Top 10 Things Ford V Ferrari Got Right and Wrong
#10: Ford Almost Bought Ferrari
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True If you can’t beat 'em, buy 'em! As seen in the film, the Ford Motor Company tried roping in a younger demographic by making an offer to Ferrari in 1963. Ford sent a team to Italy to negotiate, although Vice President Lee Iacocca didn’t make the trip as the movie indicates. Ferrari would’ve gained $10 million through this accusation, but Enzo Ferrari would be forced to give up control. This deal-breaker caused Ferrari to back out of at the last minute. In 1969, Ferrari made a deal with Fiat, which acquired 50% of the company with Enzo still maintaining control over the racing team. Some believe that Ferrari was never serious about the Ford deal, merely using it to means to get Fiat onboard.
#9: Miles’ Door Wouldn’t Close During the Big Race
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True Although “Ford v Ferrari” takes a few creative liberties to up the intensity, Ken Miles’ rocky start at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans wasn’t one of them. In the film’s depiction, the race doesn’t begin behind the wheel, but with the drivers rushing into their automobiles. Before even hitting the road, Miles faces a significant setback when his “bloody door” won’t shut properly. With no time to spare, Miles takes off while simultaneously trying to close the door during his first lap. This really happened, which made it all the more impressive when Miles caught up to the competition… with his door fixed of course.
#8: Enzo Ferrari Was at Le Mans ‘66
False Given the film’s title, one would assume to Enzo Ferrari was present at Le Mans ‘66 to face his racing rival. Throughout the final act, we see Enzo overseeing the big race from his booth. Not long after Lorenzo Bandini fails to complete the race, a defeated Ferrari sends the Shelby crew a nod of respect and gracefully departs. In real life, though, Mr. Ferrari wasn’t even present at Le Mans ‘66. Director James Mangold confessed in an IndieWire interview that Ferrari’s presence at the race was “the biggest cheat in this movie,” although this does admittedly make sense from a storytelling perspective. Even if Ferrari didn’t attend Le Mans, Henry Ford II was present, as the movie depicts.
#7: Shelby & Miles Were the Key Masterminds Behind the Ford GT40
False There’s no denying that Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles played roles in developing the Ford GT40. In the film, however, these two are given a majority of the credit when there were actually numerous engineers who made the GT40 a roaring success. Shelby American wasn’t alone in the car’s production, as many Ford employees made significant contributions. To be fair, the movie does feature Ford engineer Roy Lunn, who was considered “the godfather of the Ford GT40,” although his screen time is eclipsed by Shelby and Miles’. Other major engineers who worked on the car, such as John Wyer and Eric Broadley, are either glanced over or omitted entirely. Then again, we guess you can only cover so many people with a feature runtime.
#6: Shelby & Miles’ Brawl on the Grass
False One of the more debatable moments in the movies comes after Miles returns home from grocery shopping. Shelby is waiting outside for him, asking Miles to come back and work on the car. Miles isn’t quick to accept Shelby’s apology and a brawl escalates between the two. It’s entirely possible that Shelby and Miles got into their fair share of heated arguments. However, there are no reports indicating that they ever threw punches – or groceries – at each other, especially outside of Miles’ house. This scene thus primarily exists to service the story and work in some product placement for Campbell’s Soup. True or false, at least we finally got to see Jason Bourne face off against Batman… with Wonder Bread.
#5: Henry Ford II Wanted to Get Back at Ferrari
True In the film, Enzo Ferrari not only turns down Ford’s deal, but also delivers some pretty sick burns regarding Henry Ford II and his cars. Ferrari’s words are later relayed to Ford II, who takes most of his insults in stride. A nerve is struck, however, when Ford II learns Ferrari said that he could never fill the shoes of his grandfather, Henry Ford I. While it’s hard to say with absolute certainty, it is believed by some that Ferrari really did say that Ford II wasn’t the true Henry Ford. In any case, Ford II was furious that Ferrari had backed out of their deal. This gave Ford II the drive to commission a race car that could beat Ferrari at his own game.
#4: Ford Strongly Opposed Sending Miles to Le Mans ‘66
False According to the film, Shelby and Miles constantly clashed with Ford’s Senior Executive Vice President, Leo Beebe. Feeling that the hot-headed Miles isn’t a good fit for Ford’s image, Beebe does everything in his power to stop him from racing at Le Mans. While it’s true that Miles didn’t get to race at Le Mans ‘64, Ford did allow him to participate at Le Mans ‘65. Miles lost this race to Ferrari due to gearbox trouble, but we never see this occur in the film. Since Miles had been to Le Mans the previous year, it’s unlikely that Ford would’ve given him much pushback about racing for them in ‘66. Some would also argue that Beebe’s vendetta against Miles here was either exaggerated or falsified.
#3: Miles’ Last Ride
True As the film show us, Ken Miles’ racing days indeed came to an abrupt, tragic end. In 1966, barely two months after Le Mans, Miles tested the Ford J-car at Riverside International Raceway in Southern California. Unfortunately, Miles wouldn’t get to race Ford’s latest model at Le Mans ’67. Driving 200 mph, Miles lost control of the car and it caught on fire. Miles was ejected from the crumbling automobile and didn’t survive. Miles’ young son Peter was also present at the site when his father’s fatal accident occurred. Peter Miles remembers the incident vividly, recounting in a 2019 interview, “It was the last lap of the day, and I just saw a ball of fire. They kept me away, but I could see him…”
#2: Shelby’s Exhilarating Ride with Ford II
False To maintain control of the GT40 project, Shelby locks the recently-promoted Beebe in his office and takes Mr. Ford on a wild ride in the car they’ve cooked up. After experiencing the power of the GT40, a crying Ford II is left both hysterical and blown away, allowing Shelby to continue his work. It’s a fun scene, but there’s no evidence suggesting that Shelby took Ford II for a quick spin to prevent Beebe’s interference. Even if the Ford Motor Company’s CEO did get into a dangerous race car with Shelby, it’s highly unlikely that he would’ve gone for a joy ride without a helmet or any other protective gear.
#1: Three Ford Cars Finished Together
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True Although some may argue that Leo Beebe is misrepresented here, he did instruct Miles to slow down during the final stretch of Le Man ’66. With three Ford cars in the lead, Beebe thought it’d be a great photo-op if Miles crossed the finish line with the other two cars behind him. Miles complied and the three Ford cars completed the race in unison. While Ford got its photo finish, this robbed Miles of the glory. Since Miles slowed down, fellow Ford driver Bruce McLaren was declared the winner due to a technicality. Nevertheless, Shelby and Miles were able to walk away with their heads high. “Ford v Ferrari” gets all of this correct, right down to the fact that Shelby always regretted the decision.
