On December 18th, 2020, Ford surprised and delighted fans of the virtual F1 Supercar by announcing that they’d built one for real – and it’s a sight to behold. We don’t know whether this was the plan all along or whether someone within Ford’s real-world design team was so inspired by the virtual car that they pushed for a real one to be built, but it exists now, and it’s stunning. From what we understand, this is the first time in history that a car designed by video game fans has been plucked out of a game and built for real. We don’t know how much it cost Ford to build it, and we don’t know what its retail price would be because, unfortunately, nobody will ever be allowed to buy one.
While Ford was excited to show off its real version of the digital car, the company quickly stressed that it was a one-off build and would never become commercially available. If that’s the case, and they’ve built this purely to show off, it’s quite a statement. The steering wheel has its own dedicated screen to allow messages to be sent from the racing team’s pit wall, and a HUD keeps tire pressure, mileage, and other vital information visible on the windscreen at all times. The rear wings don’t look quite as sweeping or dramatic as they do in pictures of its digital equivalent, but they’re still unlike anything we’ve ever seen on a supercar before. If you were to paint this car black rather than its current shade of white, it would be an excellent choice for the Batmobile in the next “Batman” movie.
