Ford Is Selling A Heritage Fleet Vehicle For The First Time

This Gulf Oil–livery GT has been owned by the Blue Oval since it was new, and it's the first vehicle it ever offered to the public from the company's Heritage Collection. Proceeds from the sale of the retro-styled Ferrari 360 Modena rival will go toward maintaining the other vintage and historic cars in Ford's possession.

2006 Ford GT Heritage Edition No. 3 Exterior 1A Checkered History For The Le Mans Tribute
This particular 2006 GT – from the first generation, not the more technologically savvy second-gen – is a Heritage Edition, built to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1966 Le Mans, where Ford took a 1-2-3 photo finish. It's the third such example and the first that was intended for retail purchase, and Ford itself took delivery of the GT when it was new. The car saw duty as a media and marketing vehicle, and Ford will supply the new owner with a certificate of authenticity and a build book that documents its manufacture from start to finish.

Possibly due to its use as a media vehicle – auto writers can be a bit dim-witted, your author included – there are a couple of incidents on the Carfax. In late 2005, the Ford GT got hit from behind by another vehicle and sustained a few blemishes on the rear. Then, in October 2006, it ran off the road and ended up in a ditch, with damage to the undercarriage. Considering the GT is a member of the Blue Oval's heritage collection, we presume it was repaired to a very high standard, so the issues on the Carfax shouldn't be too much cause for concern. Better still, the Ford GT Heritage Edition has a mere 8,345 miles on the odometer – around 500 miles per year.

Sacrificing One To Save Others
Ford is getting rid of the GT to raise funds to preserve and maintain other members of the Heritage Fleet. The automaker has maintained this grouping of vehicles – nearly 500 of them as of March – for years, but until recently, the cars were scattered all over the world. So in 2024, Ford began the painstaking process of identifying a centralized group of cars and trucks that represented high-water marks for design and technology, gathering them at its new headquarters in Dearborn. Today, the fleet includes "Archives" vehicles, including original and replica Model Ts and the F-150 Lightning driven by President Joe Biden, as well as a selection of concept, marketing, and high-performance cars from the company's 128-year history.

The 2006 Ford GT has been a part of the heritage collection since new, but its time at home has come to an end. Proceeds from Saturday's Barrett-Jackson auction will go toward curating and maintaining the rest of the fleet, and the car's unique ownership history and Heritage Edition trim level should go a long way toward bringing in lots of cash. Earlier this year, a GT Heritage sold on Bring A Trailer for $682,000 with 12,000 miles, while low-mileage examples can bring nearly seven figures. We bet this one could come close to breaking a record for 2005–2006 Ford GTs, perhaps pulling in a cool million bucks.