BETRAYAL BEHIND LE MANS GLORY HENRY FORD LOLA and the STOLEN GT40

Discover The Shocking Truth Behind FORDs Secret Deal That Cheated Lola and Eric Broadley in a must watch video! Learn about the history and controversy surrounding this legendary ORIGIN STORY.

After the failed attempt to buy Ferrari, Ford needed a ready‑made Le Mans‑type prototype and an experienced small constructor to shortcut its lack of sports‑car racing experience. Contemporary histories agree that Ford specifically chose the Lola Mk6 GT as the technical springboard for what became the GT40, and brought Broadley in on a personal contract. Ford bought cars and design rights and set up Ford Advanced Vehicles in the same Slough premises that Lola had used, effectively transplanting the project into a Ford‑controlled structure from day one.

Broadley’s Deal And The Split

Eric Broadley signed a short, roughly two‑year personal deal to work with Ford on the “Ford GT”, but crucially this was Broadley himself, not Lola Cars being absorbed as a full partner or co‑brand. The relationship deteriorated quickly over engineering and control, most famously over Ford’s insistence on a heavier steel monocoque instead of the aluminum approach Broadley favored, and by 1964–65 Broadley walked away from the program.

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How Ford Compensated Broadley

Sources that dig into the contract period stress that Broadley was not simply discarded without payment. He received financial compensation, the Ford Advanced Vehicles shop building (in his name) reverted to him when the deal ended, and the original Lola GT prototype was returned to his ownership, which later allowed him to continue building up Lola, leading to successful cars like the T70 and the Indy‑winning T90. Broadley himself is quoted as not publicly complaining that Ford cheated him on the settlement, even if he strongly disagreed with them technically and strategically.

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Where The “Cheated” Narrative Comes From

The sense that Lola and Broadley were “cheated” comes more from how Ford framed the story afterwards than from a broken contract. Ford’s own “family trees” and publicity tended to show the GT40 as evolving from Ford’s Mustang I and in‑house ideas while omitting or minimizing the Lola Mk6, despite the obvious design and layout lineage from the Lola GT to the early GT40. Commentators looking back argue that if the partnership had stayed friendly, the Mk6 might have been openly credited and perhaps sold as a Ford‑Lola road car, instead of being pushed into the shadows while Ford took almost all of the public glory for Le Mans.

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Reality Versus “Secret Deal” Myth
Aspect What actually happened (as reported)
Technical starting point GT40 Mk I based heavily on the mid‑engined Lola Mk6 GT concept and layout.
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Formal arrangement Short‑term personal contract with Broadley; Ford bought cars/rights, not Lola as an equal partner.
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Cause of split Clashes over design (steel vs aluminum monocoque), control, and direction of the program.
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Broadley’s compensation Money, return of the Lola GT prototype, and the Slough facility, enabling Lola’s later success.
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“Cheating” element Ford’s later PR largely erased Lola’s visible credit, owning the GT40 legend in public perception.
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In short, the GT40 did rest on Lola’s shoulders, and Ford later told the story as if it were almost entirely Ford’s own creation, but the available evidence points to a tough, unequal deal and a messy breakup rather than a flatly fraudulent “secret cheat” of Broadley and Lola.

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