GT40 (United Kingdom, 1966)

The second generation GT40 was the first Ford to win at 24 hours Le Mans. Driven by Chris Amon and Bruce Mclaren, the 1966 victory was a lesson from Henry Ford II to Ferrari and European constructors.

By the early 60s Ford wanted to give a more youthful look to the company and decided it was time to put its cars in races. Not having the know-how, it tried to buy the Ferrari that dominated Le Mans at the time, to assure a quick win. But after much money spent by Ford, Ferrari terminated abruptly the negotiations. Henry Ford however didn’t give up and the GT40 was created in 1965.

The mark II was released in 1966 and relying on the experience of the previous generation, it was ready to rule the tracks Le Mans for the next years. In that same year, 8 Mark II GT40 were prepared to race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, while Ferrari only had 3 prototypes. With seven hours to go, the last Ferrari standing quit the race, but the remaining three Ford GT40’s not only hang on, but finishing in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, allowing Ford to frame the picture of the 1-2-3 formation at the finishing line.

One of the major bets in Mark II was the 7-litre engine that made the car more reliable. The engine was a 90º V 8 had 485 bhp at 3200 rpm which allowed a 346 km/h at top speed.

Steel monocoque   Platform (no data)   Suspension                 Double triangles   Steering                 Rack-and-pinion   Brakes                 All-round ventilated discs

Although the win of the Ford GT40 MKII at Le Mans was a victory to North-American racing cars, the truth is that the GT40 components were Ford’s, but the car design was English. The GT40 was first named GT, Grand Touring, but when the MarkII was introduced, the number 40 was added. The reference to 40 comes from the car’s height, only 40 inch, 1 meter.

The Mark II car was built in England. Carol Shelby supervised the racing program and decided to introduce a 7-liter engine to the car. The car became more stable and faster than the previous generation.

Comparing with the Mark I, in this new generation, the chassis, suspension mounting points, A-arms and uprights were all reinforced. The second generation GT40 was 17% lighter and consequently faster.