Simon goes undercover to rescue his GT40 replica. MIPAC’s senior systems engineer Simon Willis doesn’t just transform our clients’ operations into things of beauty; he also enjoys working on his own mechanical marvel.
Simon is a part owner, with his father and brother, of a 1966 Ford GT40 replica which needs some serious love and attention.
“The replica was built in 1987,” Simon says. ”The previous owner bought the car in South Africa in the mid-1990s as a half-complete kit. He restored it but after bringing it to Australia 10 years ago he never managed to get the car running again.”
Simon has owned the car for about six months and says the restoration is slowing consuming his garage.
“There is lots of work ahead of us — taking things apart is easy, putting it back together will be a different story — but it’s going to be a rewarding experience,” he says.
The GT40 was developed as a result of a feud between Henry Ford II and Enzo Ferrari. Ford tried to buy Ferrari and invested a small fortune in trying to do so. However, Ferrari eventually refused to sell. Ford was furious so instructed his team to develop a car to beat Ferrari at Le Mans.
This car was the GT40; the GT standing for grand touring and the 40 representing its overall height of 40 inches (1.02 metres at the windshield). Originally designed by Lola in the UK with a 4.3-litre engine, it morphed into four different versions before ending up with a seven-litre engine. In the late 1960s, Ford’s GT40 won Le Mans four years in a row — the only car to ever achieve this feat — and is the only race car built in the United States to win overall at Le Mans,
Bit by bit, piece by piece, Simon and his family are taking the car back to basics with a plan to rebuild it to its former glory.
“It’s been a terrific experience so far,” Simon says. “I’ve now got my hands on an original manual and friends of mine are getting involved, one creating a 3D model of the car.
Simon hopes to be able to take the car for a spin by the end of 2012. He plans to take it to occasional track events and to have it registered so it can be driven on the street.
His hard work may also offer financial reward with replicas selling for anything between $30,000 and $200,000, depending on condition.
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