Ford GT40 MkI Road Car, 1966
Ford GT40
Ford GT40•
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Chassis No.: 1034
Auction: Kissimmee 2025
Auction date: January 19, 2025
Lot No.: S214
$7,040,000 | Sold
- Odometer: 4,472 miles
- Engine: V-8
- Transmission: Manual
- Exterior: Pine Green
- Interior: Black
- Body: Coupe
- 1 of 31 MkI Road Cars produced
- P/1034 was the first Road Car delivered to a private owner and the first Road Car delivered to the U.K.
- Construction was completed in late 1965 with a delivery date of March, 17 1966
- Restored to original specifications
- Ford 289 CI HiPo V-8 engine built by Mathwall Engineering and dyno tested at 335 HP
- Four Weber 48IDA carburetors
- ZF 5DS-25 5-speed transaxle
- Offered with an additional January 1966 dated engine that has accompanied the car throughout its life
- Ordered without rocker stripes
- Sold to James Fielding chairman of Heenan & Froude, the company that manufactured the dynamometers used by Shelby for testing GT40s
- The car was delivered to him by then Ford Motor Company ambassador Jackie Stewart
- In 1971 the car was acquired by Fielding’s neighbor Paul Weldon in exchange for a Rolls-Royce
- Weldon raced the car throughout the early 1970s and was one of the first members of the GT40 Owners Club
- The car was brought to Australia in 1975 and was raced at the Amaroo Park in 1980
- Repainted in the Gulf color scheme of the Le Mans winning GT40 P/1075 in 1985
- The car was raced in the Adelaide Grand Prix Support Historic Race in 1985 and 1986
- Completed the Copperstate 1000 drive by Rob Walton in 1993
- Brought to Germany in 1995 and used in historic races by then-owner Peter Rössler including winning the Stuttgart Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring in 1999
- Brought back to Australia in 1999 by David Bowden where it was road registered and used in historic races and took part in Ford Australia’s 75th Anniversary celebration
- The car was subsequently brought back to Europe and was acquired by the current owner from D.K. Engineering in 2021
- Shown at Brands Hatch Concours, Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and won the Chairman’s Award at Salon Privé Concours at Blenheim Palace
- Eligible for historic race meetings including the Goodwood Revival and Le Mans Classic
- History dossier by marque expert Ronnie Spain
- Binder of vehicle history
One of just 31 produced, this 1966 GT40 MkI, P/1034, is the first of the so-called production road cars delivered to a private owner and the first delivered in the U.K. Finished in Pine Green (“with no lines on rocker panels,” according to the factory build sheet), 1034 was ordered with a Weber-equipped 289 HiPo engine and ZF 5-speed transaxle and optioned with a heated windscreen, reverse lights, clock, fender mirrors, dual fuel gauges and “road car” silencers. Its road trim included full carpeting, non-perforated leather seats and leather door pouches. Like most road GT40s, it also incorporated chromed Borrani knockoff wire wheels.
Although not listed on the build sheet, the car also featured louvered grilles over the radiator outlets, screens over the body side intakes and unique placement of the “FORD” lettering on the nose. Completed in 1965 and delivered on March 17, 1966, it was presented to its first owner, James Fielding of Gloucester, England, by Ford Motor Company’s then-ambassador, Jackie Stewart. Fielding, the chairman of Heenan & Froude, the company that manufactured the dynamometers used for testing GT40s, kept the car for more than five years. After persistent inquiries, Fielding finally sold 1034 to his neighbor Paul Weldon in exchange for a Rolls-Royce.
Weldon changed the car’s color to British Racing Green and fitted wider rear bodywork to accommodate a change to wide orange BRM-style six-spoke wheels and correspondingly wider rear tires. One of the original members of the GT40 Owners Club, Weldon vintage raced the car throughout England in the early 1970s. In 1973, Weldon entered and won a GT40 concours event at Brands Hatch, took part in that year’s Le Mans pre-race parade and ran a six-hour relay race at Silverstone, demonstrating the GT40’s sporting versatility.
In mid-1974 Weldon traded 1034 to Anthony Hutton as part payment for Mirage M10001; Hutton soon thereafter sold it to Australian George Parlby, who raced the car regularly in Australia, including at Amaroo Park. The GT40 was then repainted in the famed Powder Blue and Marigold Gulf livery of the double Le Mans-winning P/1075, in which it appeared in the Adelaide Grand Prix Support Historic Race in 1985 and 1986.
P/1034 was subsequently acquired by Harley Cluxton of Arizona, then Rob Walton of Arkansas, who completed the Copperstate 1000 tour with the car in 1993. (It is no coincidence that Walton’s father, Walmart founder Sam Walton, then owned P/1075.) After a brief time with noted GT40 collector George Stauffer, in 1995 the car was purchased by German Peter Rössler, who raced it extensively in historic events across Europe, including winning the prestigious Grand Prix of Stuttgart at the famed Hockenheimring in 1999. The car was returned to Australia later that year by David Bowden, who registered the car for the road.
Under Bowden’s ownership, 1034 appeared in many historic and show events, often driven by two-time Australian Drivers Champion Kevin Bartlett including at the Leyburn Historic Sprints. It won Best Competition Car at the Noosa Beach Concours, three awards including Best in Show at the Queensland All Ford Day and was a feature car at the Ipswich 500 V8 Supercar race with Bartlett again at the wheel. It also appeared at the March 2000 Australian Grand Prix and took part in Ford Australia’s 75th Anniversary celebration.
The car remained a prominent part of the Bowden collection, being used in magazine and TV appearances to promote Bowden’s car care company until 2012, when it was sold and brought to California. The car was then returned to Europe and was acquired by the current owner from D.K. Engineering in 2021. It was subsequently shown at the Brands Hatch Concours and Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and won the Chairman’s Award at the Salon Privé Concours at Blenheim Palace in England. Now fully restored to its original specifications, P/1034 runs under the power of a Weber-equipped Ford 289 CI HiPo V-8 engine built by U.K. engineering specialists Mathwall Engineering and dyno tested at 335 HP.
It is especially significant that P/1034 retains many original components. These include its original body panels, which had traveled with the car as spares but were refitted in 2019. It also retains its original tub and ZF 5DS-25 5-speed transaxle, something very rare for a GT40, especially (as noted by marque expert Ronnie Spain) one that was raced so extensively. Further, it comes with an additional January 1966-dated engine that has accompanied the car since the GT40’s build was finished in 1966.
As noted in its accompanying documentation, P/1034 was issued FIA Historic Vehicle Identity Form papers in 1997, making the car eligible for historic race meetings around the globe including such prestigious events as the Goodwood Revival and Le Mans Classic. Offered with a history dossier by Ronnie Spain and a binder chronicling its history, GT40 P/1034 remains a star on the international vintage racing and concours scene, offering its next owner an entry into one of the most exclusive and fascinating historic automobile enthusiast communities in the world.
https://www.mecum.com/lots/1128652/1966-ford-gt40-mki-road-car/
Cost
25,854,400 AED
