The Ford GT - Past & Present:
 

Millions of people have owned a used Ford, regarding their chosen model as an example of high quality automotive production. Few can argue with Ford's enduring success, evidenced by its annual unit sales. One of the many legends emanating from the brand is the Ford GT.

The GT is a mid engined two seater sports car which began its life as a concept car designed to breathe fresh life into other models in the Ford range, including the Mustang and Thunderbird. With a serious price tag in excess of $150,000 on the modern Ford GT, there are currently less than five thousand of these magnificent machines owned internationally.

The car's inspiration was drawn from Ford's GT40 racing models of the 1960s. Ford GT40s were designed from the ground up as high performance sports cars. The GT is short for 'Grand Touring' and the 40 is a representation of the car's total height in inches, which was required by competition rules. Ford V8 engines with capacities of up to 7 liters were used in comparison with Ferrari's V12 engines which were in the range of 3 to 4 liters.

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 First raced at the Nurburgring 1000km race in 1964, the GT40 was unable to finish as a result of suspension failure after remaining in second place for the majority of the event. Three weeks later at Le Mans, all three GT entries were forced to retire.

Two years later and the world would have an entirely different view. The GT40 became the winner of the 24 hour endurance race held in Le Mans for four years in a row from 1966 to 1967. Henry Ford II had finally realized his dream of having a Ford at Le Mans. The GT40 was ultimately built with the aim of creating a long distance sports car which would stand a fighting chance against major competitors such as Ferrari (who had won the Le Mans for the 6 years prior to Ford's 4 win streak).

The modern Ford GT is an homage to these original models that so resoundingly defeated many of their competitors including Ferrari and Lotus in the preceding decades. Today's cars have a 6 speed manual transmission, will go from 0-60 in 3.3 seconds, boast a top speed of 212mph and generate 550 brake horse power from a 5.4 liter super charged modular V8 engine.

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While the 2011 GT is quite similar in appearance to its predecessors, it is wider and three inches taller than the original 40 inches of the GT40.

The initial batches of the current Ford GT range were produced on 2005 and 2006 plates, with the very first purchase delivered to Jon Shirley, a former Microsoft executive, on August the 4th, 2004. Shirley had won the right to purchase the first production Ford GT at a charity auction at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance after bidding over $557,000. Current retail prices are in excess of $150,000, making this arguably the most exclusive model in Ford's long and distinguished history.