1966 24 Hours of Le Mans Winner From the display: This car, GT40 Mk II chassis 1046, completed in only two races, the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 1967 24 Hours of Daytona. Like all Mark IIs, it is powered by a 7-liter (427 cu. in.) Ford V8. At Le Mans in June, 1966, Shelby American fielded the car, driven by Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon. For this race the engine breathed through a single four-barrel carburetor and produced about 470 horsepower. After 24 hours, McLaren and Amon had completed 360 laps, 3,009.5 miles -- a race average speed record of 125.4 mph. It was Ford's first victory in the endurance-racing classic, and the first for an American auto manufacturer. At Daytona in February, 1967, Holman-Moody ran this car, painted silver and wearing number 6. For this race the engine had revised cylinder heads, twin four-barrel carburetors and produced about 530 horsepower. The drivers were Lloyd Ruby and Denny Hulme, but the car retired with transmission problems. The current owner is George Stauffer, Blue Mounds, Wisconsin. |
