This is why the original Ford GT40 was a car with the right hand

The Ford GT40 is the most American racing car story of all time. It is red, white and V8 Thunder, built from revenge, rivalry and more money than meaning. It is the car that Ferrari has dethroned at Le Mans. It is the car that cemented the inheritance of Carroll Shelby. It’s a hero. A legend. A movie star.

And yet, when you fold yourself in the driver’s seat of the original GT40 racing car, something feels … The steering wheel? On the right. The Gears Buder? On the left. For the car that defined American endurance racing, it is a layout directly from London. So what gives? Why was this Yankee Rocket ship built like a British car?

The answer, like most things in motorsport, lies in a distorted path of engineering usability, racing regulations and a small dash of old-fashioned arrogance. But to really get it, you have to go back to the very first beginning – for Le Mans, for Shelby, before Ken Miles ever came in.

The British bloodline of the GT40

Here is the thing: although it was a revenge project by Ford after Enzo Ferrari humiliated them in a failed buyout deal, the GT40 was not born in Detroit. It was born in Slough, England. In 1963 Ford acquired the services of Eric Broadley, founder of Lola Cars, after he was impressed by his Lola MK6 GT. The chassis of the GT40 and the basic design were greatly inspired by the MK6, which also guesses it already consults law.

To accelerate the project, Ford Ford Advanced Vehicles (FAV) set up in the UK and manned it with mainly British engineers and drivers. And in the world of British MotorsportRight station was standard. So, while the badge said that Ford, the hands that built the thing, drank tea, rode on the left and not think twice about putting the steering wheel on the “wrong” side.

Why the right hand was logical for Le Mans

Racing Logic> National Pride

In addition to Heritage, there is a practical reason why the GT40 was built with the right -hand ride: Le Mans. In the 1960s, the Le Mans Circuit de la Sarthe contained a majority of the right horses-in particular the notorious Terre Rouge, Arnage and Indianapolis. Having the driver on the inner line of these angles led to better visibility and control during entering and exit, what mattered when you dived into lean tires in a 100-MPH bend in the dark and no traction control.

Court of law also offered a better pit stop efficiency in some European layouts, depending on how the Pitlane was arranged. And don’t forget – Le Mans drivers were not alone there. They ran on the job in the start in Le Mans-style. Some teams have configured their cars for faster access based on which side of the car the driver was introduced. And if there was ever a place to squeeze out for a few seconds in the entry or exit, it was 24 hours of Le Mans. So these victories were not a coincidence. The GT40 did not only defeat Ferraris – but the entire field crushed year after year.

The gears was also on the left – and that was not an accident

Here it gets weird. Most right-hand drive cars have the gear lever on the left, certainly. But the placement of the GT40 shift was about more than the convention – it was about speed. When Ford Carroll Shelby brought in to rework the GT40 after a series of embarrassing failures in 1964, the Texan did not rumble the seats. But he held want drivers to keep their right hand on the wheel as much as possible.

Think about it: if you shift with your left hand, your dominant right hand (assuming most drivers were right -handed) will remain on the wheel through bends. That was thinking. And it worked. From 1966, with Shelby American who manages the program, the GT40 not only ended Le Mans – it dominated it.

Big Race wins for the Ford GT40

This was not a coincidence. The GT40 stamped over the entire competition for years. When it comes to Motorsport-StaBoom, the GT40 is a certified Hall-of-Famer. Here is a look at the largest W’s:

• 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans – 1st, 2nd and 3rd place Sweep (GT40 Mk II)

• 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans – 1st place (GT40 Mk IV, powered by Gurney and Foyt)

• 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans – 1st place (GT40 MK I, private entry by John Wyer)

• 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans – 1st place (GT40 MK I, powered by Jacky Ickx and Jackie Oliver)

• 1966 Daytona 24 hours – 1st place

• 1966 Sebring 12 hours – 1st place

• Multiple victories in the FIA World Sportscar Championship (1966-1969)

The GT40 MK I by MK IV: A quick overview

The original GT40 quickly evolved. The MK designed by the British I made way for the Shelby-Overhauled MK II, which packed a monstrous 7.0-liter V8. Then came the MK III, a more road -friendly variant. And finally, the MK IV, a radically redesigned car-built car that led Le Mans in 1967. But despite these changes, the chair layout remained the same for most variants. Right hand. Left shifter. That’s how they won.

Full Ford GT40 specifications (MK II Le Mans -version)

When did Ford finally switch to the left drive?

Here is the kicker: they didn’t really have to do that. All four Le Mans-winning GT40s from 1966 to 1969 ran with the original right-hand arrangement. Even the ultra-American MK IV, built in Michigan with a brand new chassis, retained the right hand. Why? Because it worked. The engineers knew the balance of the car, the drivers were used to it and the results spoke for themselves.

Only when Ford restarted the GT40 in 2005 – if the Ford GT– that the layout was reversed for using our way. The Ford GT Supercars from 2005 and 2017 were both left hand, but that was for compliance and familiarity of the consumer, not because it was better for racing.

The right-wing ride

Today, Original GT40S picks up tens of millions at an auction. And almost all of them still proudly wear their right-wing drive roots. It is part of what makes them authentic –Share Le Mans Racer, partly British kneers, partly American muscle. Even many continuation of GT40s built by Superformance and other licensed builders retain the RHD -Layout, because real GT40 fans know: that’s how it was intended.

An American legend with British peculiarities

The GT40 was the American cannonball over the arch of European motorsport. It was fast, loud and designed to win in every possible way. But under the breast-shifting patriotism, a carefully calculated machine, born from the British design, was optimized for European circuits, and refined by a team that understood one truth: winning requires making making right decisions – even if that means the wheel on the right side.