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We’ve featured some fast cars – and really, really fast cars – recently. But all of these are fashioned from modern technology, with the likes of carbon fibre, 3D printing and more. Sometimes, it’s best to take a look in the rear-view mirror at some of the greatest race cars history has to offer. One such gem is the 1964 Ford GT40 Prototype Coupe, now up for grabs from Duncan Hamilton Rofgo, one of the world’s top dealers in classic cars.
The Chassis GT/105 is one of only three surviving development makes of the iconic race car. The purpose-built prototype’s raison d’etre was to defeat The Prancing Pony at the long-standing French endurance racing event Le Mans. It was this legendary rivalry between Henry Ford II and Enzo Ferrari that inspired, well, the movie Ford v Ferrari. More importantly, it allowed the American manufacturer to push the boundaries with a team of great engineers, and an even greater budget, like never before.
Innovations that made the vehicle stand out among its peers at that time include the combination of a Ford 256 V8 Indy engine and Colotti T37 4-speed gearbox – all housed in its cutting-edge monocoque chassis. Five makes, GT/101 through 105, were manufactured and put through their paces – mile after gruelling mile. The rest, as we know, is history: Ford clinched the title in 1966 resoundingly, nabbing all podium spots in a clean sweep – and reigning supreme for three years after.
Now, the GT/105 is the only make that hasn’t earned a permanent parking spot in the Shelby Museum. It’s a rarefied collector’s item that’s still fitted with its original V8 engine and is pretty much in pristine condition (or as pristine a condition that endurance motorcars can be in). After all, it’s never sustained any serious damage – every nick and scratch however, is a piece of American history. A piece of history, that perhaps, you might like to own.
Click here for more on the 1964 Ford GT40 Prototype Coupe.
