Le Mans 1966 to 1969

1966

1966 was the year of the famous Ford GT40 1-2-3 finish. Ford put out a promotional film to celebrate this win which shows some great race footage. The winning GT40 "Mark II" cars were in the Prototype class, because they were modified beyond the limits of the homologated GT40 "Mark I" cars in the Sport class. There were a few GT class cars, namely the Ferrari 275 GTB's. Porsche scored an "S" class win with the 906 carerra. More importantly, a privateer 911 ran in its first LeMans, as the lone car running in the 2.0 litre GT class.

Cars #1 thru #8 were semi-works Ford GT40 Mark II's, although the cars were run by three separate teams. Carrol Shelby entered cars #1 - #3, NASCAR powerhouse Holman & Moody entered #4-#6, and gave Mario Andretti his first crack at Le Mans. The British Alan Mann team ran #7 and #8. With this eight car assault, Ferrari was pounded into submission.

GT40 Diecast

While the theme of LeMans 1966 was the "yanks" beating up Ferrari, many of the current GT40 models are Italian. Bang puts out a series of mediocre cars, and there is also the obscure "OXA" brand which features opening doors and hood. I have never seen one of these up close, but I have heard they slightly better than Bang. Eagle's Race put out a few from the old Jouef molds, using the same model numbers. They're even worse than the Bang items. Interestingly, Bang produces all of these except car #4 (which was driven by a young Mark Donohue). A good GT40 is the mega-expensive handbuilt Jouef 1969 winner.

IXO has turned the 1:43 scale GT40 world upside-down with their products, which have some of the best paint application I've seen. Definitely on a par with Minichamps.

Ferrari entries

Ferrari's big hope for 1966 was the P3, but they had only two SEFAC (Works) cars plus a semi-works N.A.R.T. entry. (As the American team had won Le Mans the previous year, they presumably got "front of the line" privliges for the new P3) There was a big labor strike in Italy early in the year that caused delays in steel and components. They had planned to match Ford's eight-car lineup, but had to let their customers settle for last year's cars...

Scuderia Filipinetti - typically Swiss politics?

This classic Swiss team expressed "neutrality" and had a foot in both camps, running both a Ford GT40 and a Ferrari 365 P2.

Le Mans 1966 (Part of the International Manufacturers Championship)
Place	Car Sponsor	Car # Class	Model	Ref. #	Image
Prototype Class (FIA Group 6) Over 5-liter
1	Ford GT40 Mk. II Bruce McLaren Chris Amon Shelby American	2 P +5.0	Bang	7081
			Oxa	002
			Jouef	3019
2	Ford GT40 Mk. II Ken Miles Denny Hulme Shelby American	1 P +5.0	Bang	7080
			Oxa	001
			Jouef	3039
3	Ford GT40 Mk. II Ronnie Bucknum Dick Hutcherson	5 P +5.0	Bang	7092
			Jouef	3040
			Oxa	005
DNF	Ford GT40 Mk. II Dan Gurney Jerry Grant Shelby American	3 P +5.0	Bang	7082
			Oxa	003
DNF	Chaparral 2D Phil Hill Jo Bonnier	9 P +5.0	Minichamps	436 661409
DNF	Ford GT40 Mk. II Graham Hill Brian Muir	7 P +5.0	Bang	7156
			Ixo	LMC112
			Oxa	007
DNF	Ford GT40 Mk. II Mario Andretti Lucien Bianchi	6 P +5.0	Bang	7190
			Ixo	LMC111
			Oxa	006
			Eagle's Race	1008
DNF	Bizzarini GT Strada 530	11	Spark	S0388
DNF	Ford GT40 Mk. II John Whitmore Frank Gardner	8 P +5.0	Bang	7093
			Oxa	008
DNF	Ford GT40 Mk. II Paul Hawkins Mark Donohue	4 P +5.0	Oxa	004
			Ixo	LMC109
DNF	Bizzarrini P538 Sport	10	Spark	S0389
Prototype Class (FIA Group 6) Under 2-litre
4	Porsche 906 L Jo Siffert Colin Davis	30 P 2.0	Ebbro	44135
5	Porsche 906 L Hans Herrmann Herbert Linge	31 P 2.0	Ebbro	44136
6	Porsche 906 L Udo Schütz Peter de Klerk	32 P 2.0	Ebbro	44137
DNF	Matra 620 Jean-Pierre Beltoise Johnny Servoz-Gavin	41 P 2.0	Bizarre	BZ128
DNF	Matra 620 Jo Schlesser Alan Rees	42 P 2.0	Bizarre	BZ129
DNF	Matra 620 Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Henri Pescarolo	43 P 2.0	Bizarre	BZ130
DNF	Ferrari 206/S	36
DNF	Ferrari 206/S Charlie Kolb George Follmer	38 P 2.0	Art Model	ART082
DNF	Ferrari 206/S	25
Sportscar Class (FIA Group 4) Under 2-litre
7	Porsche 906/6 Günther Klass Rolf Stommelen	58 S 2.0	Quartzo	QLM041
DNF	Porsche 906/6	33
DNF	Porsche 906/6	34
GT Class (FIA Group 3) Over 3-litre
8	Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Piers Courage Roy Pike	29 GT 5.0	Best	9084
10	Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Pierre Noblet Claude Dubois	57 GT 5.0	Best	9083
Prototype Class (FIA Group 6) 1.3-liter
9	Alpine A210	62
11	Alpine A210	44
12	Alpine A210	45
13	Alpine A210	46
15	Mini Marcos GT 2+2	50
DNF	Austin-Healey Sprite	49
DNF	Alpine A210	47
DNF	Austin-Healey Sprite	48
DNF	ASA GT RB-613	54
DNF		61
GT Class (FIA Group 3) Under 2-litre
14	Porsche 911 "Franc" Jean Kerguen	35 GT 2.0	Vitesse 'Retro'	332
Sportscar Class (FIA Group 4) Over 2-litre
DNF	Ford GT40	14
DNF	Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Giampiero Biscaldi Michel de Bourbon Parma	26 S 5.0	Best	9102
DNF	Ferrari 250 LM Taf Gosselin Eric de Keyn	28 S 5.0	Best	9094
DNF	Ford GT40 Skip Scott Peter Revson	59 S 5.0	Bang	453
			Box	8453
DNF	Ford GT40 Guy Ligier Bob Grossman	15 S 5.0	Bang	456
			Box	8456
DNF	Ford GT40 Jochen Neerspasch Jacky Ickx	60 S 5.0	Bang	7346
DNF	Ford GT40	12
Prototype Class (FIA Group 6) 5-liter
DNF	Ferrari 330 P3 Lorenzo Bandini Jean Guichet	21 P 5.0	Red Line	RL157
DNF	Ferrari 365 P2 Willy Mairesse Herbert Müller	19 P 5.0	Best	9082
DNF	Ferrari 330 P3 Pedro Rodriguez Richie Ginther	27 P 5.0	Red Line	RL158
			Brumm	R158
			Bang	7306
DNF	Ferrari 365 P2 Pierre Dumay "Jean Beurlys"	17 P 5.0	Best	9103/2
DNF	Ferrari 330 P3 Ludovico Scarfiotti Mike Parkes	20 P 5.0	Red Line	RL156
DNF	Ferrari 365 P2	18
DNF	Serenissima Spyder Spyder	24
DNF	Ferrari 365 P2	16
Prototype Class (FIA Group 6) 1.3-liter
DNF	Alpine A210	55
DNF	CD SP66	53
DNF	CD SP66	51
DNF	CD SP66	52

1967

Ford Mark IV

Ford showed up with the "Longtail" Ford Mark IV for 1967. While Foyt and Gurney won, Ferrari's were second and third. It wasn't the dominant formation 1-2-3 finish like the previous year, but at least two well-known American racers had won for Ford. Satisfied with outpacing Enzo, Edsel closed down the factory supported program but lent privateer support ot John Wyer.

The old Solido's come with markings for cars #1 red, #2 yellow, and #3 bronze, but color determines the proper decals to use. (Is there a #4 silver???)

Long list of class winners

Sportscar class

In this era, the "Sportscars" class was for vehicles with a minumum production run of 50. These cars were derived from a road-legal base, and had engines up to 5.0 litres. This minumum number would be reduced to 25 for 1969 and would yield completely unintended consequences.

Prototype class

Prototypes had no production minimum, and less design constraints

Le Mans 1967 (Part of the International Manufacturers Championship)
Place	Car Sponsor	Car # Class	Model	Ref. #	Image
Prototype Class (Over 5-liter)
1	Ford GT40 Mark IV Dan Gurney A. J. Foyt	1 P +5.0	IXO	LMC004
			Solido ('Retro Le Mans')	2425
4	Ford GT40 Mark IV Bruce McLaren Mark Donohue	2 P +5.0	IXO	LMC009
			Solido ('Retro Le Mans')	2426
DNF	Ford GT40 Mark IIB Paul Hawkins Ronnie Bucknum	57 P +5.0	Bang	7299
			Eagle's Race	1139
			Jouef	1139
DNF	Chaparral 2F Phil Hill Mike Spence	7 P +5.0	Minichamps	430 671407
DNF	Ford GT40 Mark IV Lucien Bianchi Mario Andretti	3 P +5.0	Solido ('Retro Le Mans')	2415
DNF	Ford GT40 Mark IIB	6
DNF	Ford GT40 Mark IIB Roger McCluskey Frank Gardner	5 P +5.0	Ixo	LMC139
DNF	Chaparral 2F Bruce Jennings Bob Johnson	8 P +5.0	Minichamps	430 671408
DNF	Ford GT40 Mark IV Denny Hulme Lloyd Ruby	4 P +5.0	IXO	LMC011
			Solido ('Retro Le Mans')	2416
			Solido ('Racing' Series)	1928
DNF	Mirage M1 David Piper Richard Thompson	14 P +5.0	Bizarre	BZ296
DNF	Mirage M1 Jacky Ickx Brian Muir	15 P +5.0	Bizarre	BZ295
DNF	Lola T70 Coup� Chris Irwin Peter de Klerk	12 P +5.0	Best	9247
			Spark
DNF	Lola T70 Coup� John Surtees David Hobbs	11 P +5.0	Spark
Prototype Class 5-liter
2	Ferrari 330 P4 Coup� Ludovico Scarfiotti Mike Parkes SpA Ferrari SEFAC	21 P 5.0	Bang	7098
			Brumm	S029
3	Ferrari 330 P4 Coup� Willy Mairesse "Jean Beurlys"	24 P 5.0	Bang	7118
			Brumm	S030
DNF	Ferrari 330 P4 Coup� G�nther Klass Peter Sutcliffe SpA Ferrari SEFAC	19 P 5.0	Bang	7117
			Brumm	S031
DNF	Ferrari 412P	23
DNF	Ferrari 412P Pedro Rodriguez Giancarlo Baghetti	25 P 5.0	Bang	7105
DNF	Ferrari 330 P4 Spyder Chris Amon Nino Vaccarella	20 P 5.0	Brumm ('Retro')	R160
			Bang	7139
			Hot Wheels ('Elite')	P9957
			Jouef	1030
DNF	Ferrari 412P Jean Guichet Herbert M�ller	22 P 5.0	Bang	7225
			Brumm	R161
DNF	Ferrari 365 P2	26
Prototype Class 2.0-liter
5	Porsche 907 Jo Siffert Hans Herrmann Porsche System Engineering	41 P 2.0	Ebbro	44300
6	Porsche 910 Rolf Stommelen Jochen Neerpasch Porsche System Engineering	38 P 2.0	Spark	S3465
DNF	Matra M630 BRM Jean-Pierre Beltoise Johnny Servoz-Gavin	29 P 2.0	Top Model	TMC236
DNF	Porsche 907 Jochen Rindt Gerhard Mitter	40 P 2.0	Schuco	450 362600
			Ebbro	44299
DNF	Porsche 910 Udo Sch�tz Joe Buzzetta Porsche System Engineering	39 P 2.0	Spark	S3466
DNF	Matra M630 BRM Jean-Pierre Jaussaud Henri Pescarolo	30 P 2.0	Top Model	TMC237
Sportscar Class 2.0-liter
7	Porsche 906	37
8	Porsche 906	66
Prototype Class 1.3-liter
9	Alpine A210 Renault Henri Grandsire Jos� Rosinski	46 P 1.3	Top Model	TMC217
10	Alpine A210 Renault Andr� de Cortanze Alain LeGuellec	49 P 1.3	Top Model	TMC218
12	Alpine A210 Renault Roger Delageneste Jacques Cheinisse	48 P 1.3	Top Model	TMC219
15	Austin-Healey Sprite	51
DNF	Alpine A210 Renault	47
DNF	Marcos Mini GT	50
GT Class 5.0-liter
11	Ferrari 275 GTB4 Rico Steinemann Dieter Spoerry	28 GT 5.0	Box	8452
			Best	9413
DNF	Ford Shelby Mustang GT350	17
Prototype Class 1.6-liter
13	Alpine A210 Renault	45
DNF	Lotus Europa 47	44
GT Class 2.0-liter
14	Porsche 911S Robert Buchet Herbert Linge	42 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L083A
DNF	Porsche 911S Pierre Boutin Patrice Sanson	67 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L101A
DNF	Porsche 911S Andr� Wicky Philippe Farjon	60 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L101B
DNF	Porsche 911S "Franc" Toni Fischhaber	43 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L083B
Sportscar Class 1.3-liter
16	Abarth 1300OT	64
Prototype Class 1.15-liter
DNF	Alpine A210	56
DNF	Alpine M64	55
DNF	Alpine A210	58
DNF	CD SP66C	53
DNF	CD SP66C	52
DNF	Costin Nathan	54
Sportscar Class 5.0-liter
DNF	Ford GT40	16
DNF	Ford GT40	18
DNF	Ford GT40	62
GT Class Over 5.0-liter
DNF	Chevrolet Corvette	9

1968

JW Gulf's Mirage M1 was made obsolete by the 1968 rule changes, so they went back to running a homologated GT40 in the 5.0 litre Sportscar class.

...More on the JW Gulf team at 1967

Alfa Romeo

While Ferrari, Porsche and Ford are remembered as heavy hitters during this era, Alfa Romeo had a serious program with some beautiful cars. After the GT-classed TZ cars in 1964 and 1965, they built a "Tipo 33 2-litre" (T33/2) car for the "Sports-Prototype" class. This car was raced in 1967 and was greatly modified for 1968. Intrestingly, the 1968 revision is much better looking that its predecessor. This is unusual as cars generally start off looking great on paper, and then get hacked up during development by the addition of odd cooling or downforce bodywork changes. They even made an especially attractive longtail (coda lunga) version for Le Mans which was the accepted practice.

Le Mans 1968 (Part of the International Championship for Makes)
Place	Car Sponsor	Car # Class	Model	Ref. #	Image
Sportscar Class 5.0-liter
1	Ford GT40 'Gulf' Pedro Rodriguez Lucien Bianchi	9 S 5.0	IXO	LMC025
			Bang Limited Edition	1007
			Jouef	1004
			IXO	LM1968
7	Ferrari 250LM David Piper Richard Attwood	21 S 5.0	IXO	LMC073
			Altaya
DNF	Ferrari 250LM	20 S 5.0	Best	9206
DNF	Ferrari 250LM Masten Gregory Charlie Kolb N.A.R.T.	14 S 5.0	Best	9294/2
			Best	9294
DNF	Lola T70 Mark 3 Coupé Jackie Epstein Ed Nelson	6 S 5.0	Best	9196
DNF	Ford GT40	12
DNF	Ford GT40 'Gulf' Paul Hawkins David Hobbs	10 S 5.0	IXO	LMC026
			Bang	7073
DNF		19 S 5.0
DNF	Lola T70 Mark 3 Coupé Ulf Norinder Sten Axelsson	7 S 5.0	Best	9371
DNF	Ford GT40 'Gulf' Jackie Oliver Brian Muir	11 S 5.0	IXO	LMC027
			Bang	7072
DNF	Ford GT40 'SEV Marchal' Willy Mairesse "Jean Beurlys"	8 S 5.0	IXO	LMC053
Prototype Class 3.0-liter
2	Porsche 907L Rico Steinemann Dieter Spoerry	66 P 3.0	Schuco	450362800
3	Porsche 908 Jochen Neerpasch Rolf Stommelen	33 P 3.0	Ebbro	44290
			Schuco	450372100
8	Alpine-Renault A220 Andr� de Cortanze Jean Vinatier	30 P 3.0	Solido	2405
			Solido	168
DNF	Matra 630M Henri Pescarolo Johnny Servoz-Gavin	24 P 3.0	Top Model	TMC 279
DNF	Alpine-Renault A220 Mauro Bianchi Patrick Depailler	27 P 3.0	Solido	2406
DNF		29 P 3.0
DNF		35 P 3.0
DNF	Porsche 908 Joe Buzzetta Scooter Patrick	34 P 3.0	Ebbro	44291
DNF	Porsche 908 Gerhard Mitter Vic Elford	32 P 3.0	Ebbro	44289
DNF		67 P 3.0
DNF	Howmet TX Continental Ray Heppenstall Richard Thompson	22 P 3.0	Bizarre	BZ049
DNF	Howmet TX Continental Hugh Dibley Bob Tullius	23 P 3.0	Bizarre	BZ048
DNF		28 P 3.0
DNF	Porsche 908 Jo Siffert Hans Herrmann	31 P 3.0	Ebbro	44288
			Schuco	450372200
DNF		25 P 3.0
Prototype Class 2.0-liter
4	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Coda Lunga Ignazio Giunti Nanni Galli	39 P 2.0	Best	9254
5	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Coda Lunga Carlo Facetti Spartaco Dini	38 P 2.0	Best	9252
6	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Coda Lunga Mario Casoni Giampiero Biscaldi	40 P 2.0	Best	9255
9	Alpine-Renault A210	57 P 2.0
16	Fiat Dino	46 P 2.0
DNF		45 P 2.0
DNF	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Coda Lunga Nino Vaccarella Giancarlo Baghetti	41 P 2.0	Best	9272
DNF	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Coda Lunga Teddy Pilette Rob Slotemaker	37 P 2.0	Best	9374
DNF		36 P 2.0
DNF		49 P 2.0
DNF		47 P 2.0
DNF	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Coda Lunga Serge Trosch Karl von Wendt	65 P 2.0	Best	9293
Prototype Class 1.3-liter
10	Alpine-Renault A210	52 P 1.3
11	Alpine-Renault A210	53 P 1.3
14	Alpine-Renault A210	55 P 1.3
15	Austin	50 P 1.3
DNF		56 P 1.3
DNF		54 P 1.3
GT Class 2.0-liter
12	Porsche 911T Jean-Pierre Gaban Roger van der Schrick	43 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L125
13	Porsche 911T	64 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L143A
DNF	Porsche 911S 'BP'	44 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L143B
DNF	Porsche 911T Willy Meier Jean de Mortemart	60 GT 2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L143C
GT Class 1.3-liter
N/C	Alpine-Renault A110	61 GT 1.3
N/C	Alpine-Renault A110	51 GT 1.3
Sportscar Class 2.0-liter
DNF	Porsche Carerra 6 (906) Christian Poirot Pierre Maublanc	42 S 2.0	Verem (�dition Limit�e)	607
GT Class Over 2.0-liter
DNF	Chevrolet Corvette Sylvain Garant Jean-Michel Giorgi	4 GT +2.0	Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L044B
DNF	Ferrari 275 GTB/C	17
DNF	Chevrolet Corvette Umberto Maglioli Henri Greder	3 GT +2.0	Quartzo	QLM026
			Vitesse ('Limited Edition')	L044A

1969

1969 was the only year that the Ferrari Works team ran the 312P Coup� at Le Mans. The 5-litre 512S would be made in 1970 to battle the Porsche 917.

Porsche 908

The original Porsche 908 had a sleek coup� body. The crappy Solido 908 is the only remotely accurate model of this important car.
...More on the Porsche 908

Porsche 917

At LeMans, things started badly for the 917s. John Woolfe, driving his private entry 917, crashed on the first lap and was killed. Things got better, though, and for 20 hours Vic Elford and Richard Attwood led the race, amassing a 6-lap margin, but by the 21 hour mark their 917 was on the way to the dead car park with a leaking gearbox and a failed clutch. That set the stage for the most dramatic finish in LeMans history. A 908, driven by Hans Herrmann, raced virtually wheel-to-wheel for the last three hours with the JW Ford GT40 of Jacky Ickx. At the end, the 908 was just one second behind the Ford. The 917 had clearly established Porsche as the new giant of endurance racing.

Development continued nonstop. Two months later, in Austria, the 917 scored its first win, and the stage was set for total conquest in 1970.
...More on the creation of the Porsche 917

Le Mans 1969 (Part of the International Championship for Makes)
Place	Car Sponsor	Car # Class	Model	Ref. #	Image
Sportscars Class (FIA Group 4)
1	Ford GT40 'Gulf' Jacky Ickx Jackie Oliver High detail with opening doors and panels	6 S	Jouef ('Evolution')	3006
			Ixo (Le Mans Winners)	LM1969
			Bang	7074
3	Ford GT40 'Gulf' David Hobbs Mike Hailwood	7 S	Bang	7312
			Eagle's Race	1040
6	Ford GT40 'Deutche Auto Zeitung' Helmut Kelleners Reinhold J�st	68 S	Bang	7157
8	Ferrari 250LM Teodoro Zeccoli Sam Posey Ricardo Rodriguez	17 S 5.0	Best	9377
DNF	Porsche 917L Vic Elford Richard Attwood	12 S	Ebbro	43749
			Eligor	1198
DNF	Porsche 917L Rolf Stommelen Kurt Ahrens	14 S	Ebbro	43750
			Eligor	1199
DNF	Lola T70 Mk.IIIB	2
DNF	Ford GT40	8
DNF	Ford GT40	9
DNF	Porsche 917L John Woolfe Herbert Linge (1st lap fatality at Maison Blanche)	10 S	Ebbro	43742
Test	Porsche 917L Herbert Linge Brian Redman Rudi Lins	15 S 5.0	Ebbro	43751
Sport-Prototypes Class (FIA Group 6)
2	Porsche 908L Hans Herrmann G�rard Larrousse	64 SP	Minichamps	400696864
			Solido (2013 re-issue)	421434030
			Ebbro	43740
			Solido ('100' series)	174
4	Matra MS630 Jean-Pierre Beltoise Piers Courage	33 SP	Bizarre	BZ122
5	Matra MS650 Jean Guichet Nino Vaccarella	32 SP	Bizarre	BZ320
7	Matra MS650 Nanni Galli Robin Widdows	35 SP	Bizarre	BZ123
DNF	Porsche 908L Udo Sch�tz Gerhard Mitter	23 SP	Ebbro	43741
DNF	Alfa Romeo T33/2.5 Teddy Pilette Rob Slotemaker	36 P 3.0	Best	9351
DNF	Matra MS650 Johnny Servoz-Gavin Herbert M�ller	34 SP	Bizarre	BZ124
DNF	Ferrari 312P Coup� Pedro Rodriguez David Piper	18 P 3.0	Best	9143
DNF	Ferrari 312P Coup� Chris Amon Peter Schetty	19 P 3.0	Best	9152
Sport-Prototypes Class (FIA Group 6) - 2.0 Liter
DNF	Alfa Romeo T33/2 Claude Bourgoignie Gustave Gosselin	38 P 2.0	Best	9248
GT Class (FIA Group 3)
DNF	Chevrolet Corvette Henri Greder Umberto Maglioli	1 GT	Vitesse Limited Edition	L044C
Le Mans Test Days
Test	Matra MS640 (Test Coupe)	32 SP	Bizarre	BZ135