- RM Sotheby’s will promote a Ford GT40 Mk II on behalf of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum at its upcoming Miami public sale
- The automobile raced within the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, the place Ford famously triumphed over Ferrari
- The present estimate is between $8 million and $11 million
The 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans marked a pivotal level in motorsports, as Ford broke Ferrari’s dominance within the prestigious French endurance race with a surprising 1-2-3 victory.
Decided to defeat the Italian marque after a number of failed makes an attempt within the years prior, Ford developed the GT40 and, along with buyer groups, entered a number of examples within the 1966 race. The vehicles pushed to the historic win have been a trio of GT40 Mk IIs, and a type of went up for public sale in 2018, lastly promoting for $9.8 million.
Now one other GT40 from the race, additionally a Mk II, of which eight have been constructed, is developing for public sale. This one, bearing chassis quantity P/1032, was entered by Holman-Moody and pushed by Mark Donohue and Paul Hawkins. It did not end the race, although, having retired early as a consequence of mechanical points. Its best-placed end was on the 1966 12 Hours of Sebring, the place it completed second, due to the efforts of Donohue and Walt Hansgen.
The automobile is at present a part of the gathering of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, which has consigned RM Sotheby’s to dump a lot of spectacular automobiles to boost funds for its repairs. Others embrace a Ferrari 250 LM that received the 1965 Le Mans race, plus a Mercedes-Benz W196 grand prix automobile raced by Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss.
1966 Ford GT40 Mk II bearing chassis no. P/1032 – Picture by way of RM Sotheby’s
After its comparatively quick racing profession, the GT40 was donated to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum in early 1968. On the time of donation, the automobile was completed in black with white stripes. Its engine was additionally in a non-running situation, and different parts like oil traces, gasoline baggage, and a clutch have been all eliminated, making certain the automobile would stay in static show solely.
Within the mid-2000s, a restoration was undertaken to return the automobile’s exterior to its authentic Holman-Moody livery that it raced with at Le Mans. A full restoration was then accomplished in 2011.
Like all the Mk II GT40s, the automobile packs a 7.0-liter V-8 behind the cabin. For muscle automobile followers, that may be the 427 cubic-inch monster initially used to tear aside NASCAR tracks whereas stuffed between the fenders of the Ford Galaxie. The output of certainly one of these is someplace within the neighborhood of 485 hp, which is a formidable quantity, even right now.
RM Sotheby’s will promote the GT40 at its public sale in Miami operating from Feb. 27-28. The present estimate is between $8 million and $11 million.