Video: Europeans Don’t Recognize The Ford GT

Ford GT (Credit: Ford)

Silly Europeans, they obviously known nothing of Ford’s storied supercar past. It all started off with the GT40, a car that back in the 1960s became a legend and took Le Mans by storm. More recently, the U.S. automaker created a modern version that its fans celebrated as superior to the mighty Dodge Viper and Chevy Corvette ZO6. While the upcoming Ford GT is a point of great pride many American car enthusiasts, the fact is that Europeans don’t seem to know what the supercar is.

In the video below, which was produced by Ford Europe, a new Ford GT is placed in a popular spot in central London. Of course, people started gathering around to admire the vehicle and even take its picture, never suspecting that what they were drooling over was an American creation. The team covered the blue oval badges on the vehicle so people couldn’t cheat, then approached different individuals and asked them to guess what kind of car it was. Answers varied but included all of the standard exotic brands: Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Zonda, Bugatti, etc. One guy even guessed that the supercar was a Brabus.

Predictably, when the team removed the cover from the Ford insignia on the front of the supercar, the different members of the crowd were shocked. It’s kind of like the famous Folgers commercial from back in the day, where New Orleans restaurant goers have their usual coffee switched to Folgers without their knowledge. One man even showed surprise not only at the fact that the vehicle was a Ford, but that Ford had made a supercar, highlighting that many Europeans are still woefully unaware of the Blue Oval’s supercar history.

To be fair, England hasn’t had the Mustang in forever (until now) and many people in Europe tend to associate Ford with non-performance cars and utilitarian vans. If the same test were done in a popular spot somewhere in the United States, you have to wonder how many people would still guess that the car was a Ferrari, even with the badges exposed.