2005 Ford GT Coupe

Ford introduced their GT90 Concept in 1995 and just a few years later, in 2002, the GT was introduced to celebrate the Blue Oval's upcoming centennial. The GT paid homage to the company's heritage and their all-conquering GT40s that defeated Ferrari at Le Mans and won the famed 24-hour race four years in a row. The new GT was more than just a design throwback; it was a supercar that surpassed every other supercar Detroit had ever produced. It could race from zero-to-sixty mph in under four seconds, yet tremendously competent in every other discipline including braking and cornering. It had a higher top speed than the Porsche Carrera GT and the Mercedes-McLaren SLR. Mounted mid-ship was a 5.4-liter V8 mated to a six-speed gearbox which offered 550 horsepower and produced a throaty, muscular exhaust note. It had space-age construction technologies and was built in four distinct stages. The initial assembly was done at Norwalk, Ohio's Mayflower Vehicle Systems, then painted by Saleen at the Saleen Special Vehicles facility in Troy, Michigan, engine assembly at Ford's Romeo, Michigan engine plant, followed by engine and transmission installation, plus interior finishing, at Ford's Wixom, Michigan plant. Interestingly, the Ford GT was the last vehicle project at Wixom.

There were 4038 examples of the GT produced, with approximately 500, 1,900 and 1,600 built during 2004, 2005 and 2006 respectively. Demand was so great that it outpaced supply. The early cars sold for substantial premiums over the MSRP.

This particular example has had just one owner from new and there are approximately 1,300 miles on the odometer. It is finished in Mark IV Red and was factory-equipped with all four available options, including the $5,000 white painted stripes, the $4,000 McIntosh CD stereo system, the $3,500 lightweight BBS forged aluminum wheels, and the $750 color-matched Brembo brake calipers.

In 2012, the car was offered for sale at the St. John's auction presented by RM Auctions. The car was estimated to sell for $175,000-$215,000. As bidding came to a close, the car had been sold for the sum of $170,500 including buyer's premium.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2012