Road cars indebted to Le Mans | Six of the Best
Some cars are born of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, some just pay tribute - both ways have proved tres bon...
Superformance GT40 MkII, 2009, 3k, POA
There are more prestigious things for a manufacturer to win than Le Mans. But not many. There is a reason why it is considered part of motorsport's ‘Triple Crown’ (alongside the Monaco GP and Indy 500); it is steeped not just in 100 years of history, but myth and legend, too. Romantically, it stands apart. And while there are umpteen stories to pull on the heartstrings, the most well-trodden one is undeniably Ford’s belated triumph over Ferrari, making the GT40 arguably the car most associated with the race. This example isn’t quite that, of course, but when it comes to road-going machines built in tribute to race winners, the Superformance MkII is certainly worth getting teary about - especially when right-hand drive, powered by a 7.0-litre Roush V8 and in ’66 colour scheme. Just to die for, right?
Proteus C-Type, 2017, 3k, £145,000
On the subject of modern-day recreations, more than one firm has had a go at replicating the curvaceous wonder (and outright Le Mans winner, of course) that is the Jaguar C-Type. But few have been at it as long as Proteus, which started building what we’d now call a restomod back in 1980. The concept is familiar: modern(ish) underpinnings with a heaven-sent ‘50s body on top. We actually drove one back in 2019 and the combination of 260hp from a Jaguar-sourced 4.2-litre straight six and a 1,000kg kerbweight certainly made an impression on Matt B. Expect it to make an impression on passersby, too - and your bank manager. Seven years and three thousand miles of presumably careful use have taken the edge off this one’s asking price, but cheap it ain’t. Still, downright lovely it very much is.
Ultima RS, 2019, 7k, £177,995
Okay, we’ve cheated here a bit. Strictly speaking, no Ultima has ever raced at Le Mans (we think). But we’ve allowed it partly on the basis that Le Mans-style prototypes were among the inspiration for Lee Noble’s original vision (and imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, after all) and partly because this is chassis number one of the factory-built RS models - the same car that the manufacturer revealed to the world in 2019. This is significant not just for the sake of provenance but because it received the 6.2-litre supercharged V8 from the Corvette ZR1, which could be induced to develop up to 1,200hp. In a car that weighed less than a tonne. Suffice it to say then, even with just 800hp, this is the one car we’ve selected that could still put in a handy lap at Circuit de la Sarthe this weekend. And what a way to get there, too.
Ferrari Dino 246 GT “LM”, 1972, 71k, £499,950
From the ridiculous to the sublime. Ferrari’s record at Le Mans is famous for its lengthy dry spell: it being a dominant force in the ‘50s and ‘60s and then absent from the podium's top step until its spectacular return (and unexpected triumph) in 2023. This car is a glorious tribute to the Dino 246 GT that NART ran in ’72. Its one and only showing was not a success - but, boy, did it produce a cool-looking Ferrari. Built from a standard, in-period 246 GT, it has been raced extensively for the last 20 years (and has accrued 71k miles in that time) but is now in road-going trim and what appears to be very nice condition. Which it obviously needs to be when the dealer is asking half a million quid for it. But, honestly, who doesn’t have a secret thing for competition-spec Ferraris? Especially when they’re one-of-one and right-hand drive.
Morgan Plus 8 GTR, 2022, 530 miles, £229,995
Also among things to love, there's the fact that Morgan has raced at Le Mans. Quite famously in fact, when it comes to its class-winning ’62 Plus Four. But it was still at it 20 years ago with the Aero 8, and this is among the race cars that inspired the dramatic Plus 8 GTR introduced in 2022. Frighteningly rare - Morgan built just nine examples from leftover chassis - and a fitting tribute to its motorsport heritage with 400hp from its BMW-sourced V8, this GTR is said to be one of only two that came in right-hand drive alongside the manual gearbox that the car surely deserved. It’s the only one we’ve ever seen for sale on the secondhand market, which explains the £230k asking price. A lightly used LM62 of the same vintage is a whole lot less. But we couldn’t resist the blue-on-blue theme or the chin-jutting vibe.
Porsche 924 Le Mans, 1980, 68k, £19,995
A two-for-one to finish. Hard to leave out Porsche when discussing anything Le Mans-based given its record tally of 19 outright wins, and only fair of course to include something with fewer than six numbers in the asking price. So feast your eyes on this 924 Le Mans, a celebratory special edition from the decade that delivered Porsche seven back-to-back wins. Probably a 911 would’ve been more appropriate based on class wins, but let’s not forget that the firm did take the 924 to Le Mans in GTR format, and while the road-going model outputs a lot less than the 380hp the racing version was equipped with, it still makes for very charming classic Porsche - especially when it costs just £17,995 for a near-perfect example.
''to acquire one of these cars is virtually impossible now, Ultima have ceased making them''
as stated in the ad, is incorrect. It is my understanding they are selling cars regularly.
Interesting, unaffordable.
unaffordable.
Interesting, unaffordable.
Unaffordable.
Unaffordable.
Unexpected company, nope.
Think this is one for the nostalgia or motorsport readers and not plebs like me.
It would be like me reading the PH reviews of motorbikes and thinking it’s not for the likes of me - as I’m not a biker!
What I saw was a Dino 206 , earlier car than this recreation , smaller engine , in dark blue and described as a NART 206 GT from Sebring 1969 , car number 38 , the real thing and not a replica .
This car had it's own small glossy brochure leaflet , which I naturally picked up and brought home and have just dug it out to find the details of it .
I don't remember if the car was just on show or on sale but if a replica is £0.5M , I guess a real NART car is going to be considerably more .
I'll post pics from the brochure if anyone is interested .
I say take it home, I’m doubting my ability to perform human origami on myself and somehow fold a 60yr old body into the car.
Other than that, the only thing that jars for me is the vertical panel under the dash that holds the controls for the heater, fan and air con switchgear, I’d have preferred them to be more in keeping with the period of the car.
I guess that’s the difference between buying and spending the car from new and buying a ‘previously enjoyed’ example though.
Anyhoo, it would be epic to drive to Le Mans even though I don’t see any way I could carry clothes and a tent etc for when I got there..
ok, for me I think as follow;
-the Superformance GT40 = first
-love a Morgan GTR but not in that shade, saw a nicer (for me) one.
-that Ferrari Dino looks great, ok not a that sort red color fan, but nice stance
-Ultima RS, but its a bit to much? nice but...
this Morgan GTR (LHD) is in dark green and has a lovely interior to match, but on this side the prices they ask are way higher, count at least 100k euro on top
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