24h Le Mans
The owner of a Ford Mk IV describes how he corrected an error in the official record that Ford had let slip ...
Background: On Sunday the 11th of June 1967, the No.1 Ford of Foyt and Gurney won what was arguably the race of the century. After the win, cars 2, 3 and 4 were all painted red and fitted with a bubble roof to look like the winner. After modification, only the chassis numbers (J5, J6, J7 and J8) continued to differentiate the four cars.
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| Taken before the start, the Ford GT40 Mk II No.57 surrounded by four GT Mk IV numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4. | Saturday the 10th of June 1967, start. On the left, the yellow (No.2) McLaren-Donohue. On the right, the red (No.1) Gurney-Foyt. | 24 hours later, at the finish. Rejoicing mechanics ride on the winning car. This scene would later turn out to be an important clue... |
The uncertainty: Many years later, the New York collector James Glickenhaus acquired the most popular of the four cars. In 1991, he bought the chassis that was the winning J6 according to Ford. "Shortly after, a few clues caused him to doubt the veracity of the manufacturer's archives. I inspected the J5 chassis in the Ford Museum in Detroit,” he said. “I noticed the very low seat position... As if the engineers had modified to receive the tall Dan Gurney. I also noted the presence of a crack on the nose at the radiator ... Coincidentally, the photos of the period show a mechanic with a bottle of champagne sitting on the winning car at this spot! “
An important photo from the Ford archives, and traces of the repair it shows in progress helped to reconstruct the history of the chassis J6 (No.2 in yellow). Another piece of evidence was the crack created by the men riding on the nose; still visible on the "real" winning chassis (J5) in Detroit. Originally, only the winner J5 chassis was equipped with a 'blister' roof, required to accommodate the height of Dan Gurney.
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| Un document exceptionnel issu des archives de Ford : les traces de cette réparation ont permis de reconstituer l’histoire du châssis J6 (n°2 ; jaune). | Autre pièce à conviction : la fissure créée par l’homme assis au centre est toujours visible sur le « vrai » châssis victorieux (J5) exposé à Detroit. | A l'origine, seule le châssis J5 gagnant était équipé d'une bulle de toit, nécéssaire pour le confort du grand Dan Gurney. |
Conclusion: Later examination raised more doubts. "My Mk IV bears the traces of repairs carried out after the rear cover came off Bruce McLaren's car during the race", he said. "My car is not winning red one, but the fourth placed yellow." Although Ford had modified the roof, the owner decided not to remove the famous bubble, considering that it is part of the car's history. Perhaps he has also retained it to satisfy his personal comfort. "Its place is in the window of a museum, he says. But it would be a shame to shut it away as it drives like a road car. I have donemore than 50,000 miles in traffic with it! "
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| James Glickenhaus thought he had bought the red but it turned out to be yellow! | Painted red after the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1967, the Ford Mk IV J6 is back in its original colour, but it still retains the roof blister. | The late Carroll Shelby stands next to the real winning (J5) car. |
Photos : Ford Motor Company
