Lola vs Chaparral

Lore & Background

The GT40 effort began in Britain in 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, US, to design and build cars by its advanced developer, Kar Kraft. The GT40 debuted in 1964, and improvements in 1965 led to 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 the finish line together, the second in 1967 with the same engine now in quite different US-built Mk.IV prototype chassis similar to the 'J-car' mule. In order to lower ever-higher race top speeds, a rule change from 1968 onwards limited prototypes to 3.0 litre Formula 1 engines; the sportscar 'loophole' allowed the private JW 'Gulf Oil' team to win at Le Mans in 1968 and 1969 running a Mk.I with a 5.0 litre engine.

In Their Own Story

The fog rolled off the Mulsanne Straight, obscuring the grandstands as the Lola T70 crested the hill. Its engine note was a familiar British growl, steady and rhythmic. Behind it, emerging from the mist like a silver shark, came the Chaparral prototype, low to the ground with its distinctive nose. The pit lane crew watched anxiously; one represented proven durability, the other untested speed. As they entered the final hour of darkness, the rivalry was not in their eyes, but in the engineering on the tarmac.

Reader's Guide

The GT40 Mk II car broke Ferrari's winning streak at the 1966 Le Mans, 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 and this victory also remains 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 tires (Goodyear).

Did You Know?

• The 'GT' in 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 Mk.III designation was used for some road-legal cars.