Vehicle Description
2017 Ford GT
Serial number: H068
View high resolution photos
https://www.flickr.com/gp/149927902@N02/3oG78t
Owned by Joey Hand, Chip Ganassi Ford GTLM winning team driver of
the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans and 2017 24 Hours of Daytona
15 miles - new condition
Dark Energy interior upgrade, carbon fiber wheels, exterior carbon
fiber package
Has all items as delivered - Ford GT sample box, original window
sticker, build photos, and promotional materials
Based on the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning Ford GTLM race car
platform
647 horsepower twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 engine, 7-speed dual
clutch transmission
The Ford GT40 legacy is a story that follows a 50+ year timeline.
The original Ford GT40s were built to break Ferrari's seemingly
unshakable grip on the 24 Hours of Le Mans race. In 1966, they took
1st, 2nd, and 3rd place at Le Mans justly proving that Ford, an
American manufacturer, could run with the European contenders and
beat them. The Ford GT40 would continue to dominate Le Mans for the
next 3 years, leaving a 4-year streak between 1966 and 1969. After
the final race the Ford GT name would lay dormant for almost 40
years, seeing its revival in 2004 with the new Ford GT road cars.
These were developed to be street cars first, comfortable and
easier to drive, with 550 horsepower on tap.
Fast forward to the 2015 Detroit Auto Show, and the all-new Ford GT
is revealed. It was later announced in the summer of 2015 that the
Ford GT is set to go racing in both IMSA and the World Sports Car
series, spearheaded by the Chip Ganassi Racing team. Much like the
fateful race at Le Mans over 50 years ago with Ford's triumph,
Ford's GT under Chip Ganassi Racing would go on to take 1st in
class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2016, cementing the modern car
in legend as its predecessor had done before it.
Joey Hand is an American racing driver who raced for the BMW
Factory for 10 years and the only American to ever race full time
in Europe's DTM series. Having won the 24 Hours of Daytona overall
in 2011 with Chip Ganassi Racing, the American Le Mans Series GT
class in 2011, and two-time 12 Hour of Sebring GT class winner,
Joey's racing variety made him a valuable asset on the Ford GTLM
team. While at the 2014 Petit Le Mans, Joey was running down the
pit lane and saw Chip Ganassi, screeching to a halt and talked with
him. Chip invited him to come race for his team, wanting him to be
a part of a new Ford program but couldn't tell him the details
until later. In 2015 during the 24 Hours of Daytona race, the Chip
Ganassi Racing prototype was using the drivetrain for the future
Ford GTLM race car, which Joey drove with Scott Pruett. The
fanatical amount of testing led to the future Ford GTLM being an
extremely reliable racer.
Ford's plan (and full intent) was to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans in
2016. There was no holding back, no compromises, just sheer
determination to win the legendary race 50 years after the first
Ford GT40 crossed the finish line. The new Ford GT race cars were
built from blank sheets of paper, a clean slate. Designed to be a
race car first to ensure no compromises, Ford applied for a special
allowance from the FIA saying that Ford will build road cars after
the race car has started racing, an unusual occurrence in
motorsport. Ford Chip Ganassi Racing traveled to Le Mans for the
first time, using cars that just started racing in early 2016. Joey
was one of the 3 team drivers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning
Ford GTLM. Despite having some technical issues in the early
morning and a penalty, in the last four hours of the race Hand
managed to chase down the Ferrari with a 12-second lead, later
making the definitive pass that the Ford Chip Ganassi team would
retain for the remainder of the race. Along with co-drivers Dirk
M�ller and Sebastian Bourdais, the trio won the race 50 years after
the first GT40 crossed the 24 Hours of Le Mans finish line. Joey
continued to race for Ford Chip Ganassi until the announcement that
the Ford GTLMs would be retired at the end of 2019, spending 4
successful years with the team that returned Ford to Le Mans.
The new Ford GT application process saw a flooding of applicants
who wanted to get their hands on one of the new cars, despite only
1,000 being announced to be built initially. With over 8,000
applications in the first week, many went home empty handed only to
dream what it would be like to own Ford's most advanced supercar.
An actual track-bred road car, with 647 horsepower, racecar
aerodynamics, a carbon-fiber chassis, 7-speed dual clutch
transmission, and handling so precise that you feel as if you're
piloting the car at Le mans. A small number of lucky individuals
would learn that they would be receiving their very own Ford GT,
one of the most advanced sports cars available today.
Joey, having been part of the Le Mans-winning team, was able to
custom order and receive chassis number H068. This number
represents the same number of the 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning car,
signifying his efforts of bringing Ford back to famous French
racetrack. He specified his car with the Dark Energy Interior,
carbon fiber wheels, exterior carbon package, and shadow black
stripes over the Frozen White exterior. When asked about why he
chose white, he remembers being at the official press release in
Utah with the snow-capped mountains in the background. When seeing
the white Ford press cars against that backdrop, he knew instantly
that was the color combination for him.
Joey kept his car perfectly protected in a custom-built garage in
California, evident by the 15 miles on the odometer. In perfect new
condition, this Ford GT is an opportunity to own a piece of
motorsport history. Not only owned by Joey Hand, one of the team
drivers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning Ford GTLM, but also what
is basically a bespoke race car that has been tuned to become a
road car. One of the most unique and interesting road cars built in
modern times, sharing an incredible amount of racing DNA with its
track brethren, the Ford GT will go down as one of the most
innovative production cars ever designed by an American
manufacturer.
