Ford->ke31 was becoming frustrated with the continuing success of Enzo Ferrari’s racing machines. It came to a point that Henry Ford II was given an offer by Enzo to buy the company for an unheard of $18 million dollars. The buyout ended up falling through and Ford was left on its own to develop a racing team that could compete on the European circuits. Due to the non-compete pact between American automakers, Ford knew it would have to look outside of its Dearborn, Michigan team for talent.

To make a long story short, Ford took over a GT->ke411 racing project from Lola, hired a prominent racing manager in John Wyer, and then designed the original GT40s to be raced in 1964. The story is much more complex than that, but the legend that would come from this humble beginning is much more important. The initial GT/101 chassis was essentially a uncompetitive and Ferrari->ke252 continued to run away with victories. By 1965, Carroll Shelby was taken away from his Cobra->ke2263 projects and started developing the next generation of GT40 for Ford. This car gave Ford a win at Daytona in the first race of the very next year.

Ford developed several very special prototype cars including four roadster->ke1418 versions. Until more modern times, the GT/111 chassis was thought to have been destroyed, but a chance find in London several years back led to its discovery. Extensive restoration and consequential historic racing had finally brought it to the auction block at RM’s Villa d’Este with a value estimated between $3,900,000-4,700,000.

Let’s have a look at this important Ford GT, serial number GT/108, down below.

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1965 Ford GT40 Roadster

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 1965 Ford GT40 Roadster
  • Engine/Motor: V8
  • Horsepower: 380
  • Transmission: ZF five speed
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior

The 1965 GT40’s roots undeniable. Its long and low hood with those dual cutouts sunken deep into the bodywork are dead give-aways of the car’s heritage. Further back, the similarities fade. This prototype featured a coupe-like design with an open top, though no removable panel was made. Thin doors with no pillars gave access to the cockpit. This is a huge departure form the “conventional” doors found on other GT40s, with their roof sections molded onto the door pillars.

The rear section does revert back to the GT40’s more standard design. It has a long rear deck to accommodate the engine, while the tail end wraps back under the car for an aerodynamically smooth area for wind to whip past. The two large exhaust pipes protrude through the rear grille, giving it a true racecar look. Two brake lights, two taillights, and towing brackets constitute the only other notable features.

The car’s overall look is beautiful. Its white paint and blue racing stripes give it that something extra, while those wire wheels and fat, old-school rubber make it a time capsule piece untouched by modern racing technology.

Interior

The cockpit of the GT40 is all business. Two seats feature thick bolsters with the classic vented center inserts the GT made famous. The dash is a no-nonsense panel with gauges and switches the kept the engine in check. A three-spoke steering wheel points the car, while a outboard-mounted gear shifter and floor-mounted pedals controlled the powertrain.

Simplicity runs rampant here, and that’s just fine for a prototype racer. The frills and thrills are found only in the small, functional details and are appreciated only by those with an eye for such. We particularly love the gearshift pattern sound on the windshield, just above he shifter.

One bit of interesting history, it’s said Henry Ford II was given a hot-lap demonstration at the LAX airport in this very GT40. It’s also said this is the only known time Ford ever publicly sat in a GT40.

Drivetrain

Being a prototype, Ford used several parts off its standard production lines, including this GT40’s engine. It’s a 289 cubic inch V-8 found in things like the Ford Fairlane and Mustang. However, Ford didn’t leave this Cobra-spec V-8 alone. Beautiful individual plenum stacks breath into four Webber 48IDA carburetors. Custom headers pump exhaust up and around the rear suspension, twisting and turning along the way. Ford claims the V-8 made 380 horsepower. Mated to the V-8 is a four-speed, Colotti T-37 manual transaxle with its shifter mounted near the right door seal, next to the driver’s right hand.

Auction Selling Price

The last time this car rolled across the auction block was 2011. The ultra high-end collector car market was beginning to really heat up after the “Great Recession” of 2008 and buyers were willing to shell out higher dollar amounts. That’s clearly evident with the GT40/108’s selling price of $6.9 million.

Ford GT40 Design, Production, & History

The Ford Motor Company and its leader, Henry Ford II, were hell-bent on defeating Ferrari. After the decision was made to develop and build a car that could compete with the Italians, Ford Advanced Vehicles, FAV, started to handle the project. Little concern was paid to how much it would cost to create the car and the best engineers and designers were contracted. The chassis and body panels of the car were to be designed and built by Abbey Panels. Eric Broadley, whom had just designed a similar car, was in charge of the overall design. Another Englishman named Len Bailey was tasked with chassis design. The chaotic project was all to be overseen by team manager, John Wyer.

Many parts of the subsequent design were borrowed from the Lola Mk VI GT. Parts were changed from aluminum and replaced with steel for strength. This added weight called for the use of a big V-8 engine and the model used in the Fairlane was chosen as best. Its 4.3-liter push rod overhead valve setup delivered 350 horsepower. The cars were finished in time to take part in a Le Mans test day in 1964. The team soon realized that the bodywork of the car increased lift at high speeds and sometimes would attempt to go airborne. Other problems arose from the Colotti gearbox which proved to be very fragile. Ford’s team tried to make as many quick-fix improvements as possible, but defeat was all they would find.

After Ford brought on Carroll Shelby, the GT40’s journey was reversed with a third place finish at Daytona in the first race that year. The development of the roadster version arose out of curiosity with Ferrari. The Italians often raced open roof cars and Ford engineers were baffled as to how they could still be so fast. The FAV team developed several roadsters to explore the potential advantages.

GT/111 Chassis

Chassis number 11 is one of the most important of all the 12 pre-production GT40s. It featured the 289-cubic inch V-8 as well as the first ZF five-speed transmission. The team was beginning to enter GT40s in races throughout Europe when GT/111 got its first and last chance at glory. The Targa Florio race takes place in a very warm climate and Ford’s team thought the open cockpit would be more comfortable. Bob Bondurant was enlisted to drive the car in the 10-lap, 44-mile little Madonie road circuit.

The race started out with a newly painted GT/111 finished in light Linden Green with the #194. The car seemed to be doing well and even reached 3rd place during the race, but halfway through a knock-off spinner broke loose and Bondurant lost a front wheel. The car was be repaired, but more bad luck would meet the team on the final lap. Loose gravel put the GT40 into a slide and it eventually hit a wall causing the front wheel to come off once more. After the race, the car was shipped back to the team in England, but Ford was no longer considering a roadster for production. As the Ford GT program in Slough came to an end, the FAV ordered the remaining pieces cut in half and sent to a wreckers for destruction. The car was considered lost ever since.

Gelscoe Motorsport Limited got word of a Ford GT40 in need of restoration and sent a team to inspect the find. In an old garage in Stratford East London the GT/111 was sitting on top of an old mattress. Luckily it had been kept off the ground, because that minimized the amount of deterioration and rust present. Ronnie Spain is considered the foremost authority on the GT40 and he was called in to verify the find. He quickly noticed that the car had perforated steel pontoons and support ribs, a unique feature of the 12 prototypes. Naturally he was initially apprehensive of finding a GT40 in a random garage but he noted, “Instead, on my arrival at Glescoe and on being presented with the chassis in question, I was stunned to instantly realize I was looking at a genuine GT40 chassis. And by being a genuine chassis, and a roadster, it could only be the chassis of the missing Targa Florio car #GT/111.”

After the discovery was verified, the team clearly purchased the vehicle and began a complete restoration. Attention was paid to make sure the car was restored to original spec with correct period materials. Everything from the “Raven Blue” dashboard to the zero-type ZF transaxle with exposed linkage was recreated.

The car was ready for its new owner at Goodwood in 2007. Since then, the car has raced in the classic circuits such as the Spa 6 Hour, Goodwood Whitsun Trophy, Masters Festival at Brands hatch, and the LeMans Classic. This classic GT40 Roadster is one of only two still known to be in existence with the other chassis being GT/108. That car was the first of the four roadsters built by FAV. It was never involved in an actual race, but rather served as a testbed for the ZF transmission. The one advantage that it has is that it survived in original condition and is the only car wearing its original nose. Nonetheless, GT/111 is certainly the most storied car of the group. As such it fetched nearly $3 million dollars at the RM auctions Villa d’Este event back in 2011.