The restoration 1971-1983

To introduce the chapter :

Don Davis gave up on the restoration of the P/1012 chassis and chose to fit all the parts purchased from Holman&Moody on a replacement chassis from John Wyer Automotive. He would call this new car P/1012 (1110) as stated on the several bills of sale he would later issue.

P/1012 in a «restoration in progress» was given to one of the mechanics, Lyle Dignes, as a payment on the work he performed on the other car. He would then sold the car to Walter Cantrell who would carry on the restoration before selling the project to Wayne Skiles in 1976. Skile decided to ship the chassis to UK to hand it over to John Etheridge (who worked at Abbey Panels and had thus a perfect knowledge of the GT40 chassis design). After a while, and due to delays, the chassis was sent to Bryan Wingfield to be finished, and for the final reassembly of the car.

Meanwhile, Wayne Skiles sold the car to Andy Harmon in exchange of GT40 P/1009 plus some cash.

The car would be completed in 1983, after a 12 years long restoration. It was painted in the livery of its last race, the 1967 Daytona 24 hours, yellow with black stripes and race number #1.

Later on in 2002, it would retrieve its original livery of the official Ford Team : white with black hoods and Day Glo blue ID patch with race number #96, the element that would help identity the cars during the 1966 Daytona 24 hours.

Carroll Shelby

Carroll Shelby has lived several lives : first as a racing driver (he won the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1959 driving an Aston Martin), he had to quit racing due to a heart condition. He then became car manufacturer with the brilliant idea of putting a big American V8 in a small English roadster : the AC Cobra was born ! Designed for racing, the Cobra gained a fantastic racing history, first as a 289 roadster, then the 427, and the deeply modified Cobra Daytona coupe. This one became GT world champion in 1965, beating Ferrari. Carroll Shelby demonstrated he was a talented driver, manufacturer and team manager.

Ford saw in him the man able to win Le Mans in the short run, and handed the management of the GT40 program over to him. He brought a lot of modifications to the car, upgrading it in the MKII version fitted with a 7 liter engine (427ci), a reinforced gearbox (KarKraft) and around fifty modifications to the chassis in order to cope with the more powerful power

plant.

After a year of intense testing, of races won in the USA (Daytona, Sebring), the victory at the 24 hours of Le Mans finally arrived as the high point of the 1966 season, with a masterful hat trick.

But there was more to this story. The Texas born Shelby wanted to win Le Mans with a 100% American car (he considered that the GT40 chassis was British !). He thus decided to build an alloy honeycomb chassis equipped with the mechanical components of the GT40 MKII. A major aerodynamic upgrade would turn it into the MKIV which won the Sebring 12 hours and the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1967. The rule change by the end of 1967 would end up this fantastic era.

Carroll Shelby would keep on producing the Cobra until 1969, with a little more than 1000 cars produced

(260/289/427 and the 6 Daytona coupe). The AC Cobra is a genuine icon, and it is today the most replicated car on the planet. Carroll Shelby revived the Cobra production in the 1990’s/2000’s with the Cobra continuation in 289 and 427 form (CSX7000/8000 and CSX4000/6000).

After the Cobra era, Carroll Shelby found an agreement with his friend Lee Iacocca, then Dodge CEO (when he was working for Ford, he was responsible for the Shelby Mustang).

Between 1984 and 2000, some Dodge cars would wear the Shelby Badge. Shelby was also a consultant for the design of the Dodge Viper, launched in 1991. In 2004, he signed a contract with Ford to revive the Shelby version of the new Mustang.

He passed away in 2012, at the age of 89.

Carroll Shelby, 1965

Don Davis

Don Davis was a motor racing enthusiast and owner of a racing and sport cars accessory shop. At the beginning of 1970, he decided to buy one of the famous GT40 MKII, then abandoned at Holman & Moody.

At that time, Ford refused to sell the cars. Holman then offered Davis to buy P/1012, damaged in 1967 with Peter Revson, and a spare parts package needed to restore it. A deal was found. Don Davis started the restoration, but quickly realized how huge the task was, and how expensive it would be, while the cars were not worth that much as they could not race anymore.

On the other side of the Atlantic, John Wyer was busy running the Gulf Porsche 917. He put the obsolete GT40 equipment for sale, including seven spare chassis. After some negotiations with Don Davis, he sold him for $1500 a new chassis number 1110 (as per the production list of the builder Abbey Panels).

Don Davis had finally found an inexpensive solution, cheaper than the restoration of the original P/1012 chassis. He fitted the new chassis 1110 with the parts sold by Holman & Moody (MKII hood, door from another MKII, a gearbox,

an engine that he would fit with 6 Weber carbs, etc ...). He did not apply any of the technical modifications unique to the MKII.

Don Davis then sold the original damaged P/1012 chassis to one of his mechanics. He would resell it to Walter Cantrell who carried on the restoration. Ten years later, GT40 P/1012 was finally completed in the workshop of the English specialist Bryan Wingfield.

Simultaneously, Don Davis’ car built on chassis 1110 and renamed P/1012 with an Holman & Moody chassis plate (and not the original FAV plate), was sold. On the sale’s contract, Don Davis was careful to name the car FORD GT40 MKII P/1012 (1110).

The 2003 buyer then wanted to have his car recognized by the court as the one and only P/1012 . The trial, then appeal and finally the cassation, all confirmed that Don Davis’ car built on chassis 1110 only had two uprights stamped with 1012 number, while the car subject of this book did have the original chassis, later restored, and as such could be the only one to claim the 1966 and 1967 racing history of P/1012.

P/1012 second life 1984 - Today

In 1984, Andrew Harmon sold the fully restored car to Les Lindley. It then went to Peter Livanos (through dealer Nick Soprano of Motor Classic Corp), and finally Stan Cleva.

Cleva went off the track and rolled the car during a vintage race in California. The crash was spectacular, the roof was sunk but the chassis was undamaged. Mike Teske, the MKII / MKIV US specialist came to inspect the car and took part of the repair process after that.

In 1989, it was one of the star of the Sotheby;s Monaco auction. Ed Hubbard became the new owner.

In 1994, it was purchased by Vintage Motors (which became Symbolic Motors). Jean-Pierre Grave (Switzerland) bought it and took it back to Europe.

Jean-Pierre Grave would race the car for five years in a major historic race program (Tour Auto, Le Castellet 24 hours, Nogaro, Dijon, ...)>

Jean-Pierre Lecou purchased P/1012 and entered it by the end of 2000 in the historic Targa Florio, then the Tour Auto two times, all Le Mans Classic events from 2002 to 2018, and several Classic Endurance Racing races.

The 1012 at Daytona in March 67.

Historic Passport FIA 1994. 11 years after its restoration

Jean Pierre Lecou, new owner of the 1012, Tour Auto 2001.

Jean Pierre Lecou

Automobile is a passion passed down from father to son, which was the case in the Lecou family. Jean-Pierre’s grandfather opened his garage in the 30’s. His father took over, becoming a specialist in exotic cars in the French seaside resort of La Baule. He was looking after the cars of the Marquis de Montaigu amongst others, and often went to the Missillac castle to work on the his cars such as E-Types, Porsche 904 and Ferrari GTO.

Deeply involved in the organization of the La Baule rally, a prestigious event in the 60’s, he was also pit official at the 24 hours of Le Mans from 1952 to 1990. He even raced the La Baule Grand Prix (In touring category) alongside many great period GP drivers.

Consequently, it was no surprise that Jean- Pierre would also become a motor racing enthusiast. At the La Baule rally, the feat of Jo Schlesser driving the Cobra whose soft top would pull off in the straight, or the night tests in a Ford Mustang Shelby, would leave its mark on him forever.

In 1966, he went to Le Mans for the first time with his father during the 24 hours Aprils tests. At that time, without any pass or ticket, he spent the whole day in the pits, going from one car to another, fascinated by these racing cars that he observed in details without being worried nor turned back by the crews. He of course spent some time in the Ford team pit, and shot some pictures of the cars there, including the dramatic Ford J, but also the GT40 MKII P/1012, which would become his own car some 34 years later !

For the 1966 24 hours of Le Mans, a private team would ask him to get behind the wheel of a GT40 MKI that was pushed to the grid ! It was the year of the Ford hat trick at Le Mans, and the first of a series of four victories in a row for Ford and the GT40 in the world’s greatest race.

Marked by these unforgettable moments for a motor racing enthusiast, Jean-Pierre resolved to make his driver dreams come true. He entered the Volant Elf championship and immediately reached the semi-finals.

He also experienced some rallying with Gedehem on a Porsche 911. He would later leave motor racing behind for his studies and his career but the passion was stronger.

After selling his telematics company to a Swiss group in 1987, he was offered the head management of the French sportscar manufacturer, Venturi. Jean-Pierre took on the challenge, thrilled to go back to his automobile passion. He launched the Venturi 400 concept, and the gentlemen drivers races with Stephane Ratel, and took part in the purchase of the Formula 1 team Larrousse in 1991. The next year, he became Larrousse F1 managing director, until the end of the racing team in 1995.

After a new successful technological adventure in the then new Internet, he could finally devote himself to his passion and particularly to the historic race cars. He purchased and restored a GT40 MKI, chassis P/1079 (ex.Blaton/Mairesse), and then the MKII P/1012 subject of this book. It came full circle !

Goodwood 2013, Jean Pierre Lecou is next to the 1012 repainted in its original colors of 1966.

Jean Pierre Lecou says about the P/1012 :

"In 1999, I purchased a GT40 MKI P/1079 from an hedge fund. It needed a full restoration to be able to race in historic racing. At that time, finding GT40 parts was really difficult. While searching for these parts, I met the preparer of GT40 MKII P/1012. It had always been the car of my dreams (I was at the track at Le Mans in April 1966 and I still have some period pictures of the car I had taken back then !). I was fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time, the then owner Jean-Pierre Grave wanted to sell it after having driven it for six years.

The car was in perfect condition, ready to race, so I entered the Targa Florio Revival in October 2000. The race day was rainy, the first rainy day for months ! For a start at the wheel of a legendary car with more than 500 HP, I certainly got it ! Fortunately, we would finish the race without any problem, and very happy.

In 2001 and 2002, I entered the Tour Auto. The car was not designed to be driven on the streets and quickly overheated while in town. But what a blast to drive with a free exhaust on the mountain roads ! I had encountered a lot of reliability problems but I was happy to having been able to do it. The « small » MKI was more suited to the Tour Auto and I would do the following editions with it.

In 2002, while the car was in the workshop for a major service, I took the opportunity to repaint it in its original 1966 colors (white with black hoods).

In 2002, Patrick Peter launched Le Mans Classic. P/1012 would enter each editions (from 2002 to 2018) with mixed success, but always fuelled by passion.

In 2013, I entered P/1012 in the GT40 only race during the Goodwood Revival, and at Spa Classic.

In 2016, P/1012 was cosmetically restored (full paint) with the 1966 Daytona paint scheme. This car brought me a lot of joy and it is always a privilege to sit in this ex.works car, driven by the period world best drivers."