The Ford GT40 - An Anglo-American Competition Classic

Few cars have made such an impact on the international motor racing scene as the Ford GT40. It was the car which took Ford to Le Mans, there to challenge and eventually to vanquish Ferrari in the world's most highly publicised endurance race. The GT40, which was to be seen in several versions, provided one of the spearheads for Ford's commitment to Total Performance as a worldwide marketing platform in the 'Sixties. Success did not come easily, but perseverence was rewarded and Ford were able to claim four consecutive victories at Le Mans, from 1966 to 1969, as well as many individual victories in other long-distance races and four international endurance racing championships. Perhaps most important of all, the arrival of the GT40 brought a new zest and excitement to this class of racing, with Anglo-American engineering expertise and considerable financial resources, backed up by the skill of some of the world's finest drivers, offering a spectacle which helped to make the 'Sixties one of the most exciting periods of postwar racing history. David Hodges recalls those memorable days and traces the career of what many motor racing enthusiasts claim to be the most beautifully styled racing cars ever to be seen. Perhaps that is a slight overstatement, but certainly the GT40 is amongst the most elegantly styled cars to have performed on a racing circuit. Illustrated with a fine selection of production images as well as cars in competition, the development of the GT40 is followed from original design ideas through to the MKIV, with an individual chapter on the road cars the MKIII as well as replicas. Specification details and production records are listed with brief chassis record histories from GT40/101 to 1107, as well as the Alan Mann Racing cars produced. Nearly all the GT4Os originally built have survived, and are still to be seen in action, this time as the stars of historic events, which recapture that golden age of motor racing — the scintillating 'Sixties.