This GT40 Shows How Adversity Breeds Creativity

It’s impossible to start talking about a car without understanding the context of where it lives. Argentina is an extremely passionate country when it comes to cars; people are really creative, but law limitations make projects like this Ford GT40 replica only for the brave and the determined.

For many years, building cars outside of a car factory in Argentina was forbidden. Many private manufacturers went bankrupt; others emigrated to countries where laws allowed their imagination run wild, Pagani being one such example.

The backstory of this Argentinian GT40 is an adventure, one told to me by its proud owner.

2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-03

The main idea was to assemble a car for everyday use, which meant using relatively new car parts for easy maintenance. The chassis is a true copy of an original GT40 of English origin, and the bodywork was made by craftsmen using exacting molds and measurements from a ’65.

2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-13
2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-14

The heart is a V8 from a Ford F100 truck, but the 5-speed gearbox came from a Renault 21. The latter is not the only strange element taken from a street car – the brake system is out of a Ford Mondeo.

2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-01

Many solutions used in this car were taken from formula cars, from the pedals to coilover racing shocks and springs. Hours and hours of work and a lot of patience went into the build.

2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-15
2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-11

This GT40 is used on a daily basis in a city where moving around is already an extremely difficult task, and when it participates in track days or exhibitions, the owner drives it from home to the race track and back again.

2018 Ford GT40 Argentina by Lucas Arrieta-02

I asked him what he felt when driving his 40-inch-tall car around town with traffic, and his response sums things up perfectly: “I cannot see the traffic lights.”

Lucas Arrieta
Instagram: pdf_shoots





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Honestly, this glimpse is not enough but at least it's obvious this is a joy to ride GT40 replica, i can imagine the smile on the owner's face.

Chris Colouryum

Felt like this article was just getting started... then it ended all over a sudden. MORE PLEASE.


The Renault gearbox is not that uncommon. I suppose that it is a Renault UN1, which was used in the among others the Alpine A610, the Delorean, the Lotus Esprit and quite a few kit cars. Not a bad gearbox in itself, but it was often used with motors that exeeded its low max torque rating by today standards.


this guy is a gangsta
I love it.



That's gold!


I love how people put so much time into things like this and then ignore the most simple thing in the world: tires. All moot because of the rubber imo.

Mikko Kukkonen

Tell me your own experiences regarding tires on cars, please. I would also like to know, what are the disadvantages of the rubber on this particular feature car? Am I correct in assuming, that in your opinion EVERYTHING on this car is "moot" because of the tires on it? Are they too cheap, or what's the problem?

In my 17 years of driving cars in varying weather conditions, I've never gotten myself in trouble because of cheap tires. To make things clearer, I have never had tires that you'd call expensive on my cars, and I have been perfectly happy.

What I hate though, are people who never try anything themselves, but base their opinions on car blogs, vlogs, YouTube videos, forums whatever.. I understand, that the current trend is all about original wheels and expensive tires on a car, in the hands of a driver who never knows the difference while parking the car in a show.

"Replica wheels break", "Cheap tires ruin the build" BLAH BLAH BLAH.. Get out there and form your own opinion, instead of repeating what someone else has told you.


Well, maybe when youre more experienced you will. Ive been racing 30 years and share a ride with a couple guys who race in GT /LMP.

Surprise: there are experienced people in comment sections. Try not to lose ur shit ace.


yea dude better get some PSC2s to go with the truck engine


If you can't see past such a simple shortcoming, especially one that's so easy to change with a jack and a few minutes time, that's your own narrow-minded problem.


I see them as a period-looking tread for when it IS on the street and basically serving as rolling art for the public to appreciate. As you say, it's easy to swap on a set of track wheels/tires for when it's driven to the track.


A great handling car on cheap tyres can be super fun to drive, you actually get to feel the dynamics and the car moving around without needing to go insane speeds. Especially in the dry! In the wet it can be a little less than ideal but there are ways to cope with that. I've run the full spectrum of tyres on all my cars and I default to cheap and cheerful and I treat them like a consumable. If you are in a race to make the fastest car you'll always lose, its about making a car thats fun to drive!

Mikko Kukkonen


VERY well said!


Same story the world over.

"We love cars here, but our government doesn't want us to have them."

What we need is a sort of international car enthusiast advocacy organization.


Best story of the year, but (as others said) too short on info.

Mikko Kukkonen

This car deserves a feature, more in depth than this. This car is about true determination, skill and passion.


... surprised no one has commented on the panel gaps yet. That recent J's S2000 was torn a new one.

Just interesting, is all...


Panel gaps on an original GT40 aren't that consistent to begin with and this is a kit car build by hand, not a pro shop doing a demo of their craft so I'm glad no one is nit picking at things that don't matter.

It's a beautiful car that the owner enjoy and probably gets kids and car enthusiasts to take a second look and dream for 1 second so mission accomplished I think.


Excellent article Lucas! cars and jobs like that is too hard found in our country

Ricardo Adriazola

Cool to see features coming from South-America, showing the culture and passion for cars that some think is inexistent, stuff like this makes me think that true car culture of SA isn't dead, but yet to come.
Excelente trabajo Lucas, sigue trayendo mas contenido así, buscando en lugares recónditos, con autos increíbles y las increíbles historias que los acompañan, saludos desde Chile.


All the comments, if you can do it better go out and build a gt40 replica car kit from scratch. Weld a brand new chassis from tube frame or square frame. Lay the fiberglass yourself all in your imaginary 6 million dollar machine shops and by all means LETS SEE IT. I love when people say I would have done it like this this and this. Then go spend the money and do it. I had a guy at a car meet once lecutre me on how my rx7 should have been done "correctly." I was like well by all means I'll sell you the car for what I have in it and you go do it "correctly." I just love armchair comments or people that have never owned a car like what they are hating on, or built a car from the ground up by hand. You can't talk about it unless you understand how difficult it is to have perfection. Being with your own hands or paying somone big money to do it. Last time I checked restoration shops charge per hour so if you want perfection you are talking 3-5 year build time and depending on how much money you throw at it. Most people I've met that have money to throw at things don't understand that a TV show about restoration shares next to nothing with real life. Builds for customers dont get done in 2 weeks and the car is gonna sell for huge bucks on acution block or win best car of show. In real life parts don't come in when they are supposed to, its never easy no matter how good the car looks, and customers always change things and say oh it will be easy to add this, this and this. I saw it done on such and such TV show.


You give an aspirin a headache pal. Wrong in so many ways. This car is scrap




I was waiting for the 'This is a rally car' caption when I saw the ride height and wheels. Thing is cool and I bet it's so much fun to drive, I'd love a GT40 Kit car.