airliners.

Ford believes its superabundance of code could be for the better, though, claiming the extra computing power will allow the GT’s electronic systems to provide more assistance to a novice driver on the track. Homed said the car will be faster on track with the traction control left on, even with an expert driver behind the wheel.

The GT’s 50 onboard sensors and 28 microprocessors should at least give expert human drivers a run for their money, and reduce the likelihood of a fiery death for those who don’t wear helmets to work.

All of that tech will help harness the power of a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V6, which Ford says will produce at least 600 horsepower. It’s based on the engines used in Tudor United SportsCar Championship Daytona Prototypes.

Ford is expected to build just 250 cars per year, and they could be priced at up to $400,000 each. That apparently buys a lot of code.

Editors' Recommendations

Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
Dell’s new Latitude Detachable outdoes the Surface Pro in more ways than one
dell latitude 7320 detachable takes on surface pro  3

Dell's new Latitude 7320 Detachable is here with a fresh new design to take on Microsoft's Surface Pro 2-in-1s.

Available now starting at $1,550, the new Windows 10 tablet sports slim bezels, Intel's 11th-gen processors under the hood, and features catered to both enterprise and business users.

Read more
Huawei’s P50 Pro Plus has an even more unusual camera bump than we expected
huawei p50 p50plus renders leaks pro plus

Huawei is gearing up to launch the P50-series of smartphones soon. While we've seen leaks and renders of the presumably cheaper and not-as-cool P50 and P50 Pro, the P50 Pro Plus has been a bit camera shy -- at least until now. Now, new renders from leaker HoiIndi shared on Twitter have given us a good look at the phone, especially its outlandish rear. The Huawei P50 Pro Plus may have the same oval-shaped camera enclosure we see in the smaller phones, and these renders show off the finer details obscured by earlier ones.

We can see Leica branding, as expected from Huawei, written vertically on the bump, and from what we can see it looks to be a five-camera affair, likely sporting an ultrawide and a telephoto in addition to the two extra lenses. Around the front is a very minimal design. The same very small hole-punch selfie camera as we've seen in the P50 and P50 Pro leaks makes a return, and the screen appears to have very slim bezels for an immersive experience.

Read more
SpaceX’s Starlink internet service now has more than 10,000 users
spacexs starlink internet service now has 10000 users earth satellites

SpaceX’s satellite-based Starlink internet service currently has more than 10,000 users, the company revealed this week.

Elon Musk-led SpaceX invited people to sign up for a public beta of its internet-from-space service in October 2020, pricing it at $99 a month. Those selected also have to pay a $499 one-off payment for the Starlink Kit containing the necessary components to connect to the Starlink satellites. While the company is obviously controlling the customer numbers, increasing confidence in the project — and an expanding satellite constellation —is allowing SpaceX to offer the service to more and more people.

Read more