1965 Ford GT40 Mk1 ‘Grand Prix’ Camera Car Up For Sale

Images and history via RMD

Serving as a camera car during the filming of ‘Grand Prix’ and going on to develop an impressive historic motorsport career, this 1965 Ford GT40 Mk1 is a legend of both the track and the silver screen. It’s up for sale at RMD.

The car, P/1027, came out of production in 1965 as a racing coupé. Destined for an unusual career, it made its debut at the 1966 Brussels Motor show before heading back to Ford, who sold it to MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) to be used during the filming of ‘Grand Prix’.

During production the GT40 would have front and rear panels removed so that a camera could be mounted to shoot some of the incredible on-track footage you find in the film. Along the way, it earned a little Formula One experience, as it was driven by Phil Hill, with filming taking place around rounds of the 1966 Formula One World Championship.

When photography on ‘Grand Prix’ wrapped, P/1027 was sold to Charles Sechan in Pennsylvania. Sechan repainted it and used it as a road car before selling it to Jim Toensing in Minneapolis. Toensing re-introduced it to motorsport, but after an off-track excursion the car would go to a new owner, James Ladwig, who treated it to a restoration back to original specification. That restoration led to it winning ‘Best Race Car’ at the 1993 Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance, after which it went to the Briggs Cunningham Automotive Museum in California to enjoy a few quieter years.

It wasn’t until the early 2000s that the car returned to the track, when it was bought by Sir Anthony Bamford and prepared for racing by Gelscoe Motorsport. Lord Irvine Laidlaw continued to run the car, competing at the 2008 Le Mans Classic and in Dijon in 2009.

Carlos Monteverde returned the car to its original livery, taking it back to Le Mans for the 2010 ‘Classic before selling it to its current owner, who has actively campaigned it at historic motorsport events around Europe, including the Goodwood Revival, Goodwood Members Meeting, Le Mans Classic and more.

In race-ready condition with current FIA HTP papers, the car will be sold with a full parts package as well as an extensive history prepared by GT40 historian Ronnie Spain that includes many photos of it during its race career as well as the filming of ‘Grand Prix’.

For the full details head to RMD’s website here.

Images and history via RMD