The Challenge

By Dan Bolton

The 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans actually began in 1963.

The Ford Motor Company had recently decided to pursue the burgeoning youth market...young Baby Boomers were beginning to come of age, and Ford wanted to identify with them. The best way to do this was to establish a performance image for the brand. It was decided to achieve racing success in Indianapolis-type cars, NASCAR and USAC stock cars and sports/endurance prototype cars. The idea was to “Win on Sunday, and Sell on Monday”. The Indy car and stock car programs were relatively easy to put into place, and were successful from the start, but the sports/endurance car program was a bit more difficult to put together. Ford really wanted to merge with an established sports car manufacturer with a chassis that would accept the Indy car engine. Feelers were put out, and much to its surprise, Ford discovered that Ferrari was for sale.

If Ford could acquire Ferrari, it would be a major coup. No one could deny that Ferrari was the most successful sports/endurance car company in the business, and the road car division was producing cars that became instant classics the moment they hit the road. Ford was granted unprecedented access to the Ferrari factory and the company's books. It was discovered that the company was actually profitable, and it was available for a song. Enzo Ferrari was passionate about racing, but had little interest in building road cars. They were necessary, financially, for the racing programs to continue, nothing more. He would be glad to relinquish the responsibility of running an automobile company if he could devote all of his time and energy to his passion. He courted Ford avidly, and Ford returned the favor. A deal seemed to be a match made in automotive heaven. There was only one sticking point...Enzo demanded full control of the racing operation, and Ford wanted ultimate authority over where and when the cars would run. The deal turned sour very quickly when Ferrari discovered that Ford would not budge on the issue. He had no intention of being told when and where he could race. And, since Ford had poured a great deal of time and money into wooing Ferrari, the mood at Dearborn was one of extreme anger, almost one of betrayal. It appeared to Henry Ford ll that Enzo Ferrari had duped him, and he was out for revenge. “We'll kick his ass...” was the company edict. No expense was to be spared. Thus, the racing world would become a battlefield with corporate pride on the line. The weapon would be the Ford GT 40, one of the most exciting racing cars ever built.

The Car

Lola Mk 6

Many consider the Ford GT 40 to be an Anglo-American creation, but it really wasn't. The car was actually designed in Dearborn and built in England. Eric Broadley's Lola Mk 6 was used as a test bed for the engine and drive train but the GT 40 wasn't based on that car, as many believe. The similarities in appearance come from the layout of both cars. Ford had assembled a veritable dream team of designers and engineers to work on the GT 40 project. In addition to Broadley, Ray Geddes, Roy Lunn, Carroll Shelby and John Wyer were involved in the project.

The first GT 40, named for its height, debuted in New York City on April 1, 1964. It was immediately returned to England for testing for the 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans The car was powered by a 289, and developed 400 hp. It was capable of 200mph on the Mulsanne Straight, but failed to finish. The car also proved to be rather aerodynamically unstable. A rear spoiler was added, and the 289 was replaced by a 427 for 1965. Ford engineers wanted 250 mph on the Mulsanne. The cars ran strong at Le Mans, but again failed to finish, leaving victory to Ferrari. By 1966, however, Ford would finish 1-2-3, crossing the finish line in formation.

1966 Ford J car during test

In addition to the Mk ll's that competed at Le Mans in 1966, Ford also had on hand a new car, the Ford J. The J was powered by the same 427 as the other cars, but was a very different vehicle. Comprised of a bonded aluminum honeycomb chassis that weighed just 85 pounds, the J was 300 pounds lighter than the Mk ll. It was much faster, but was considered to be in need of more development; therefore, in spite of turning the fastest lap in time trials, the car was not raced. Looking like a breadvan, the car was aerodynamically unstable.

Ken Miles

In further testing, Ken Miles crashed the car, and was tragically killed. The rear end of the J was deemed the culprit, and the car was drastically reworked. The tail was reworked, and the chassis was strengthened, as it was proven to be too fragile in Miles' crash. The cars were built in Detroit by Kar Kraft.

At Daytona in 1967, the Mk ll's were fast, but suffered gearbox failures [6 of them!] Ford was embarrassed, to say the least. So, it was decided to trot out the revamped J, now renamed the GT 40 Mk lV. The Mk lV used the same 427 as the Mk ll, but was vastly superior aerodynamically. It won at Sebring with Mario Andretti and Bruce McLaren at the wheel. It was time for a showdown at Le Mans.

Ford GT 40 Mk lV

 

The Race

Four GT 40 Mk lV's were entered at Le Mans in 1967, along with 8 Mk ll's. The Mk lV's were evenly split between Carroll Shelby's and Holman-Moody's race teams. A.J. Foyt and Dan Gurney, both fresh from Indianapolis were slated to drive one car for Shelby, and Bruce McLaren and Mark Donohue the other. Holman-Moody would count on Mario Andretti and Lucien Bianchi to drive a car, with Lloyd Ruby and Denis Hulme in the other. The competition consisted of 3 works Ferrari 330 P4's driven by Mike Parkes/Lodovico Scarfiotti, Gunther Klass/Peter Sutcliffe and Willy Mairesse/Jean Blaton [as Jean Beurlys..]; several Porsche 906's and 907's the most notable driven by Jo Siffert/Hans Herrmann; the afore mentioned GT 40 Mk ll's; two Chaparral 2F's driven by Phil Hill/Mike Spence and Bob Johnson/Bruce Jennings; numerous 330 P3 Ferraris; Porsche 911's and a 1967 Corvette Stingray driven from Paris to Le Mans by Dick Guldstrand and Bob Bondurant on public roads.

1967 Chaparral 2F

1967 Ferrari 330 P4

In practice, A.J. Foyt called the Circuit de la Sarthe “a little old country road”, and only turned in about 10 practice laps. Gurney was very concerned by this, reasoning that Foyt had absolutely no idea of what he was getting into. During qualifying, Bruce McLaren would put the 2nd Shelby Mk lV on the pole. His setup would be adapted to the Gurney/Foyt car for the race.

Start of 1967 Le Mans 24 Hours. Note winged Chaparral 2F

The Gurney/Foyt #1 GT 40 Mk lV at speed at Le Mans

The Andretti/Bianchi Mk lV leads the Siffert/Herrmann Porsche 907. Siffert/Herrmann would win Index of Performance

As the green flag fell, the McLaren/Donohue car would take the early lead, but developed mechanical problems almost immediately. The Gurney/Foyt car, although not the fastest in qualifying, would soon find itself at the head of the field. McLaren and Donohue would return to the race, but would be many laps down. It became a race between Gurney/Foyt and Andretti/Bianchi. Mario was having trouble with a sticking gear linkage, but the problem alleviated itself as the race progressed. As night fell, Foyt had a 2 lap lead over Mario, but by early morning, Andretti was actually ahead. Both cars were pitting at the same time, and soon after Mario passed Foyt, both cars came into the pits, and events took a turn for the worse. Foyt was livid that Mario was driving over his head. He demanded that Andretti be slowed down. A heated debate ensued between Foyt and the team manager, not far from Mario's pit. Mario's crew was distracted by the late hour and the argument ensuing in front of them. The GT 40 Mk lV was very hard on brakes, and it was time to change them. The process was complicated, but had to be done quickly. The brakes were red hot. And the fatigued and distracted crew put a brake puck in backwards.

Lucien Bianchi, Belgian endurance ace & close friend of Mario Andretti

Roger McCluskey, a brilliant, versatile driver was victim of hard luck throughout his career.

 

As Andretti crossed the Dunlop Bridge, he hit his brakes for the first time after leaving the pits, and the car went into a spin, impacting a concrete abutment. The impact was strong enough to break Mario's watch strap in 2 places, along with several of his ribs. Roger McCluskey was following Mario in a Mk ll and had to spin to avoid Andretti's Mk lV. A Keystone Cops comedy of errors followed. First, a French spectator found Mario lying on the ground outside his car. He tried to pick Mario up by grabbing his chest, aggravating the already painful broken ribs. McCluskey had to shoo him away. Then, some track marshals arrived on the scene, and tried to put Mario in an ambulance and transport him to a local hospital. The Ford team had its own doctor, and the drivers were instructed to ask for him if they needed treatment. The marshals wouldn't allow Mario to be taken out of their ambulance. So, Roger McCluskey reached into the cab of the ambulance and grabbed the keys, throwing them into the bushes. He then carried Mario over his shoulders to the Ford doctor.

With the Andretti/Bianchi car out of the race, the nearest competitor was the Parkes/Scarfiotti Ferrari. A heated battle ensued, but the Gurney/Foyt Mk lV was clearly faster. Parkes and Scarfiotti would close the gap to within 4 laps, but that was as close as they would get.

Gurney's concern over Foyt's lack of practice time must've evaporated during the race, because as dawn fell, Foyt pitted, only to be told that he would have to get back into the car, because Gurney was nowhere to be found. After much invective, Foyt got back behind the wheel, and actually turned in some of the fastest laps the car was to turn during the race. He later found that Gurney had disappeared on purpose, because the early dawn hours are the most difficult and dangerous at Le Mans Changing light conditions and ground fog are particular dangers.

#1 at speed in the early dawn

Foyt and Gurney would take the checkered flag with a 4 lap lead over the Ferrari 330 P4 of Mike Parkes and Lodovico Scarfiotti. Mairisse/Beurlys [Blaton] would finish 3rd in another P4, 11 laps off the pace. Bruce McLaren and Mark Donohue would bring the 2nd Shelby Mk lV home in 4th place, 29 laps down. The Porsche 907/6 of Jo Siffert/Hans Herrmann would finish 5th, and win the Index of Performance.

Gurney and Foyt take the checker at Le Mans

Of 54 starters, only 16 would be classified as finishers. The Austin Healey Sprite Le Mans of Clive Barker/Andrew Hedges would finish 15th. The Andretti/Bianchi Mk lV would be credited with 24th place, and the Corvette Stingray of Dick Guldstrand/ Bob Bondurant, despite stirring up 30 foot high dust clouds on the French highways between Paris and Le Mans would succumb to a broken connecting rod after 12 hours.

The victory of Dan Gurney and A.J. Foyt would mark the first time an American-designed and built car would win at Le Mans and, the 5332.9 kilometers traveled would be the largest margin over the previous record distance in history. 1967 would mark the last time Ford would actively be involved at Le Mans John Wyer would take over the GT 40 program, and both Mk l and Mk ll cars would win again at Le Mans, even thought they would be considered outmoded and obsolete. The FIA would ban 7 liter engines after 1967, fearing that the 220 mph speeds on the Mulsanne were too fast for the circuit. The GT 40's would race with 5 liter engines and would still be competitive.

A.J. Foyt's achievement of winning at Indianapolis and Le Mans in the same year remains unprecedented.

A.J. Foyt and Dan Gurney celebrate in Victory Lane

The feud between Ford and Ferrari brought a new era to sports/endurance racing. The GT 40 was a far superior car to anything else on the track at the time. Compare it to the Maserati Birdcage of just a couple of years earlier, for example, and the superiority of the car becomes even clearer. It was one of the first racing cars designed with a fair amount of driver comfort in mind, and it handled as if it were on rails. It compares favorably in terms of performance with cars 20 years its junior. The GT 40 would win at Le Mans 4 years in a row. Enzo Ferrari would never see the domination of the sports/endurance class that he had previously enjoyed...after the GT 40 era passed; Porsche would become the dominant player.

Enzo Ferrari would see Fiat increase it's holdings in this company as a result of the Ford fiasco, and that's probably what he wanted, all along.

A lot has been said about the Ford/Ferrari battle, many comparing Ford with Goliath against Ferrari's David; but was it really? Ford had vast technological resources, to be sure; but Ferrari had the experience. At first, Ferrari didn't seem to take the Ford threat too seriously, and he won the first few battles, but he recognized Ford's determination, and really met the challenge. Ford may have won at Sebring and dominated Le Mans in 1967, but Ferrari won the championship. Ford also had the organizational talents of Carroll Shelby and Holman-Moody on its side, but Ferrari was efficient, also.

The racing ultimately was the real winner. The contests at Le Mans were undoubtedly some of the most hotly contested and exciting in history. It was a no-holds-barred free-for-all with both national and corporate pride at stake. And 1967 was the watershed moment.

Sources:

allamericanracers.com

imca-slotracing.com

Foytracing.com

24heuersdumans.co.uk

motorsport-and-more.com

fordvehicles.com

mmjp.org

automag.be

SORRY, FERRARI Holton, Dan

Escape Roads column Autoweek Magazine Vol 52 issue # 2

Crain Communications, Inc.

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AWESOME 1966 Ford GT Mk ll Drive Report Ray Thursby

Hemmings Muscle Machines Volume 4 Issue # 9

Hemmings Motor News

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FERRARI, THE MAN, THE CARS, THE RACES Yates, Brock June 1991

Doubleday

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MARIO ANDRETTI Engel, Lyle Kenyon 1970

Arco Publishing Company, Inc.

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A.J. Foyt. A.J. With William Neely 1983

Times Books

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ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF THE AUTOMOBILE 1886-1986 Ruiz Marco, et al. 1984/85

Gallery Books

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