Official Shelby American team photographer, Dave Friedman, presents rare color photos that chronicle the entire unknown story of the development, production, and racing of Carroll Shelby's famous Ford GT40. From Shelby's California shop and early test sessions to the victory stand at Le Mans, it's all here in historical photographs and the words of race legends such as Carroll Shelby, Dan Gurney, Bruce McLa ren, A.J. Foyt, Bob Bondurant, Mario Andretti, Chris Amon, Carroll Smith and more. You did a hell of a job with this book, Carroll Shelby. I loved it, - Carroll Smith.
This sumptuous book tells the story of one of the world’s most important racing cars. Always raced in Gulf’s iconic blue-and- orange colours, this Ford GT40, known by its chassis number ‘1075’, won the Le Mans 24 Hours not just once but twice, in 1968 and 1969, and the second victory came after the closest fight ever seen at the finish of this great endurance race. Four other championship wins – at Brands Hatch, Spa, Watkins Glen and Sebring – add to this GT40’s distinction as the very best of its breed, driven by ‘greats’ such as Jacky Ickx, Pedro Rodríguez and Brian Redman. The car’s entire competition life is covered in fascinating detail, together with biographies of its drivers and insights into John Wyer’s crack team that ran it, all supported by a fine collection of period photographs.
In the 1960s the Ford Motor Company decided to enter the arena of sports car racing and challenge the European manufacturers, specifically Ferrari, for supremacy. The result was the GT40, and by the mid-1960s the car was posting victories at the most prestigious sports car endurance racing events around the world. In this comprehensive history of Ford's GT40, Ronnie Spain describes the development of the marque and features chassis records and photos of each and every car built.
"Ford GT40 tells the history of Ford's historic racing program of the mid-twentieth century that challenged "real" racers and established a racing dynasty for the American manufacturer"--
This book tells the story of Ford GT40 Mark II, chassis no. P/1016, one of the trio of cars that crossed the finishing line together at Le Mans in 1966 to score Ford’s first victory in the 24 Hour race. The Mark II was a development of the original Ford GT with a monstrous 7 litre V8 engine. 1016 made its racing debut at Daytona in January 1966 and was entered at Le Mans by Holman & Moody with a distinctive gold and pink color scheme. Driven by Ronnie Bucknum and Dick Hutcherson, it finished in third place behind the similar cars of Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon and Ken Miles and Denny Hulme.
After Ford unsuccessfully attempted to buy Ferrari, in 1963, the American car giant instead embarked on its own racing programme in a bid to beat the famous Italian marque at the world’s most prestigious race, the Le Mans 24 Hours, as told in the forthcoming Hollywood movie Ford v. Ferrari. This updated edition of The Ford that Beat Ferrari tells the story of how that mission was eventually accomplished. Development of the GT40: how the prototype Ford GT emerged in 1964 from the previous year’s Lola GT programme. The works teams and the GT40: the car’s racing exploits in its earlier years, first with Ford Advanced Vehicles (1964), then Shelby American (1965) and Alan Mann Racing (1966). The big ones: this section of the book covers the GT40’s evolution into the 7-litre monsters that brought enormous success, including the first two Le Mans victories with the Mark II (1966) and Mark IV (1967), before becoming outlawed by new restrictions on engine size. The Gulf years: against all expectations, the venerable GT40, now back to 5-litre power, raced on with John Wyer’s crack JW Automotive Engineering outfit in the iconic blue and orange colours of Gulf, successes including two further Le Mans wins (1968 and 1969). The production line racer: the stories of the 68 privateers, big and small, who raced GT40s. Chassis and drivers: a data section giving resumés of type designations, chassis histories and all drivers who raced GT40s. The magic lives on: the book’s concluding sections show surviving cars at differing stages in their later life and bring the story up to date with developments since the 2005 edition.
Ford GT40 Anthology is a new and unique compilation of feature articles about the iconic GT40, all accompanied by a host of old and new photographs. While not a history of the GT40, each individual story will give the reader new insights into the car's design and development, as well as some fascinating racing tales and previously well-kept secrets. Chapters include an explanation of the mysteries of Appendix J and its impact on the design of the Mirage and MkIV GT40; a detailed scrutineering report on GT40P/1075 at Le Mans; some untold truths behind the 2005 name controversy; and the unrecorded engine swap which enabled a GT40 to race - and finish - at the Le Mans 24 hours. The book contains information which at last shows that Ford did really install the Indy 4-cam engine in a development of the GT40. It explains in detail how GT40-builder JWAE was structured, and what its accounts looked like: the fascinating facts concerning the financial aspects of the GT40-building business are revealed. These two highly knowledgeable and experienced authors have collaborated to bring you this great collection of GT40 stories, some of which had previously been published in magazines many years ago, but have now been reworked, and some of which are totally new. None are currently available in any other book. A must have for any GT40 enthusiast to keep at their bedside or on the coffee table to dip in and out of as they please.
The Ford GT40 is one of the most famous of all sports racing cars. Built by Ford to challenge the supremacy of Ferrari at Le Mans, the GT40 first raced in 1964, and went on to win Le Mans four times in a row, from 1966 to 1969. Here, in this Haynes Manual, is a unique perspective on what it takes to own, restore and maintain a GT40, as well as an insight into the engineering and construction of this legendary racing car.
Telling the history of Lola Cars Ltd and the story of its groundbreaking Lola Mk VI GT of 1963, used by the Ford Motor Car Company as an inspiration to design the all-conquering Ford GT40.
