Autoblog

Click above for high-res gallery of the Superformance MkII GT40

Perhaps the greatest achievement of Americans in motorsports is winning the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ford and Shelby brought home not only the overall victory, but the Ford GT40 captured the top three spots. It was a resounding victory for an American team with an American car.

Those wanting to play the role of Ken Miles or Bruce McLaren have a cheaper alternative than purchasing one of the three original GT40s that made a photo finish at Le Mans. Superformance and Shelby Distribution USA have created a Shelby 85th Commemorative MkII GT40 celebrating Shelby's birthday and the 1966 victory that can be ordered in the same paint schemes as those top three GT40s. Lest you think this is a mere replicar, the Superformance GT40 is 90% interchangeable with the original race car. Both street and race versions are available, with power coming from a Shelby-branded Roush V8 crate motor. Only 85 of each color will be produced, and each will be included in the Shelby Registry. Follow the jump for the press release.

[Source: Shelby Distribution USA]

The Ford GT has always been badass. When it went into production in 2003, all of those kit cars from back in the day suddenly paled in comparison to a genuine GT40-inspired supercar. It was a relative bargain, too. Of course, when we say relative bargain, we mean expensive. Always willing to settle, we've found a way to claim with a straight face that we own a GT. It's still not cheap, but it's hundreds, not hundreds of thousands. Winding Road has pointed us to the 1:6 scale remote control Ford GT over at wowzzers.com. Equipped with a 23cc engine, this three-plus foot long vehicle can buzz around at a maximum speed around 60 mph. Christmas is coming, and it's only $650.

[Source: Winding Road]

Clarkson's never-ending Ford GT saga has been well documented since his initial purchase in 2004. A few articles in his Times UK column, coupled with occasional quips from his co-hosts on Top Gear have made his plight public record. Now, a video-savvy fanboy has put together all the clips from TG to give the definitive account of Jezza's story. Naturally, it's comical in it's own sad, sad way.

Having worked through a two-year automotive technology degree, I have worked on my fair share of donated vehicles. Most came in the form of 165,000-mile woody station wagons that weren't worth the value of the tires they rolled in on. Nicolas Cage was apparently impressed by the program at Universal Technical Institute in Phoenix, so he wanted to be sure there would be plenty to talk about for the recruiters working hard to attract new students.

From his personal vehicle collection, Cage donated his 2005 Ford GT to the school to use in a display for a November 29th open house. The vehicle will then be used by the students to learn how to add performance tweaks as well as disassemble and reassemble the GT as a part of their training. Kind of like getting a Nicole Kidman look-alike to work on in medical school.

[Source: AutoWeek]

Most kit cars we come across are near faithful representations of their muse. Unfortunately, there's always something a little off about the design that doesn't quite match up with the way we remember the original, and nearly always they're only skin deep, offering up merely the appearance of authenticity with the substance of something much lesser. Superformance, the producers of the best Cobra and Cobra Daytona Coupes replicas in the business, builds something a little more than a "kit car". All of its products are complete factory manufactured rollers minus an engine and transmission. This allows the company to bust a fat right around complex emissions and safety regulations by classifying their products as kit cars, though obviously they're so much more.

One of Superformance's current products is its most ambitious ever: a GT40 so realistic and faithful to the original that it's currently being evaluated for historic racing eligibility. What you're looking at is not a modern tube-frame chassis shrink wrapped in a fiberglass body; the Superformance GT40 MkII has a super rigid steel monocoque chassis that's covered in an all-steel body, just like the original MKIIs that made Enzo weep. Nearly everything is just like the original, right down to the "Gurney bump" in the roof. Of course, concessions were made in some areas in the interests of durability, weight savings and safety, but 90% of the parts are interchangeable with the original GT40 MkII, which is amazing. Most notable differences from the source car include the addition of air conditioning and more modern brakes, along with the fact it comes from the factory as LHD instead of RHD. Since it comes without an engine and transmission, you can drop in any engine that fits, but Superformance recommends a ROUSH 427 motor producing 530 horsepower.

The Superformance GT40 MkII looks as good today as it did back then, although it doesn't hurt being photographed by the excellent snapper, Drew Philips, of Fast-Autos.net. Check out the read link to see a full gallery of shots and read Drew's writeup after driving the GT40 MkII on the street.

[Source: Fast-Autos.net]

Even with Ford's GT making 550 HP (somewhat underrated) courtesy of a supercharger, of course we all know that there will still be owners out there who seek more power. Once the route of pulley swaps has been explored, where to go next? Stage 6 Motorsports thinks that it has the answer in the form of a twin-turbo kit.

The stock Eaton blower is replaced with a pair of Garrett GT35R scrolls from Precision Turbo, which are mounted behind the engine and inboard of the shock towers. Custom exhaust work brings up the hot gases from the low-mounted stock manifolds, and new downpipes dump the spent exhaust through the stock bodywork opening. A custom "hat" adapts a 95mm throttle body and routes compressed air through the stock intercooler (which is built into the intake manifold), and the OEM fuel system remains intact.

The video shows the car putting down over 830 HP on the dyno, and Stage 6 claims that this same vehicle has put down 1012 RWHP with further work. A kit involving fuel system upgrades and internal engine modifications is said to be under development, with potential for several hundred more HP.

While not all of us can identify the effort it takes to fabricate a twin-turbo install for a Ford GT in five days, the terse "I'm staying at the shop and won't be home until much later" phone call with a significant other that occurs at the 9:30 mark in the above video is something to which most of us can relate.

[Source: Streetfire.com; a hat tip to Dubbedinenglish]

Warning: a bit of NSFW language is sprinkled throughout the clip

Ford reunites GT40 trio that swept Le Mans in '66

click for high-resolution version

2006 marks the 40th anniversary of Ford's 1-2-3 finish at the 24 Hours of Le Mans back in 1966. Born out Ford's desire to be beat Ferrari at its own game, the historic victory came courtesy of three GT40 Mark II race cars that this week were reunited at the Le Mans Classic to commemorate the anniversary. This was the first time all three cars had been together since Ford commemorated the racing event's 30th anniversary some 10 years ago.

Ford of Europe even went to the trouble of shipping the first place car, a black and silver Shelby American Mark II, all the way from the U.S. where it resides under the ownership of American collector George Stauffer.

Ford restaged the 1-2-3 finish for the benefit of photographers, who likely won't get a chance to capture the recreation for another ten years.

(A few more high-resolution pics after the jump)

[Source: Ford]

Forty years ago, the determination of Henry Ford II to show the world that his company could build a car to compete and win at the pinnacle of international sports car racing was finally rewarded at the 1966 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ford's GT40 Mark IIs dominated the race, finishing 1-2-3 (above), and Henry Ford II was there to savor the moment, joining Carroll Shelby's winning team of Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon on the podium.

At this year's Le Mans Classic, the popular historic racecar event held annually at the Le Mans circuit, the winning GT40 from 1966 will be joined by the second and third place cars (the Shelby team of Ken Miles and Denny Hulme, and the Holman & Moody team of Ronnie Bucknum and Dick Hutcherson) to recreate the famous 1966 finish in a unique on-track photo op. The latter two cars will also compete in the Le Mans Classic race, vying for a special one-off commemorative winner's trophy to be presented by Ford Europe president John Fleming.

The winning car will also make a run up Lord March's driveway at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed, piloted by none other than Dan Gurney (who actually started the practice of spraying onlookers with the victor's champagne when he won at Le Mans).

Full press release and more pics after the jump.

With less than a week to go before the 2006 Goodwood Festival of Speed, the announcements from participating marques continue to roll in. Ford will celebrate the 40th anniversary of its 1-2-3 finish at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans and its 4-year win streak at Circuit de la Sarthe by sending one of its original GT40 racing cars prepared for Goodwood in the 1966 winning livery.

Le Mans winners Dan Gurney (1967) and Jackie Oliver (1969) will drive the black #2 GT40 up the hill next weekend. To reiterate, attendees at Goodwood will get to see Dan Gurney, American motorsports icon of the first order, drive a GT40 up the Goodwood hill. Really, the only way it could be better is if he was driving a Mk IV from 1967, but that's probably being greedy.

While the GT40 is the star attraction from the Blue Oval, they're also sending a modern Ford GT for the hillclimb and a 2006 BP Ford Focus RS WRC (currently second in the WRC manufacturer standings). The Focus will be driven on both the hillclimb and the forest rally stage at Goodwood by its regular pilots, Marcus Gronholm and Mikko Hirvonen.

A number of privately-owned Fords and Ford-powered cars are also entered in the festival.

(Press releases, photos after the jump)

[Source: Ford]

We at Autoblog hear the same lament all the time... "I love my Ford GT, but with just 550 horsepower, it's a shade on the pokey side." Well, LeMans-if-not-for-traffic pilots, the go-faster guys and gals at Roush feel your pain.

To that end, they've just introduced a GT replacement pulley kit reportedly good for 25 horsepower and 25 lb.-ft. of torque. The kit comes with a new pulley (natch), a replacement belt, a couple of quarts of supercharger gear case oil and sealant.

The best part? The MSRP is a shade over $300... which isn't bad for something good for 25/25. Besides, for enthusiastic Ford GT owners, that's a drop in the proverbial bucket. Now, if we could just get the gurus over at Roush to lend us a proper test rig...

[Sources: Roush; Ford Motor Company]