Unique Ford GT Le Mans Roadster in $10m sale

The one and only

The sole Ford GT Roadster to contest the Le Mans 24 Hour race, this striking drop-top is something special.

So special, that ahead of its sale with Mecum Auctions later this month, it carries a whopping $7.5-10m pre-sale estimate. Wowsers.

But then there is nothing like it. Here’s its story.

All-French affair

This Ford GT was entered into the 1965 Le Mans 24 Hours by Ford of France with two French drivers: Maurice Trintignant and Guy Ligier.

Bearing the number 15, it wore Ford of France’s racing livery of white with a dark blue central stripe bordered in red – that these are also the colours of the US flag can’t have hurt.

It wasn’t to be

Trintignant and Ligier were experienced pilots. The former had driven a Daytona Coupe for Shelby in the 1964 Tour de France, and Ligier later raced in F1 and established his eponymous team.

But on this occasion at La Sarthe in 1965, on only the 11th lap, the duo retired with gearbox failure.

A true unicorn

This makes this 1965 Ford GT Competition Prototype Roadster GT/109 the only open-cockpit GT to ever take on the French enduro.

It is also one of just five GT Roadsters built by Ford Advanced Vehicles, of which just this and one other survive.

Open for business

Its blue-trimmed cabin must be such an evocative place to sit, the wind in your hair and the same view down the bonnet as those Le Mans racers 55 years ago.

And that is before you consider the eight-cylinder marvel behind you.

The power of eight

Although, as we’ll find out in a minute, this car has been run with several different engines and modifications, V8 power has been the constant.

And how we’d love to hear it.

Back to reality

After taking on the ’65 Le Mans this car, GT/109, returned to Shelby American who, on 28 June, commenced work order number 10059-2, to “rebuild after Le Mans GT/109,”  according to vendor Mecum.

This car’s next stop was Kar Kraft, where it was to be used as a development vehicle.

Testing, testing…

Kar Kraft used it to test its automatic transmission, for the J-car project and to evaluate other experimental parts such as braking systems and Ford’s Weber-carburetted four-cam Indianapolis engine.

Some of this car’s developments – as well as powertrain upgrades – helped another Ford GT Roadster, GT/110 with its aluminium chassis, take victory at the 12 Hours of Sebring.

Down time

GT/109 later went back to Shelby American, was rebuillt and was put into storage for a few years, then moved to a Ford warehouse in Detroit.

It was here that Dean Jeffries found it in 1968 and took it on. Jeffries was a custom car designer and fabricator, as well as a film and TV stuntman.

Good as gold

Jeffries also worked with Carroll Shelby. In fact, he painted the first Cobra prototype for Shelby, before it was shown to Ford’s bosses for approval.

And now with GT/109 in his possession, Jeffries set out on a restoration mission.

The heart of a racer

At one point, Jeffries fitted a four-cam Indy engine, and like this it was presented at Pebble Beach, but then he began restoring it back to how it was when it raced at Le Mans, Shelby himself gifting him the 289cu in unit that he said this car had used at that race.

Jeffries held on to this GT until he died in May 2013.

The restoration game

Dana Mecum, founder of the auction house selling this car later this month, bought GT/109 from Jeffries’ son in 2013.

He then commissioned Harley Cluxton III from GTC Mirage Racing to undertake a concours-quality restoration to its original Le Mans spec.

The difference is in the detail

As part of this work, the GT’s 289cu in engine was rebuilt and refitted.

Its intake manifold is a Ford/Shelby experimental item and it has a Shelby-supplied ‘bundle of snakes’ exhaust, as was used on GT/109 during testing.

Period correct

This work also included a rebuild of the transaxle and the Halibrand magnesium wheels were wrapped in Goodyear Sport Car Special Blue Streak tyres.

GT/109 is also one of three known to have NOS Ford GT Trico wiper blades – plus, it has Carroll Shelby’s signature ‘on/off’ brake-light switch that is original to this car.

Back to the beach

Following this careful work, it was time for this Ford to return to Pebble Beach for 2016’s concours d’elegance.

Here it came second in class, beaten only by Chris Amon and Bruce McLaren’s 1966 Le Mans winning GT40.

Silverware success

But, at long last, GT/109 scooped the top prize.

The week after its Pebble Beach runner-up finish, this car won Best of Show at the Milwaukee Concours d’Elegance.

Ready to move on

So having raced at Le Mans but having had a mere three owners from new, now this history-rich classic Ford is going under the hammer.

And with provenance like that, who’s to say it won’t achieve something close to the top end of its $7.5-10m estimate? That’s around £6-8m, in case you’re wondering.

Ford’s first

It still wears that distinctive – and, we think, very attractive – Ford of France colour scheme, plus the number it wore for its 1965 Le Mans attempt.

And, of course, this very car is the Blue Oval’s first international sports car.

Where it all began

This 1965 Ford GT Competition Prototype Roadster paved the way for the GT40.

And, thanks to a certain Hollywood blockbuster, now everyone knows that in the following year, 1966, Ford’s GT40s beat Ferrari and locked out the podium at Le Mans.

What’s next?

We can but wonder what comes next for this roadster. It is surely too valuable to race, but would it be a crime for it to forever remain silent?

Only time will tell.

Under the hammer

GT/109 will cross the block with Mecum Auctions at its Indy 2020 sale which is being held on 10-18 July, where another famed Ford, Ken Miles’ Mustang, no less, is another headline lot.

Can it hit $10m? We’ll find out soon enough.