Over the weekend Ford launched yet another special edition of the GT, this time called the Heritage Edition. This is, by my count, the eighth different special edition version of the GT since it was launched in 2017. With a total production run in the hundreds, Ford is making sure that most GT owners will have something unique and special to brag about when six of them are parked in a row at a Los Angeles cars and coffee. In a way it’s brilliant, following the Pagani track of making everything a special edition so that no owner feels like just another number in the crowd.
The new 2021 Heritage Edition isn’t to be confused with the already released Competition Series, which commemorated Ford’s 2016 Le Mans win, or the ‘66 Heritage Edition which honoured Ford’s 1966 Le Mans win, or the ‘67 Heritage Edition which payed homage to Ford’s 1967 Le Mans win, or the Gulf Oil-liveried ‘68 Heritage Edition which aped Gulf-Wyer Racing’s 1968 Le Mans win. No, of course this non-numbered Heritage Edition is a pat on the back for the Daytona 1966 victory of Lloyd Ruby and Ken Miles, obviously.
While Ford has a long way to go to match the Zonda’s 18-year run which produced 37 different editions, the blue oval is off to a good start. The American supercar will need to hang on for another decade and a half to match that with at least two new special editions per year to make that happen, but weirder things have happened. I mean, the Dodge lineup is approximately three hundred years old, and that keeps cranking out new models with more power.
With a unique, but modernised, version of the 1966 Daytona-winning livery, the Heritage Edition GT comes with some pretty nifty 20″ gold wheels and a unique red and black interior crafted almost entirely from Alcantara. Of course, if the special edition isn’t enough for you, you can opt for the Heritage Upgrade Package, which adds carbon fibre wheels and carbon fibre door panels.
I’m not exactly partial to this livery or this car, but if Ford had done a proper “Heritage Edition” with a manual gearbox, a great big honkin’ V8, and at least a few inches more sidewall to the tire, I’d seriously respect the commitment to the bit.
Everyone who buys one of these will likely be haunted by the ghost of Carroll Shelby, which, honestly makes it a little cooler. If you’re the kind of Ford lover who has a spare half-million laying around, why not invite a spectral chicken farmer with a bad case of angina into your home? If for no other reason than to sign your glovebox.
