Arresting Development

Up front, the Interceptor takes a sedan twist on the theme established by last year’s F-250 Super Chief concept, donning a horizontal three-bar grille similar in form to the truck’s, only sleeker, wider and less brutish। The stacked headlights blend into the grille as they did on the truck but also use their design to point at some well-known Ford muscle sedans from 40 years ago, Galaxie 500s and Fairlanes among them. And like those memorable rides, the Interceptor is a classic hard-top design, using a chrome bead to delineate the greenhouse from the body. The 427, by contrast, took a more monolithic approach by allowing the roofline to blend seamlessly into the body. In fact, all the shapes and lines on the Interceptor are stronger, sharper. That same chrome detailing helps to give more definition to the car’s beltline than is found on the 427; larger wheel flares cut higher into its tall flanks; a single character line running the length of the body side gives the car more surface interest, while both ends feature more detailing, in the bumpers, lights and inlets.Inside, you’ll find a liberal use of Ford’s signature squared-circle—or “squircle”—design element, with examples found just about everywhere the eye lands: on the vents, seats, doors and even the steering wheel itself. Two squircle-shaped gauges—speedo and tach—both have needles that move away from the center, opposite each other. As expected with a concept car, the Interceptor features a few pieces of pure design fantasy. Headrests for the front seats fold downward from the headliner and adjust in concert with the seats, both up and down or fore and aft. The bucket seats themselves are stitched from quarter-inch-thick belt leather, stained black on their faces but with its natural tan color exposed on raw-cut edges. It offers a nice contrast against the brushed metallics and smooth surfaces that make up the bulk of the cabin space. The stark meeting of natural materials and industrial metals evokes a Bauhaus ethic, the Interceptor as a sort of automotive Wassily chair.The concept sits on a stretched Mustang platform, with 13.7 inches of body added aft of the front wheels. It also has 2.5 inches more width to play with compared with the Mustang, which allows for an additional 4.2 inches of front track and 5.3 inches in back. Next to the Mustang, however, the Interceptor gives up almost an inch of height. Combining its 54.8-inch height with its long, wide, low-slung body and high beltline gives the Interceptor a menacing look—a car you might expect to find CIA agents driving, at least in movies. The muscle part of the Interceptor’s muscle-sedan formula comes courtesy of a 400-plus-hp, 5.0-liter Ford racing Cammer V8—the very same motor that delivered Ford the 2005 Grand-Am championship in the GS class, powering a Mustang FR500C. The motor is housed under a clamshell hood, with a cutout for a true shaker intake—all the sort of throwback stuff you’d expect from a big, American muscle sedan. What you wouldn’t necessarily expect is that it’s a flex-fuel motor, capable of running on E85 ethanol. From there, power gets shuttled through a six-speed manual transmission to the car’s 22-inch rear wheels, while stopping duties fall to brakes lifted straight from the Ford GT, with 14-inch vented, cross-drilled discs in the front and 13.2-inchers behind.Freeman Thomas, Ford’s North American strategic design director, says what the Interceptor represents is very realistic—and that Ford is seriously looking into building it, or something darned close.“An actor like Steve McQueen can do things other actors can’t,” explains Thomas. “Ford can do things other brands can’t, and this is one of those things.”

Source - http://www.autoweek.com/