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The Ford GT40 Race Car '69 is a race car produced by Ford. It first appeared in Gran Turismo 2 and has been featured in all subsequent mainline games up to Gran Turismo 6.

The car appears to be the #6, driven by Jacky Ickx and Jackie Oliver, who has finished the 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1st place overall.

Description[]

"The Gulf livery GT40 that won 2 Le Mans titles in a row."


In 1963, Ford set out to conquer the World Endurance Championship. In the beginning, the company even thought about acquiring Ferrari to realize its goal, but ultimately, it obtained the rights to manufacture the Lola GT, made by the up-and-coming race car constructor, Lola. This marked the beginning of the Ford GT, a car that would eventually alter racing history.

The soon-to-be famous race car utilized a twin-tube monocoque chassis, considered cutting-edge technology at the time. The front and rear suspension consisted of parallel double wishbones, the same as a formula racer. The engine, based on the company's new 289 cu.-in. V-8, had its power increased to 375 HP.

This first-generation Ford GT, called the Mark I, was originally slated to run in the FIA GT prototype category. This class was later changed to the Group 6. The car was nicknamed the GT40 because its overall height, from the ground to its roof, measured only 40 in.

The 7.0-liter Mark II and the Mark IV that followed also ran in the Group 6 category. But in 1968, the FIA limited Group 6 displacement to 3.0 liters, which disallowed the Mark II and Mark IV from contesting in this class. That said, a Group 4 category was created, where if a 25-car production quota was met, cars with engine displacements up to 5.0 liters were allowed. The Ford GT40 raced in this category in the World Championships.

The Gulf Oil-sponsored car here, with the famous chassis number P/1075, was managed by the private racing team, John Weir Racing. This GT40 was originally a Group 6 car, but because of the regulation changes in 1968, it was fitted with a Weslake head 302 cu.-in. V-8 and rebuilt for the Group 4 class. The P/1075 won Le Mans in 1968 and 1969.

Acquisition[]

Game Buy From Location Credits Win From Event
Gran Turismo 2 --- --- MR Challenge - Race 3
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec --- --- Professional GT World Championship
Gran Turismo 4 --- --- Laguna Seca 200 Miles
Gran Turismo PSP Ford Dealership 2,000,000 ---
Gran Turismo 5 Used Car Dealership 20,000,000 Indianapolis 500 - B-Spec
Gran Turismo 6 Ford Dealership 20,000,000 ---

Trivia[]

  • In GT3, the car is fitted with AVON Tires, but the actual car had Firestone ones instead. The GT2 and GT3 car models also have no sponsor logos, with only the Gulf logo being present on each side. GT4 shows the car fitted with the correct tire branding and all sponsor logos from the original car.
    • AVON Tires makes tires for vintage purposes, so it's likely they modeled the car while it was sitting on such a set.
  • The description of the car claims that the name "GT40" was only a nickname; however, the name was in fact officially used by Ford themselves with the production Mk I, Mk II, and Mk IIIs being numbered GT40P/1000 through GT40P/1145.
  • Among the game files for GT2, there is an older, incomplete duplicate of the GT40 model with a 'GT40 Mark III' logo. The GT40 '69 was the third version of the car to race, however it was actually a modified Mk I after rule changes banned the Mk II, hence the name in-game being corrected before release. The real Mk III was a more luxurious road car.
    • Two entries for "Ford GT40 Mark III Normal Model" and "Ford GT40 Mark III LM Gulf Color" can be found in the Japanese manual, although it is likely the former referred to the Ford GT40 '66 and the latter referred to the used GT40 Race Car.
  • The car is the most expensive standard/simple car in the PS3-era games, costing 20,000,000 credits.

Pictures[]

Notes[]

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