Julie Hinds|Detroit Free Press
Retired Ford engineer Mose Nowland, 85, remembersthe time in 1966 that he rushedto North Carolina,then to California, to fixleaks foundin two GT40race cars about to besent off tothe 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Running on virtually no sleep and with no time to spare, he resolved the problem— it would take a gearhead to explain it— by using trout fishing line to block the leakage. By the time he gothome to Dearborn, his wife had his bag packed and ready for his flight to theprestigious French endurance race.
"I think I slept all the way to France," says Nowland, who experienced the events depicted in "Ford v Ferrari," which hits theaters Thursday and opens wide Nov. 15.
Ford's legendary 1966 Le Mans victory has been explored previouslyby documentaries and books. Yet nothing has gotten thewidespread attention ofthe new movie directed by James Mangold ("Logan," "Walk the Line") and starring Matt Damon andChristian Bale.
Anemotionally resonantdrama with extraordinary racing scenes, "Ford v Ferrari" is considereda shoo-in for multiple Oscar nominations.And no wonder. The real-life version of Ford vs. Ferrari is the stuff that inspires great filmmaking.
In 1963, Ford Motor Co.was close to buyingFerrari whenthe deal collapsed at the last minute. SoHenry Ford II, a powerfulCEOwith a giant company and huge racing ambitions, decided to build his own programfor Le Mansand beat Italian magnate Enzo Ferrari, who'd won the competitionsince 1960, at his own game.
Out of this rivalry between titans, agreat American race car, Ford'sGT40, was born.It hada rough start— the GT40 failedto finish Le Mans in 1964 and 1965 — but afterone more year of testing, tinkering, working around the clock and thinking outside the box, Ford nabbed the top three spots at Le Mans in 1966 (and went on to win in 1967, 1968 and 1969).
While "Ford v Ferrari" captures the essentials of the saga,it focuses on the friendship between Carroll Shelby (Damon), the larger-than-life automotive designer and first American to win at Le Mans, and Ken Miles (Bale), the daring British driver with finely honed instincts for how far to push his vehicle.Both Shelby and Milesaredepicted as maverickswhocantolerate only so much corporate interference fromFord, specificallythe company'sracing director, Leo Beebe (played with middle-managementmenace by Josh Lucas).
The real-life version, however, involved a vast cast of participants,not to mention a complex set of engineeringchallenges.Itsheroes were the names on a long list of dedicated, talented Ford employees and contractors who didthe impossibleon an improbably tight timeline. And, yes, some of them wore suits and worked at the Dearborn world headquarters, aka theGlass House.
Beyond providing somearchival materials for research, Ford wasn't involved in the making of"Ford v Ferrari," which is based on A.J. Baime's2009 book"Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans."The screenplay by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth and Jason Keller takes liberties with certain details andpersonalities, as does everyadaptation of a true story.
ButFord isn't complaining about what's accurate and what isn't. There's no anticipation so far of aFord vs. "Ford v Ferrari" battle. Instead, the company isusing the filmas a reason to commemorateits1966 Le Mans triumph, which still stands as an amazing feat of American automotive ingenuity.
"The film is a piece of entertainment, first and foremost. It's what I would characterize as a dramatic reinterpretation of history," saysJay Ward, Forddirector ofEurope product communications and public affairs.
Ward, who has seen chunks of the movie, calls the race footage "absolutely brilliant" and commends it for pointing out the incredible danger faced byrace car drivers of the 1960s.Of the drivers who participated in any given year of racing events, "nearly athird of them wouldn't make it to the end of the season,"according to Ward.
"These guys were heroes and I don't use the term loosely," says Ward.
On Thursday,an invitation-onlygroup of executives, staffersand journalists gathered in Dearborn at the Ford Engineering Laboratory to see vintage artifacts from the real Ford vs. Ferrari face-off.
Guests got a glimpse ofFordarchives and learnedthatthey contain 3 miles of shelving in total, a video vault cooled to41 degrees and a rather imposing-looking safe that was opened right there on the spot.
As archives manager Leslie Armbruster donned protective white gloves and removedthe only known copy of the original plans for the GT project, it felt like a holy grail of Le Mans 1966 was being revealed.
A nearby room was laden with displays of objects like the 1963 telegram from Ferrari canceling the deal withFord,a report on the GT40's early failures, the 1966 Le Mans trophy and, perhaps best of all, one of the small cards that Henry Ford II gave to Le Mans team members. On it was scrawled hishandwritten message:"You better win."
Another highlight was an exact replica of theGT40driven by Ford's Bruce McLaren at Le Mans that year. It was createdand used for"Ford v Ferrari." Its current owner, William Deary of Jackson, Michigan, wasn't able to visit the set, but he is looking forward to seeing the car on the big screen.
"They put over 500 miles on it filming the movie," said Deary.
Also present was Edsel Ford II, the son of Henry Ford II and great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford. Chatting amiably with journalists, Ford, who hasn't seen the film yet, remembered being at Le Mans in 1966 with his father. "I didn't know much about car racing at the time, so I was just sort of a wide-eyed 18-year-old going, 'This isfantastic!' "
Ford laughedwhen asked whether he'd ever thought about whoshould play his dad (who's portrayed by actor/playwright Tracy Letts in "Ford v Ferrari").
"I had said to a couple of people, including my sons ... my biggest concern about 'Ford v Ferrari' waswho was going to play me," he joked. When a reporter suggested he may have wound upon the cutting-room floor, Ford again quipped,"That would be a travesty, quite frankly. I was a very handsome 18-year-old. My hair was a little long, my sideburns were way too long."
The real star of the private event was Nowland, who spent 57 years with Ford, first as an experimental mechanic and then as a sports car engineer. Nowland not only worked on the GT40 program and knew figures like Ken Miles, but also was atLe Mans in 1966 and served withFord's pit crews.
What was Le Mans like? "It was,wow, especially if you had to go out and service a carduring a pit stop," Nowland reminisced. "Your hip pockets are only several inches away from cars going by at 160 mph."
Nowland retired in 2012, but he remains active with Ford through occasional events and his regular volunteer schedule ofthree days a weekat the Henry Ford Museum and two days at the Henry Ford Estate.
"My alarm goes off at 5:30 a.m. and then I start my day," he says.
Nowland saw the movie in September at theToronto International Film Festival. He liked it and thought the actors did a good job.
More: Matt Damon and Christian Bale rev up 'Ford v Ferrari' engine for this year's Oscar race
But having Le Mans 1966back in the news has been bittersweet for Nowland. So many people are gone now in real life, some recently likeLee Iacocca (who died in July at age 94 and is played by Jon Bernthal), some long deceased like Miles(who was killed two months after the 1966 Le Mans during a test drive accident).
"For me, basically, we're still there, all together,"Nowlandsays. Just like in the movie.
Contact Detroit Free Press pop culture critic Julie Hinds: 313-222-6427 or jhinds@freepress.com.
'Ford v Ferrari'
Opens with some Thursday screenings, wide Nov. 15
Rated PG-13 for some language and peril
