Ford performance has unveiled the new Ford GT Heritage Edition which was inspired by the 1966 Daytona 24 hour continental. It pays tribute to the 55th anniversary of the race where it achieved its first 24-hour endurance race win. This was also captured in the film "Ford v Ferrari" - or "Le Mans '66," as its also known across Europe. This Heritage Edition is the first to feature from a famous race other than Le Mans.
The co-drivers Ken Miles and Lloyd Ruby kicked of an astonishing season leading a 1-2-3-5 Ford domination at Daytona with an additional 1-2-3 wins at Sebring and Le Mans. This made the Ford GT America's only Le-Mans winning supercar.
“Miles and Ruby led nearly every lap of the 24-hour race and outpaced the competition by 30 miles,” said Severson. “The win was the first time anyone had threatened Ferrari’s dominance in sports car racing and represented a turning point in the Ford GT race program.”
Ford have stated “For this Heritage Edition, the Ford Performance team went deeper into the Ford GT’s race history and crafted a limited-edition model that stylistically honors the 55th anniversary of the Daytona 24 Hour endurance race that would eventually lead to our successes at Le Mans,” said Mike Severson, Ford GT program manager. “Plus, for customers who want to highlight the carbon-fibre body and functional cooling ducts that help deliver Le Mans-winning performance, the Ford GT Studio Collection offers another new way GT fans can personalize their supercars.”
Some features the Ford GT will have are;
- Frozen white paint with an exposed carbon fibre hood
- Asymmetrical Race Red accents on the front fascia roof edge, drivers side door and under the rear wing
- Expose carbon fibres shaping around the signature 98 roundel graphics
- Unique Ford graphics on the lower rear-quarter panel
- Heritage Gold 20-inch forged aluminium wheels with red lacquered Brembo monoblock brake calipers
- The interior features Alcantara®
- Optional Heritage Upgrade Package which includes 20-inch exposed carbon fibre wheels and a gloss red inner accent barrel, 98 roundels provide a contract on both driver and passenger carbon fibre door panel.
This announcement was made at the 2020 Petersen Car week in which was aired on the museums YouTube channel. It contained 25 hours of original content from manufacturers and enthusiasts. Ford Performance will also be adding an exclusive series of the Ford GT Studio collection which is all-new graphics packages with functions such as cooling's ducts which give the 2021 Ford GT more power. There will be only 40 cars that will receive this Studio Collection to retain its exclusivity.
Deliveries will take place for the 2021 model will begin in early 2021.