First Post....Re: Dean Jefferies' GT40 Roadster

[doc540]

Please bear with me if this isn't appropriate for this specific forum. I wanted to communicate a bit of information to fellow GT40 enthusiasts.

For the last year or so, I have been speaking by phone with Dean Jefferies, legendary car customizer and painter in Los Angeles. I was introduced to him through a friend who told me Dean had one of the original GT40 roadsters.

When I initially called Dean he said by coincidence he was beginning the step of reassembly. My first thought was, "This needs to be documented for motorsports history".
Dean told me a rep from Ford had suggested he display the car at this year's Pebble Beach.

Dean gave me the Ford rep's phone number, and I called to suggest Ford send a crew to document the restoration. I also called a friend in L.A., Rob Lawrence, an enthusiast and professional photodocumentary specialist. Later, Dean said both Ford and Rob and visited the shop to take pictures and compile notes.

Has anyone here visited Dean's shop or know anything about this car?

I'm anxious to know it's been restored and see the results!

Thanks for your forbearance.

doc

[doc540]

Well, hellz bellz!

I just called Dean, and he said Ford came by the shop, picked up the finsished car and displayed it at the show and at the track, then brought it back.

How 'bout that!

Does anyone have a link to pictures??

[doc540]

Thanks to a PM from "J6", I understand why no one's replied to my initial post here. Nothing personal, I understand.

Following his advice, I contacted David Reuter with Ford (months ago Jay Mays referred me to him). David confirmed that the Jefferies roadster was indeed included in the "100 Years" celebration and suggested I contact John Plinard with Ford's west coast office. Perhaps he can direct me to pictures and information about the completed car.

My interest from the beginning has been the car. Twenty years ago I visited Foyt's engine shop only to find Howard Gilbert assembling two Ford Indy engines. When I asked where they were going he told me the intriguing story of Dean Jefferies' GT40 roadster which had languished in his shop. The engines were destined for that car. (That has probably upset someone.)

If it's any consolation, Jefferies has a correct, original Ford smallblock which he plans to restore and display with the car.

I also contacted Rob Lawrence (being the musician/photographer type, I awakened him at 9:30 PST!) who took digital pictures of the car, but has yet to upload them to the net.

Please understand my excitement stems from having not even seen the finished car yet after stirring the pot so to speak and alerting Ford that it would be finished and available for Pebble Beach.

Finally, let me just say that for many years when anyone asked the question: "If price was no object and you could own any car in the world.." (and it's asked often), my reply has always been the GT40.

To me they've always been a timeless statement of design, power, and red, white, and blue Americana. (With a nod toward Mr. Broadley's Lola, of course.)

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[MK -IV J6]

John Clynard. (Not Pynard). I bet Dean's car was at the historics and John's car was at Pebble. (108)

[Steve Toner]

I saw 2 roadsters at the track - one was solid white and was there all weekend. The other was white with blue stripes, and I only remember seeing it there on Thursday (actually helped push it up a little hill in the paddock as it was returning from the photo shoot). Is it one of these cars? I do have photos of both. In fact, the striped one can be seen in the group shot I posted under Monterey Historic Pictures - it's in about the 7th row in that shot.

[Hershal Byrd]

I like you Doc !
Any guy that would take a GT40 over anthing else is a
friend of mine...

Hersh [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[doc540]

"Clinard", yes, that's correct. I corrected in my phone notes and misread it. I'll try to reach him today and see if online pics are posted somewhere.

Steve, I called Dean and his car is white with blue stripes "on the sides". I'm assuming that meant along the rockers or along the bottom edge of the sides.
If you have photos of both cars, I'd like to see the other one besides the one you mentioned.

What an odyssey this has been! I hope to at least see pictures of the completed car today.

Thanks again.

[Steve Toner]

I'll post photos this evening when I get home. I do happen to have a copy of the new edition of Ronnie Spain's book here in my office, and from the photos in that, it looks like the one I described as striped is 108, and Dean Jeffries' car is 109. I just looked through my photos & the one I described as solid white DOES have side stripes, so that is probably it. This is also consistent with what Jim said - if 108 was only at the track on Thursday, it most likely spent the rest of the weekend at Pebble Beach.

[doc540]

Found this in the Atlas F1 Nostalgia forum.

Looks kind of forelorn with morning dew on it, doesn't it?
[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

[dave harris]

I have a couple of pic's from the historics, I will try to post them here. I appologize for the clarity, I got all the way to the races and the battery died in the damn camera!

[dave harris]

and the second one.

[doc540]

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img] WHOOOO HOOOO!!!!

<font color="blue"> THANKS A MILLION! </font>

(speaking of a million, Jefferies has to date turned down all offers for his roadster and plans to include it in his estate for his family)

[Steve Toner]

OK, looks like we were of fthe air last night because we exceeded our bandwidth limit (check's in the mail, Ron). I wonder if all these images have anything to do with it? My photos of the Jefferies car are pretty much like those that have already been posted, so I'll just provide the one of GT/108:

[doc540]

So, gentlemen, just how rare and valuable are the GT40 roadsters? I don't know of anyone more qualified to make that assessment than those on this forum.

And how many are known to exist? I've heard Ford has one in their possession, and with the 108 and 109 that makes three.

And thanks again for the pictures. That's a stunning car, Steve.

[DON S.]

I am away from home and access to my files, but my recollection is that four GT40 Mk I roadsters were built: nos. 108 109, 111, and 112. #110 was a unique construct as the lightweight 427 CID roadster that won Sebring in '66. It was subsequently crushed/destroyed. I think that Ronnie Spain believes that another original tub using #110 still exists. Of the Mk I roadsters, 108 and 109 are today in private hands and were at Monterey this year. #111 was badly damaged at Monza or Targa Florio 1965, taken back to FAV and supposedly scrapped. However, as has been recently posted on this web site with photographs, a GT40 billed at #111 has been advertised for sale in Europe. I would be very suspect of this car. #112 was converted from a roadster to coupe configuration. To my recollection, Ford does not have a roadster in their possession. Thus, of the four original Mk I roadsters, only two (108 and 109) are certain to still exist in their original configuration (looking at the recently advertised #111 with a jaundiced eye). They are worth whatever a buyer will pay. Personally, having seen #108 at Watkins Glen in 1989, I don't find the roadsters very attractive. As neither 108 or 109 have much of a race history as far as I can remember, any increment of value above a standard Mk I GT40 would have to come from their unique configuration. I think that this contrasts with the Cobra Daytona Coupes. Not only do they have unique configurations, but all six had significant race histories. Just my 2 cents opinion, but I'll take the GT40 coupe over the roadster any day.

[doc540]

Thanks, Cobraownr, I concur. "As neither 108 or 109 have much of a race history as far as I can remember, any increment of value above a standard Mk I GT40 would have to come from their unique configuration. I think that this contrasts with the Cobra Daytona Coupes. Not only do they have unique configurations, but all six had significant race histories. Just my 2 cents opinion, but I'll take the GT40 coupe over the roadster any day."

I would also guess their unique configuration and rarity would account for their value.

And taking a GT40 coupe over a roadster is understandable (my personal favorite, too) unless one was actually trying to purchase one. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

btw: I think I read the roadsters were unstable at high speeds. Is that correct? [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

[jimbo]

Most of what you read about the roadsters is not laudatory. I do seem to recall that one of them ended up with Bruce McClaren, I hope I've got this right, and had quite a bit of development work and may have even won a race. Also, didn't Chris Amon drive one and actually like it?
Interestingly, some of the later MkV cars have been set up with removable top sections on the doors, and the first Safir car was a roadster as that was Peter Thorp's car in development. It is around somewhere. There may have been more than one roadster MkV, if my memory of what I have read is not faulty.
Mine's going to be a coupe, though, albeit with sliding windows so I don't roast in there.

[roy snook]

Hi all,
here is another picture of GT/108 that I took at the circuit. If the car that has surfaced in Belgium turns out to be verified as original GT/111 then it appears that all the roadsters still exist, anybody care to hazard a guess as to how that chassis 'escaped' from Slough?

[doc540]

Stumbled across these pics from DJ's shop.

GT40 Roadster in Progress