Jim Rosenthal
Supporter
A friend of mine spotted, and saved for me, a page from a Snap-On calendar which shows a profile view of a "1965 Ford GT40". This car is either blue or silver-blue, it's a little hard to tell from the way the page is printed.
Looking at this view of the car, I was struck again by how extraordinarily well it is drawn. From all angles, the GT40's shape combines beauty, functionality and simplicity in ways that are hard to beat. Not taking anything away from all the races it won, I am sure that a part of the GT40's lasting appeal comes from its' outstanding looks.
Here's my question: does anyone know who drew the design for the car? This may seem like a foolish question especially coming from someone who has been on this Forum a while, but the only thing I have been able to find was a reference, I think in Spain's book, to Len Bailey drawing the "Le Mans" nose, which we all think of as the definitive front end look for the GT40. Did he design the whole car? It seems to me that something drawn with such an elegant touch and economy of line would have to be the work of one person; cars designed by committee don't look like a GT40.
The other great automotive shapes I can think of (Miura, 280SL, Ferrari 250 GTO, etc etc etc) have, if I am not mistaken, an identified designer who gets credit for the shape of the car. I wonder who it is that drew what is arguably the best-looking racing car of all time...anyone who knows or who has information to contribute, please do so.
Looking at this view of the car, I was struck again by how extraordinarily well it is drawn. From all angles, the GT40's shape combines beauty, functionality and simplicity in ways that are hard to beat. Not taking anything away from all the races it won, I am sure that a part of the GT40's lasting appeal comes from its' outstanding looks.
Here's my question: does anyone know who drew the design for the car? This may seem like a foolish question especially coming from someone who has been on this Forum a while, but the only thing I have been able to find was a reference, I think in Spain's book, to Len Bailey drawing the "Le Mans" nose, which we all think of as the definitive front end look for the GT40. Did he design the whole car? It seems to me that something drawn with such an elegant touch and economy of line would have to be the work of one person; cars designed by committee don't look like a GT40.
The other great automotive shapes I can think of (Miura, 280SL, Ferrari 250 GTO, etc etc etc) have, if I am not mistaken, an identified designer who gets credit for the shape of the car. I wonder who it is that drew what is arguably the best-looking racing car of all time...anyone who knows or who has information to contribute, please do so.