Gulf Mirage GR8, 1975 Mirage GR8 | Conceptcarz.com - Pictures, Pricing, Information, Wallpaper, History

In 1975, the Gulf team contested LeMans only, since that year it was a race in which organizers set their own rules concerning fuel consumption. As a result, the race was excluded from the World Championship of Makes. For LeMans, Gulf prepared two GR8 cars powered by Cosworth-Ford V8 DFV engines prepared by and detuned specifically by the team itself. The detuning was done to conserve fuel, and meant that the drivers only had 8,400 rpm to work with instead of the 10,400 rpm they had used the previous year. This car was the overall winner of the 1975 LeMans 24-hour race, with Derek Bell and Jacky Ickx sharing the driving. This same car competed in the LeMans 24-hour race each year through 1979, with either Ford or Renault power. The chassis remained the same, with modifications to the bodywork to conform to the changing rules. Other drivers at LeMans through the years included Sam Posey, Vern Schuppan, Michel Leclerc and David Hobbs.

JW Automotive at Slough in England produced the Mirage series of racing cars which were intended to compete in international sports car races. They were clothed in the colours of the Gulf Oil Corporation and often referred to as Gulf-Mirage. The M1 was created in 1967 by JWA which was a Sports-Prototype class car and based on the Ford GT40. It was powered by a Ford V8 engine that came in a variety of displacement sizes, up to 5.7-liters. The Ford GT40 used the same engines.

The M1 was a solid and competitive racer with the highlight of its career being the 1967 Spa-Francorchamps 1000 Kms race where Jacky Ickx and Dick Thompson piloted chassis number M.1003 to a victory.

The M2 was introduced a year later and intended to contend the Group 6 Prototype 3-Liter class. Though the cars had larger engines than their predecessors, a hefty BRM V12 engine, they were raced sparingly and never secured any racing success. In 1969, the M3 was introduced. Power was from the Ford/Cosworth DFV V8. These, too, saw very little track time.

The success of the M2 and M3 may have been greater, but JWA had focused their attention on building the Ford GT40s.

The M6 was introduced in the early 1970s and powered by Ford/Cosworth powerplants. They were raced in the Group 5 Sports Car Class and contested the World Championship for Makes beginning in 1972. The highlight of their racing career was in 1973 at the Spa-Francorchamps 1000 Kms.

Gulf Oil continued their sponsorship with the Mirage racing cars from 1967 through 1974.

1975 Gulf Mirage GR8
Year	1975
Make	Gulf
Model	Mirage GR8
Engine Location	Mid
Drive Type	Rear Wheel
Combined MPG	0.00

Engine
Engine Builder	Cosworth
Engine Configuration	V
	90-degree
Cylinders	8
Engine	DFV
Aspiration/Induction	Normal
Displacement	2993.00 cc \| 182.6 cu in. \| 3 L.
Redline	8400
Fuel Type	Gasoline - Petrol
Fuel Feed	Carburetor

Standard Transmission
Transmission	Manual

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1975 Gulf Mirage GR8