2006 GDT Speedster

(From GDT Press Release) The GDT Speedster is an exciting, one-of-a-kind, high performance sports car designed and fabricated by a team of automotive professionals. It has been hand crafted and is intended for sale to a discriminating collector who appreciates beautiful automotive styling, excellent engineering and fine craftsmanship.

The GDT Speedster was designed and built by a team of experienced automotive engineers, stylists and a body-surfacing expert who love cars and who wanted to do a complete vehicle from scratch without the bureaucratic encumbrances of a large corporation. The project was initiated as an exercise in engineering and styling with “no holds barred”. It was also considered to be an engineering challenge because many projects like this one are started and very few are completed. In addition, the project was intended to be completed at a “reasonable” cost when compared to OEM produced one off show cars.

The team selected the vehicle’s name, GDT Speedster. It stands for Gene Dickirson Team Speedster. A speedster is the type of vehicle that typically has no top, no side windows and a raked back windshield intended for fun driving in good weather.

Exterior

The GDT Speedster features a beautiful body designed by stylists Craig Sandvig and Larry Ronzi. The theme is fresh and it is intended to retain its freshness for many years to come. The eye catching windshield angle is only 19 degrees from the horizontal and utilizes a header less steel support structure. The sculptured side panels are dramatic in the way their surfaces “converge” just behind the upper edges of the doors.
The highlight of the rear view of the vehicle is the fully visible, polished stainless steel/ aluminum exhaust system. Just behind the gleaming tail pipes is the aluminum intensive rear suspension with axel half shafts which are fascinating to watch when the vehicle is in motion. The front of the speedster has a polished aluminum grill “floating” within a handsome opening. The hood is hinged at the front and when opened provides full access to the engine compartment. Similarly, the rear deck is hinged at the rear and when opened provides access to a small storage compartment behind the seats. The rear deck contains a polished aluminum fuel filler door with the team logo laser etched into the surface.
The body is painted Torch Red.

Interior

The interior is trimmed in Light Oak leather. The instrument panel is custom styled and fabricated. It is attractive to look at and easy to use. The top of the instrument panel is trimmed in leather. The instrument cluster features custom built gauges with the team logo printed on the faces of the speedometer and the tachometer. A unique PRNDL gauge is used to indicate the transmission gear selected. The PRNDL gauge is located in the central portion of the instrument panel next to the clock. Only four switches are needed on the instrument panel to operate the electrical system. To the left of the steering column is a black rocker switch for ignition ON-OFF with a green LED to indicate ON. To the left of the ignition switch is a red rocker for START. To the right of the column is a black rocker switch for lighting. Next to the light switch is a black rocker for HEATER-OFF-A/C. The three-way heater A/C switch has red and blue LED’s to indicate the mode selected. A foot operated headlamp dimmer switch is used. The brake and accelerator pedals are trimmed with polished stainless steel bezels.
The custom designed gear selector knob has leather covering the tapered portion of the polished aluminum body. The leather covered central console sweeps into the rear deck and the team logo is embroidered into the upper face. The seats are custom built for the GDT Speedster by Cerullo Performance Seating. The steering wheel is custom built by Lecarra and the polished aluminum horn button has the team logo laser etched into the surface.

Frame & Underbody

The GDT Speedster frame is very strong. It is fabricated from rectangular steel tubing with a wall thickness of 3.1 mm (.12 inches). The main side rails are 51 mm wide and 152 mm high (2 inches x 6 inches). The under body and dash panel are fabricated from steel sheet fully welded to the frame rails. All welding was done by aerospace/military certified welders.

Drive Train

The engine, transmission, differential, front and rear suspension, steering and brakes are from a Chevrolet Corvette.

Wheels & Tires

Fikse built the beautiful; three piece forged and polished aluminum wheels especially for the GDT Speedster. The front wheels are 18 inches in diameter and 10.5 inches wide and the rear wheels are 18 inches x 12 inches. The Michelin Pilot Sport tires are size 285/35x18 on the front and 335/30x18 on the rear.

The team that designed and built the GDT Speedster have a combined total of more than 245 years of experience in the OEM automotive industry.

Musa Azzouz- Ford Motor Company, Product Engineering Office, body structures engineer (retired) and instructor at Lawrence Technological University. Musa provided design direction for the frame, underbody and restraint anchors to ensure the vehicle would be strong enough for its intended purpose. Musa has a total of 42 years experience in body structures product engineering. In addition to teaching at Lawrence Technological University Musa taught preparation courses for the Professional Engineers licensing exams on the subjects of Statics, Dynamics and Mechanics of Materials. Musa has a Masters of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Wayne State University and is a Registered Professional Engineer in Michigan.

Chuck Carlson- Ford Motor Company, Product engineering Office (retired), engineering manager with experience in climate control products and other chassis systems. Chuck participated in essentially every aspect of the GDT Speedster project including design and fabrication. Chuck has a total of 36 years experience in product engineering. Chuck has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics from Wayne State University.

Lawrence Conger created the beautiful exterior body surfaces and the instrument panel surface for the GDT Speedster using ICEM/Surf, a powerful CAD tool. Lawrence is the owner of Digital Design, Inc. with 20 years of surface design experience in automotive, marine, recreational vehicle, agricultural and consumer products. His clients include more than 40 companies in 11 countries. Lawrence has a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering/Computer Science from Central Michigan University.

Gene Dickirson- Ford Motor Company, Product Engineering Office (retired), engineering manager with experience in climate control systems and process leadership. His professional experience includes product drafting, product design engineering and engineering management. Gene formed the team and led the design, fabrication and financing for the GDT Speedster project. Gene had a total of 35 years of product engineering experience with Ford Motor Company. He has an Associate in Science Degree in Drafting Technology from Vincennes University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Lawrence Technological University. Gene is a Registered Professional Engineer in the State of Michigan.

Dave Maran- Visteon Program Management Office. Dave provided numerous suggestions for the vehicle and fabricated several of the wood models/ welding fixtures. Dave has a total of 32 years experience in product development and manufacturing. Dave has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Lawrence Technological University.

Keith Rogalski- Visteon product engineering. Keith provided assistance with non-contact digital scanning. Keith has a total of 26 years experience in product engineering automotive/aerospace technologies. Keith has degrees from Henry Ford Community College, University of Detroit Mercy in Mechanical Engineering and Central Michigan University in the Automotive Vehicle Design program.

Larry Ronzi-Ford Motor Company, Design Center (retired). Larry sculpted the 1:8 clay model working closely with Craig Sandvig on the overall design of the vehicle. Larry also sculpted the front portion of the hood of the full size foam mock up. Larry has a total of 35 years experience in product design. Larry’s skills include clay modelling, foam and paperboard mock up building, drafting, technical illustration, graphic arts, teaching engineers free hand sketching and industrial design. Larry has an Associate in Engineering degree in Mechanical Technology from Lawrence Technological University and a Bachelor in Fine Arts in Industrial Design from Wayne State University.


Craig Sandvig- Ford Motor Company, Design Center. Craig had overall responsibility for the design (styling) of the exterior, interior and under hood of the vehicle. Craig also polished all of the aluminum parts and assisted with the fabrication of several components used on the vehicle. Craig has a total of 13 years experience in product design. Craig has a Bachelors degree in Industrial Design from Wayne State University.

James Wilber- Visteon Corporation, Electronics Product Engineering. James assisted with the design and fabrication of the wiring system and instrument panel gages and A/C registers. James also assisted with the initial set up of Gene’s computer and assisted him in resolving CAD file translation issues. James assisted with research of Internet domain services alternatives. James has a total of 6 years experience in product engineering including detail design and customer interface of electromechanical components. James has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Evansville.

Overall length 4110 mm (161.8 inches)
Overall height 1068 mm (42.0 inches)
Overall width 1897 mm (74.6 inches)
Front track 1502 mm (59.1 inches)
Rear track 1550 mm (61.0 inches)
Weight 1471 Kg (3244 lb)
Fuel tank capacity 60 L (16 gal US)
Leg room 1067 mm (42.0 inches)
Shoulder room 1460 mm (57.5 inches)
Engine Chevrolet Corvette LT1
Engine Displacement 5.7 liters (350 cubic inches)
Engine power output 224 Kw (300 HP) @5000 RPM
Engine output/displacement 39.3 Kw/l, 52.6 HP/l (.86 HP/cubic inch)
Engine torque 461 Nm (340 ft lb) @ 3600 RPM
Transmission Hydra-Matic 4L-60 E
Rear axel ratio 2.59:1
Transmission ratios 1st gear 3.06:1, 2nd gear 1.63:1, 3rd gear 1.0: 1, 4th gear 0.70:1

The following performance data is estimated based upon published data for Chevrolet Corvettes equipped with LT 1 engines. The actual performance of the GDT Speedster has not been determined under controlled, normally accepted testing procedures.


Acceleration 5.7 seconds 0 to 96 km/h (0 to 60 mph)
Braking distance 37.4 m from 96 km/h (123 ft from 60 mph)
Fuel Mileage 6.8 km/l (16 mpg)
¼ Mile 14.5 sec, 161 km/h (100 mph)
Top Speed 273 km/h (170 mph)

PRICE

The GDT Speedster will be auctioned during the second or third quarter of 2006. The minimum bid will be US $350,000