The Ford GT90 is a high performance concept car that was developed and manufactured by American car maker Ford . It was unveiled in January 1995 at the Detroit Auto Show . The car is currently on display at Hajek Motorsports Museum, Ames, Oklahoma.
90-540: The mid-engined GT90 is a spiritual successor to the Ford GT40 , taking from it some styling cues, such as doors that cut into the roofline, but little else. In regard to angles and glass, the Ford GT90 was the first Ford to display the company's " New Edge " design philosophy. The GT90 was built around a honeycomb-section aluminum monocoque and its body panels were molded from carbon fiber . The GT90's 48-valve V12
180-527: A Hewland LG500 and at least one automatic gearbox. It was later upgraded to Mk II specifications with a 427 cu in (7 L) engine and a standard four ratio Kar Kraft (subsidiary of Ford) gearbox, however, the car kept specific features such as its open roof and lightweight aluminium chassis. The car went on to win the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1966. The X-1 was a one-off and, having been built in the United Kingdom and being liable for United States tariffs ,
270-764: A Lincoln Town Car as a test mule, in which they put the prototype engine in order to refine it. The GT90 was originally going to be the successor to the Ford GT40 and Ford GT70 , and the predecessor to the Ford GT , but after the plan for production was cancelled, the chronology was changed, making the Ford GT the new successor to the GT40 and GT70. The Ford GT90 appeared in the video games Need for Speed II , Sega GT 2002 , Sega GT Online , Ford Racing 2 , Ford Racing 3 , Gran Turismo 2 , Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA , TOCA Race Driver 2 , Top Drives , Project Gotham Racing 3 and Ford Street Racing . The car
360-511: A "bread-van" body-design that experimented with " Kammback " aerodynamic theories. Miles' fatal accident was attributed at least partly to the unproven aerodynamics of the J-car design, and to the experimental chassis' strength that had no roll cage yet. The team embarked on a complete redesign of the car, which became known as the Mk ;IV. The Mk IV newer design, with a Mk II engine but
450-551: A Ford box) in place of the overpowered ZF five-speed (which had already belatedly replaced the over-stressed Colleti in the Mk I) used in the Mk I. In 1966, the three teams racing the Mk II ( Chris Amon and Bruce McLaren , Denny Hulme and Ken Miles , and Dick Hutcherson and Ronnie Bucknum ) dominated Le Mans, taking European audiences by surprise and beating Ferrari to finish 1-2-3 in
540-533: A company that could build a Ferrari-beater on the world endurance-racing circuit. To this end, Ford began negotiation with Lotus , Lola , and Cooper . Cooper had no experience in GT or prototype and its performances in Formula One were declining. The Lola proposal was chosen since Lola had used a Ford V8 engine in its mid-engined Lola Mk6 (also known as Lola GT). It was one of the most advanced racing cars of
630-472: A different chassis and a different body, won the following year at Le Mans (when four Mark IVs, three Mark IIs, and three Mark Is raced). The high speeds achieved in that race caused a rule change, which already came into effect in 1968: the prototypes were limited to the capacity of 3.0 litres, the same as in Formula One since 1966. This took out the V12-powered Ferrari 330P ,
720-630: A few seconds with the already outdated GT40 Mk I, in the very car that had won in 1968 – the legendary chassis GT40P/1075. Apart from brake-wear in the Porsche and the decision not to change brake-pads so close to the end of the race, the winning combination was relaxed driving by both GT40 drivers and heroic efforts at the right time by (at that time Le Mans' rookie) Ickx, who would go on to win Le Mans five more times in later years. In addition to four consecutive overall Le Mans victories, Ford also won
810-492: A front-engine or rear-engine car. When the engine is in front of the driver, but fully behind the front axle line, the layout is sometimes called a front mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, or FMR layout instead of the less-specific term front-engine; and can be considered a subset of the latter. In-vehicle layout, FMR is substantially the same as FR, but handling differs as a result of the difference in weight distribution. Some vehicles could be classified as FR or FMR depending on
900-532: A late stage due to disputes about the ability to direct open-wheel racing. Ferrari, who wanted to remain the sole operator of his company's motorsports division, was angered when he was told that he would not be allowed to race at the Indianapolis 500 if the deal went through, since Ford fielded Indy cars using its own engine and didn't want competition from Ferrari. Enzo cut the deal off out of spite and Henry Ford II, enraged, directed his racing division to find
990-478: A maximum torque of 395 lb⋅ft (536 N⋅m) at 4,750 rpm. A total of 31 Mk I cars were built at the Slough factory in "road" trim, which differed little from the race versions. Wire wheels, carpet, ruched fabric map pockets in the doors and a cigarette lighter made up most of the changes. Some cars deleted the ventilated seats, and at least one (chassis 1049) was built with the opening metal-framed windows from
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#17327876931031080-458: A problem in some cars, but this issue seems to have been largely solved in newer designs. For example, the Saleen S7 employs large engine-compartment vents on the sides and rear of the bodywork to help dissipate heat from its very high-output engine. Mid-engined cars are more dangerous than front-engined cars if the driver loses control - although this may be initially harder to provoke due to
1170-405: A progressive and controllable manner as the tires lose traction. Super, sport, and race cars frequently have a mid-engined layout, as these vehicles' handling characteristics are more important than other requirements, such as usable space. In dedicated sports cars, a weight distribution of about 50% front and rear is frequently pursued, to optimise the vehicle's driving dynamics – a target that
1260-532: A quarter mile (400 m) time of 10.9 seconds at 140 mph (225 km/h). Top speed was listed as 253 mph (407 km/h). The GT90 was built as a secret project by a small engineering team in just over six months. It shared many components including the transmission and chassis from the Jaguar XJ220 , as Jaguar was also owned by Ford at the time. The V12 engine, unique to the GT90, was developed by using
1350-769: A road-legal passenger car and a race car; it was reliable and comfortable, but heavy ". Unlike the earlier Mk I - III cars, the chassis of which were built in Britain, the Mk IV car was built entirely in the United States by Kar Kraft, Ford's performance division in Detroit . Thus, Le Mans 1967 still remains both the only all-American victory in Le Mans history — American drivers ( Dan Gurney and A. J. Foyt ), team ( Shelby-American Inc. ), chassis constructor ( Ford ), engine manufacturer (Ford), and tyres ( Goodyear ) — as well as
1440-424: A skid or spin out. If the mid-engine vehicle is also rear-drive the added weight on the rear tires can also improve acceleration on slippery surfaces, providing much of the benefit of all-wheel-drive without the added weight and expense of all-wheel-drive components. The mid-engine layout makes ABS brakes and traction control systems work better, by providing them more traction to control. The mid-engine layout may make
1530-401: A vehicle safer since an accident can occur if a vehicle cannot stay in its own lane around a curve or is unable to stop quickly enough. Mid-engine design is also a way to provide additional empty crush space in the front of the automobile between the bumper and the windshield, which can then be designed to absorb more of the impact force in a frontal collision in order to minimize penetration into
1620-454: Is about the GT40's development and victory at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Henry Ford II had wanted a Ford at Le Mans since the early 1960s. In early 1963, Ford reportedly received word through a European intermediary that Enzo Ferrari was interested in selling to Ford Motor Company. Ford reportedly spent several million dollars in an audit of Ferrari factory assets and in legal negotiations, only to have Ferrari unilaterally cut off talks at
1710-401: Is constructed on an aluminium block and head, displaces 5.9-litres (5,927 cc), and produces an estimated 720 hp (537 kW; 730 PS) and 660 lb⋅ft (895 N⋅m) of torque. It has a redline of 6,300 rpm. It is equipped with a forced induction system that uses four Garrett T2 turbochargers . The engine architecture was based on the 90-degree Ford Modular engine family, based on
1800-408: Is typically only achievable by placing the engine somewhere between the front and rear axles. Usually, the term "mid-engine" has been primarily applied to cars having the engine located between the driver and the rear drive axles. This layout is referred to as rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive , (or RMR) layout. The mechanical layout and packaging of an RMR car are substantially different from that of
1890-500: The 1964 Nassau race . The cars were sent directly to Shelby, still bearing the dirt and damage from the Nassau race. Carroll Shelby was noted for complaining that the cars were poorly maintained when he received them, but later information revealed the cars were packed up as soon as the race was over, and FAV never had a chance to clean and organize the cars to be transported to Shelby. Shelby's first victory came on their maiden race with
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#17327876931031980-529: The 1966 Le Mans , the GT40 Mk II car broke Ferrari's winning streak, making Ford the first American manufacturer to win a major European race since Jimmy Murphy 's Duesenberg in the 1921 French Grand Prix . In the 1967 Le Mans , the GT40 Mk IV car became the only car developed and assembled entirely (both chassis and engine) in the United States to achieve the overall win at Le Mans. The "GT" in
2070-476: The 1968 International Championship for Makes . The GT40's intended 3.0 l replacements, the Ford P68 , and John Wyer JWA Gulf Mirage cars proved a dismal failure. While facing more experienced prototypes and the new yet still unreliable 4.5 l flat-12 -powered Porsche 917s , Wyer's 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans winners Jacky Ickx / Jackie Oliver managed to beat the remaining 3.0-liter Porsche 908 by just
2160-651: The Ford Motor Company to compete in 1960s European endurance racing . Its specific impetus was to best Scuderia Ferrari , which had won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans race for six years running from 1960 to 1965 . Around 100 cars have been made, mostly as 289 cu in (4.7 L) V8-powered Mk Is, some sold to private teams or as road legal Mk III cars. Racing started in 1964, with Ford winning World Championships categories from 1966 to 1968. The first Le Mans win came in 1966 with three 427 cu in (7.0 L) powered Mk.II prototypes crossing
2250-604: The 1950s and 1960s, e.g. the AEC Reliance . The Ferrari Mondial is to date the only successful example of a true mid-engined convertible with seating for 4 and sports car/supercar performance. A version of the Lotus Evora with a removable roof panel is anticipated but no definite date is known. Like any layout where the engine is not front-mounted and facing the wind, the traditional "engine-behind-the-passengers" layout makes engine cooling more difficult. This has been
2340-415: The 24 hours and would, in the event of a tie for first place, be the winner. Secondly, Ford officials admitted later, the company's contentious relationship with Miles, its top contract driver, placed executives in a difficult position. They could reward an outstanding driver who had been at times extremely difficult to work with, or they could decide in favor of drivers (McLaren/Amon) who had committed less to
2430-577: The 3.0 litre engine size used in Formula 1 since 1966, and the Ford P68 (also Ford 3L GT or F3L) was a Ford-sponsored attempt to compete in that category with the Cosworth V8 F1 engine. Since the 1970s, there was growing interest from enthusiasts rather than racers in Ford GT40s that could not be satisfied with the remaining GT40s, even though around 100 had originally been made. This led to
2520-404: The 4.7-liter, bored to 4.9 litre, and O-rings cut and installed between the block and head to prevent head gasket failure, a common problem found with the 4.7 engine. The JWA Mk I won the 24 hours of Le Mans race in 1968 against the fragile smaller 3.0 litre prototypes from Porsche, Alfa and others. This result, added to four other WC round wins for the GT40, gave Ford unexpected victory in
2610-512: The 7-liter Mk II to dominate the following year. In February, the GT40 again won at Daytona. This was the first year Daytona was run in the 24 Hour format and Mk II's finished 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. In March, at the 1966 12 Hours of Sebring , GT40s again took all three top finishes, with the X-1 Roadster first, a Mk II taking second, and a Mk I in third. Then in June, at the 24 Hours of Le Mans ,
2700-566: The BOAC International 500 at Brands Hatch. Later victories included the Grand Prix de Spa, 21st Annual Watkins Glen Sports Car Road Race and the 1000 km di Monza. The engine installed on this car was a naturally aspirated Windsor 302 cu in (4.9 L) V8 with a compression ratio of 10.6:1; fuel fed by four 2-barrel 48 IDA Weber carburettors, rated at 317 kW (425 hp; 431 PS) at 6,000 rpm and
2790-595: The Chaparral V8, Jaguar XJ13 V12 and the Ford Mk ;IV. The rule change of late 1967 meant that there would be few prototype entries in early 1968, most of them of (too) small capacity, like 2.0 litre Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 and 2.2 litre Porsche 907 , later 3.0 litre Porsche 908 . Ferrari remained absent in protest. Most of the few F1 engines were too unreliable for endurance, let alone 24 hours. Ford's own Cosworth V8 had been introduced to F1 in 1967, where it
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2880-505: The Ford GT40 and the first win at Daytona February 1965 was achieved. Much was later modified and run by J.W. Automotive (JW) in 1968 and 1969, winning Le Mans in both those years and Sebring in 1969. The Mk II and IV were both obsolete after the FIA had changed the rules to ban unlimited capacity engines, ruling out the 427 cu in (7 L) Ford V8. However, the Mk I, with its smaller engine,
2970-559: The Ford X-1. Two lightweight cars (of a planned five), AMGT40/1 and AMGT40/2, were built by Alan Mann Racing in 1966, with light alloy bodies and other weight-saving modifications. The Mk I met with little success in its initial tune for the 1964 and 1965 Le Mans races. The first success came after their demise at the Nassau Speed Weekend Nov 1964 when the racing was handed over to Carrol Shelby. Shelby's team modified
3060-458: The Ford program but who had been easier to deal with. Ford stuck with the orchestrated photo finish. What happened on the last lap remains the subject of speculation. Either Miles, deeply bitter over this decision after his dedication to the program, issued his own protest by suddenly slowing just yards from the finish and letting McLaren across the line first, or Bruce McLaren accelerated just before
3150-594: The Ford program, with Ken Miles and Lloyd Ruby taking a Shelby American-entered Ford GT40 to victory in the Daytona 2000km in February 1965. One month later, Ken Miles and Bruce McLaren came in second overall (to the winning Chaparral in the sports class) and first in prototype class at the Sebring 12-hour race. The rest of the season, however, was a disappointment. The experience gained in 1964 and 1965 allowed
3240-462: The Ford team that Gurney and Foyt, in an effort to compromise on chassis settings, had hopelessly "dialed out" their car - despite Gurney having been the fastest GT40 pilot in the 1966 practice and race. Also, Gurney was developing his own Eagle V12 F1 car with which he would win the 1967 Belgian Grand Prix the very next weekend. The Mk IV ran in only two races, the April 1967 12 Hours of Sebring and
3330-747: The GT/101 was unveiled in England on 1 April and soon after exhibited in New York. Purchase price of the completed car for competition use was £5,200. It was powered by the 4.7 L HiPo (K-code) 289 cu in Fairlane engine with a Colotti transaxle. An aluminium block DOHC version, known as the Ford Indy Engine, was used in later years at Indy, where won in 1965 in the Lotus 38. The Ford GT40
3420-511: The GT40 achieved yet another 1–2–3 result. The "orchestrated" Le Mans finish, however, was clouded in controversy: The No1 car of Ken Miles and Denny Hulme held a four lap lead over the No2 car of Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon . This disintegrated when the No1 car was forced to make a pit-stop for replacement brake rotors, following an incorrect set being fitted a lap prior in a scheduled rotor change. It
3510-535: The GT90 gets so hot that it would be enough to damage the body panels, and thus ceramic tiles, similar to those on the Space Shuttle , are used to keep the car from melting. The suspension is a double wishbone variant. The steering is a power-assisted rack-and-pinion. The brakes are ventilated discs. The GT90, according to Ford, was capable of accelerating from 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) in 3.1 seconds, 0–100 mph (0–161 km/h) in 6.2 seconds, and had
3600-496: The GT90 would change, as shown in Series 3, Episode 1 (aired on 26 October 2003, the month and day is coincidentally the same as when the GT90 was tested 8 years back), “And then, in 1995, there was the GT90. I actually drove this, and it was horrid! Had a top speed of 40, it handled like it was in a cartoon.” Ford GT40 The Ford GT40 is a high-performance mid-engined racing car originally designed and built for and by
3690-481: The J-car was resumed, and a second car was built. During a test session at Riverside International Raceway in August 1966 with Ken Miles driving, the car suddenly went out of control at the end of its high-speed, one-mile-long (1.6 km) back straight. The honeycomb chassis shattered upon impact, and the car burst into flames, killing Miles. It was determined that the unique, flat-topped "bread van" aerodynamics of
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3780-481: The June 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans , and won both events. Only one Mk IV was completed for Sebring; the pressure from Ford had been increased considerably after Ford's humiliation at the 1967 Daytona 24h in early February, when Ferrari staged a 1-2-3 finish, honored later by naming a road car the Ferrari Daytona . Mario Andretti and Bruce McLaren won Sebring, Dan Gurney and A. J. Foyt won Le Mans (their car
3870-599: The Mk III. The X-1 was a roadster built to contest the Fall 1965 North American Pro Series, a forerunner of Can-Am , entered by the Bruce McLaren team and driven by Chris Amon. The car had an aluminium chassis built at Abbey Panels and was originally powered by a 289 cu in (4.7L) engine. The real purpose of this car was to test several improvements originating from Kar Kraft, Shelby, and McLaren. Several gearboxes were used:
3960-642: The Reims 12 Hours in France. For the Daytona, two Mk II models (chassis 1016 and 1047) had their bodies and engines re-badged as Mercury vehicles and engines to promote that division of the Ford Motor Company. In 2018, a Mk II that was 3rd overall at the 1966 Le Mans 24 Hours was sold by RM Sotheby's for $ 9,795,000 (£7,624,344) - the highest price paid at that time for a GT40 at auction. The Mk III
4050-510: The brakes from the Mk II, the Mk IV was totally different from other GT40s, using a specific, all-new chassis and bodywork. It was undoubtedly the most radical and American variant of all the GT40s over the years. As a direct result of the Miles accident, the team installed a NASCAR-style steel-tube roll cage in the Mk IV, which made it much safer, but the roll cage was so heavy that it negated most of
4140-474: The brakes, Gurney developed a strategy (also adopted by co-driver A.J. Foyt who had just won the 1967 Indianapolis 500 ) of backing completely off the throttle several hundred yards before the approach to the Mulsanne hairpin and virtually coasting into the braking area. This technique saved the brakes, but the resulting increase in the car's recorded lap times during practice led to mistaken speculation within
4230-556: The car proved to be fastest in the field at Le Mans in 1967, achieving 213 mph on the 3.6-mile Mulsanne Straight . Dan Gurney, who was 6 feet 4 inches tall, requested a bubble-shaped bodywork extension over the driver's seat to accommodate him. Gurney also complained about the weight of the Mk IV, which was 600 pounds (270 kg) more than the Ferrari 330 P4, and, combined with its higher speed, put more stress on its brakes. During practice at Le Mans in 1967, in an effort to preserve
4320-447: The car's name stands for grand touring , and the "40" its height in inches (1.02 m) measured at the top of the windscreen, the minimum allowed. The first 12 "prototype" vehicles carried serial numbers GT-101 to GT-112. Production GT40s (Mk I, Mk II, Mk III, and Mk IV) began with GT40P/1000. The contemporary Ford GT is a modern homage to the GT40, produced in two generations (beginning in 2005, and 2018). The 2019 movie Ford v Ferrari
4410-494: The car, and upgrade safety to modern standards he thought prudent. While the GT40 chassis was upgraded without making any major changes, Bailey upgraded the front suspension to Alan Mann Racing specifications, which minimized nose-dive under braking. Zinc coated steel replaced the previous uncoated rust-prone sheet metal. The vulnerable drive donuts were replaced with CV joints and the leak-prone rubber gas tanks were replaced with aluminium. Metal fabricator Tennant Panels supplied
4500-466: The car, lacking any sort of spoiler, led to excess lift. Therefore, a conventional but significantly more aerodynamic body was designed. A total of nine cars were constructed with J-car specification chassis, with six designated as Mk IVs and one as the G7A. The Mk IV was built around a reinforced J chassis powered by the same 7.0 L engine as the Mk II. Excluding the engine, gearbox, some suspension parts and
4590-521: The case of the Ferrari FF taking power from both ends of the crankshaft with two separate gearboxes. These cars use a traditional engine layout between driver and rear drive axle. Typically, they're simply called MR; for mid-rear (engined), or mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout cars. These cars use mid-ship, four-wheel-drive , with an engine between the axles. These cars are "mid-ship engined" vehicles, but they use front-wheel drive , with
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#17327876931034680-641: The decision just before the two got into their cars for the final stint. Then, not long before the finish, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), organizers of the Le Mans event, informed Ford that the geographical difference in starting positions would be taken into account at a close finish. This meant that the McLaren/Amon vehicle, which had started perhaps 60 feet (18 m) behind the Hulme-Miles car, would have covered slightly more ground over
4770-406: The drivers to settle the outcome by racing each other—and risk one or both cars breaking down or crashing; they could dictate a finishing order to the drivers—guaranteeing that one set of drivers would be extremely unhappy; or they could arrange a tie, with the McLaren/Amon and Miles/Hulme cars crossing the line side by side. The team chose the latter and informed Shelby. He told McLaren and Miles of
4860-521: The early 1960s when Ford Advanced Vehicles began to build the Mk I, based upon the British Lola Mk6 , in Slough , UK. After disappointing race results, the engineering team was moved in 1964 to Dearborn, Michigan , USA, to design and build cars by its advanced developer, Kar Kraft . All chassis versions were powered by a series of American-built Ford V8 OHV engines modified for racing. In
4950-413: The engine placed between the driver and the front axle. This layout, similar to the above FMR layout, with the engine between driver and the front axle, adds front-wheel drive to become a four-wheel drive. An engineering challenge with this layout is getting the power to the front wheels past the engine - this would normally involve raising the engine to allow a propshaft to pass under the engine, or in
5040-562: The factory-installed engine (I4 vs I6). Historically most classical FR cars such as the Ford Models T and A would qualify as an FMR engine car. Additionally, the distinction between FR and FMR is a fluid one, depending on the degree of engine protrusion in front of the front axle line, as manufacturers mount engines as far back in the chassis as possible. Not all manufacturers use the Front-Mid designation. These cars are RWD cars with
5130-468: The fastest time at the Le Mans trials that year. The tub weighed only 86 lb (39 kg), and the entire car weighed only 2,660 lb (1,207 kg), 300 lb (136 kg) less than the Mk II. In spite of this, it was decided to run the Mk IIs due to their proven reliability, and little or no development was done on the J-car for the rest of the season. Following Le Mans, the development program for
5220-451: The finish line robbing Miles of his victory. Either way, McLaren's car was declared the victor. Neither driver had many opportunites to elaborate on the event, as both died testing new race cars, McLaren in 1970. Already two months later in 1966 Ken Miles died at the wheel of the Ford "J-car" at Riverside Raceway . The J-car was a GT40 prototype that included several unique features, most notably an aluminium-honeycomb chassis-construction and
5310-424: The finish line together, the second in 1967 by a similarly powered highly modified US-built Mk.IV "J-car" prototype. In order to lower ever-higher race top speeds, a rule change from 1968 onwards limited prototypes to 3.0 litre Formula 1 engines; a loophole, however, allowed the private JW "Gulf Oil" team win at Le Mans in 1968 and 1969 running a Mk.I with a 5.0 litre engines. The GT40 effort began in Britain in
5400-575: The following four FIA international titles (at what was then unofficially known as the World Sportscar Championship ) with the GT40 car: The Mk I was the original Ford GT40. Early prototypes were powered by 255 cu in (4.2 L) alloy V8 engines and production models were powered by 289 cu in (4.7 L) engines as used in the Ford Mustang . Five prototype models were built with roadster bodywork, including
5490-439: The fore and aft weight distribution by other means, such as putting the engine in the front and the gearbox and battery in the rear of the vehicle. Another benefit comes when the heavy mass of the engine is located close to the back of the seats. It makes it easier for the suspension to absorb the force of bumps so the riders feel a smoother ride. But in sports cars, the engine position is once again used to increase performance and
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#17327876931035580-419: The last used serial number. Maintaining the vehicle's Mark nomenclature, the new cars would be referred to as GT40 Mk Vs. JW Engineering wished to complete the existing GT40 chassis numbers GT40P-1087, 1088 and 1089 prior to the beginning of Safir production; this, however, was very much delayed. Ford's Len Bailey was hired to inspect the proposed build and engineer any changes to minimize known problems with
5670-420: The most part, the Mk V resembled very closely the Mk I car; as with the '60s production, very few cars were identical. Mid-engine In automotive engineering , a mid-engine layout describes the placement of an automobile engine in front of the rear-wheel axles , but behind the front axle. The mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive format can be considered the original layout of automobiles. A 1901 Autocar
5760-548: The new car at the Lola Factory in Bromley. At the end of 1963, the team moved to Slough , near Heathrow Airport . Ford then established Ford Advanced Vehicles (FAV) Ltd, a new subsidiary under the direction of Wyer, to manage the project. The first chassis built by Abbey Panels of Coventry was delivered on 16 March 1964, with fibreglass mouldings produced by Fibre Glass Engineering Ltd of Farnham . The first "Ford GT"
5850-593: The only victory of a car designed and built entirely (both chassis and engine) in the United States. A total of six Mk IVs were constructed. One of the Mk IVs was rebuilt to Group 7 (motorsport) rules as the Ford G7 in 1968, and used in the Can-Am series for 1969 and 1970, but with no success. By the late 1960s, the Ford GT40s were obsolete in international racing. After 1967, sports car prototypes had been limited to
5940-443: The passenger compartment of the vehicle. In most automobiles, and in sports cars especially, ideal car handling requires balanced traction between the front and rear wheels when cornering, in order to maximize the possible speed around curves without sliding out. This balance is harder to achieve when the heavy weight of the engine is located far to the front or far to the rear of the vehicle. Some automobile designs strive to balance
6030-536: The potentially smoother ride is usually more than offset by stiffer shock absorbers . This layout also allows the motor, gearbox, and differential to be bolted together as a single unit. Together with independent suspension on the driven wheels, this removes the need for the chassis to transfer engine torque reaction. The largest drawback of mid-engine cars is restricted rear or front (in the case of front-mid layouts) passenger space; consequently, most mid-engine vehicles are two-seat vehicles. The engine in effect pushes
6120-550: The production of "continuation models" and replicas. For years Peter Thorp, owner of Safir Engineering, had searched for a GT40 in good condition. Most of the cars had problems, including significant rusting. His company was building and fielding Formula 3 race cars; in addition, it had a Token Formula One car purchased from the Ron Dennis Company, Rondell Racing. Formula One events in which Safir Engineering competed included Brands Hatch and Silverstone . Safir
6210-406: The racing models due to the aforementioned lighting and lengthening for storage many customers interested in buying a GT40 for road use chose to buy a Mk I that was available from Wyer Ltd. In an effort to develop a car with better aerodynamics (potentially resulting in superior control and speed compared to competitors), the decision was made to re-conceptualize and redesign everything about
6300-412: The rear passenger seats forward towards the front axle (if the engine is behind the driver). Exceptions typically involve larger vehicles of unusual length or height in which the passengers can share space between the axles with the engine, which can be between them or below them, as in some vans, large trucks, and buses. The mid-engine layout (with a horizontal engine) was common in single-decker buses in
6390-470: The roof structure, and the balance of the chassis was completed by Safir with parts from Adams McCall Engineering. Bill Pink, noted for his electrical experience and the wiring installation of previous GT40s, was brought in. Also, Jim Rose was hired for his experience with working at both Alan Mann and Shelby. After the manufacture of chassis 1120, John Etheridge was hired to manage the MkV GT40 build. For
6480-431: The sale of the two Lola Mk 6 chassis builds to Ford. To form the development team, Ford also hired the ex- Aston Martin team manager John Wyer . Ford Motor Co. engineer Roy Lunn was sent to England; he had designed the mid-engined Mustang I concept car, making him the only Dearborn engineer to have some experience with that configuration. Overseen by Harley Copp , the team of Broadley, Lunn, and Wyer began working on
6570-497: The same architecture and bore as the 4.6-litre V8 engine , but with four more cylinders added, two more in each cylinder bank, and a shorter stroke. This yielded a 90-degree V12, with a 90.2 mm (3.55 in) bore and a 77.3 mm (3.04 in) stroke with the cylinders arranged in two banks in a single casting. The power produced by the engine is delivered to the rear-wheels through a 5-speed manual transmission developed jointly by FF Developments and Ricardo . The exhaust of
6660-537: The standings. The Ford GT40 went on to win the race for the next three years. For 1967, the Mk IIs were upgraded to "B" spec, with re-designed bodywork and twin Holley carburettors (giving an additional 11 kilowatts (15 hp; 15 PS)). A batch of improperly heat-treated input shafts in the transaxles side-lined virtually every Ford in the race at the 24 Hours of Daytona, however, and Ferrari won 1–2–3. The Mk IIBs were also used for Sebring and Le Mans that year and won
6750-412: The superior balance - and the car begins to spin. The moment of inertia about the center of gravity is low due to the concentration of mass between the axles (similar to standing in the middle of a playground roundabout, rather than at the edge) and the spin will occur suddenly, the car will rotate faster and it will be harder to recover from. Conversely, a front-engined car is more likely to break away in
6840-473: The time and made a noted performance in Le Mans 1963, even though the car did not finish, due to low gearing and slow revving out on the Mulsanne Straight . However, Eric Broadley , Lola Cars' owner and chief designer, agreed on a short-term personal contribution to the project without involving Lola Cars. The agreement with Broadley included a one-year collaboration between Ford and Broadley, and
6930-512: The vehicle other than its 7-liter engine. This became the Mk IV. In order to bring the car into alignment with Ford's "in house" ideology at the time, more restrictive partnerships were implemented with English firms. This resulted in the sale of Ford Advanced Vehicles to John Wyer , ultimately leading to a new vehicle which would be slated for design by Ford's studios and produced by Ford's subsidiary Kar-Kraft under Ed Hull . Furthermore, there
7020-434: The weight saving of the then-highly advanced, radically innovative honeycomb-panel construction. The Mk IV had a long, streamlined shape, which gave it exceptional top speed, crucial to do well at Le Mans (a circuit made up predominantly of straight roads connecting tight corners)—the race it was ultimately built for. A 2-speed automatic gearbox was tried, but during the extensive testing of the J-car chassis in 1966 and 1967, it
7110-478: Was a street-legal version of the GT40 Mk I, with its 289 cu in (4.74 L) engine detuned to 228 kW (306 hp; 310 PS). A total of seven were built, four with right-hand drive, with four headlamps (raised to meet US lighting standards), an expanded rear (for luggage room), softer shock absorbers, a center-mounted shift lever, and an ashtray. As the Mk III looked significantly different from
7200-533: Was a success into the early 1980s, but vibrations prevented it from succeeding in endurance racing ( Ford P68 and others), even though the 1975 and 1980s Le Mans races were won with Ford Cosworth engines, after Matra had won 1972 to 1974 with their V12. To attract more entrants that could compete for overall wins, existing sportscars like the GT40 and the Lola T70 were allowed, with a maximum of 5.0 l if at least 50 cars had been built. John Wyer 's team revised
7290-619: Was also a partnership with the Brunswick Aircraft Corporation for expertise on the novel use of aluminium honeycomb panels bonded together to form a lightweight, rigid "tub". The nickname "J-car" came from its construction to meet the new Appendix J regulations introduced by the FIA in 1966; the redesign resulted in the abandonment of the original Mk I/Mk II chassis. The first J-car was completed in March 1966 and set
7380-520: Was also redesigning and exporting Range Rovers , modifying them to six-wheel drive. Safir had the technical capabilities to rebuild GT40s. Desiring to build new GT40s from scratch, Thorp approached John Willment, partner of John Wyer , for his thoughts. It was soon decided that there would be a limited, further run of the GT40. JW Engineering would oversee the build, with Safir doing the work. The continued JW Engineering/Safir Engineering GT40 production would utilize sequential serial numbers starting at
7470-547: Was decided that the 4-speed from the Mk II would be retained. In 1966 and early 1967, Ford's R&D department in Detroit developed a test rig to simulate circuit laps; the rig was programmed to accurately mimic the characteristics of the target circuit. The Mk IV design was revised based on weeks of simulated Le Mans laps. This was an early example of the now-common practice of using test rigs for Formula One and Le Mans vehicle protoyping. Thanks to its streamlined aerodynamics,
7560-415: Was featured on Top Gear in Series 34, Episode 6 (aired originally on 26th October 1995), tested by Jeremy Clarkson , while the car was still planned to enter production . In that episode, Jeremy was really delighted to test the GT90, as he couldn't fit in the Ford GT40 (which had to be given to drive to a former Old Top Gear presenter Noel Edmonds two episodes earlier). However, Jeremy's opinion about
7650-608: Was first raced in May 1964 at the Nürburgring 1000 km where it retired with suspension failure after holding second place early in the event. Three weeks later at the 24 Hours of Le Mans , all three entries retired, although the Ginther/Gregory car led the field from the second lap until its first pitstop. After a season-long series of dismal results under John Wyer in 1964, the program was handed over to Carroll Shelby after
7740-419: Was found to be a result of the correct brake rotors being taken by the No2 crew. This meant that in the final few hours, the Ford GT40 of New Zealanders Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon closely trailed the leading Ford GT40 driven by Englishman Ken Miles and New Zealander Denny Hulme. With a multimillion-dollar program finally on the very brink of success, Ford team officials faced a difficult choice. They could allow
7830-618: Was later ordered to be destroyed by United States customs officials. The Mk I design was altered separately by both Holman Moody and Shelby American to handle the much larger 427 cu in (7.0 L) "big block" Ford FE engine from the Ford Galaxie , used in NASCAR at the time and modified for road course use. Referred to retroactively as the Ford Mk II , the car had a new Kar Kraft-built four-speed gearbox (KKL-108 also called
7920-628: Was legally able to race as a homologated sports car because of its production numbers. In 1968 competition came from the Porsche 908 , which was the first prototype built for the 3-liter Group 6. The result was a resounding success for the Mk I at the 24 Hours of Le Mans , with Pedro Rodríguez and Lucien Bianchi having a clear lead over the Porsches driving the 'almighty' #9 car with the ' Gulf Oil ' colors. The season began slowly for JW, losing at Sebring and Daytona before taking their first win at
8010-560: Was the Mk IV that was apparently least likely to win), where the Ford-representing Shelby-American and Holman & Moody teams showed up to Le Mans with 2 Mk IVs each. The installation of the roll cage was ultimately credited by many with saving the life of Andretti, who crashed violently at the Esses during the 1967 Le Mans yet escaped with minor injuries. Gurney later described the Mk IV as " half-way between
8100-526: Was the first gasoline-powered automobile to use a drive shaft and placed the engine under the seat. This pioneering vehicle is now in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution . Mounting the engine in the middle instead of the front of the vehicle puts more weight over the rear tires, so they have more traction and provide more assistance to the front tires in braking the vehicle, with less chance of rear-wheel lockup and less chance of
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