| 1962 |
Ford
begins its "Total Performance" racing program of the 1960s. |
|
|
| 1963 |
Colin
Chapman teams with Ford to build rear-engine Indy cars powered by
production-based pushrod engines. Jim Clark drives Lotus-Ford to engine's
first victory in Milwaukee 200. Ford engines go on to win 88 Indy car
races between 1963 and 1971. Tiny Lund scores Ford's first Daytona 500 win
in the fifth running of the event. |
|
|
| 1964 |
Ford
introduces dual overhead cam V-8 Indy car engine. Jim Clark wins
Indianapolis 500 pole in a Lotus-Ford. |
|
|
| 1965 |
Jim
Clark scores Ford's first victory in the Indianapolis 500, driving a
Lotus-Ford. Cars powered by the DOHC Ford V-8 finish 1 through 4.
Mario
Andretti becomes first Ford powered driver to win the USAC (Indy car)
national championship.
Ned
Jarrett is first Ford driver to win the NASCAR Grand National title
(Jarrett's second, also won in 1962)
|
|
|
| 1966 |
Ford
Mk IIs finish 1-2-3 in 24 Hours of Le Mans. Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon
drive the winner. |
|
|
| 1967 |
Ford-Cosworth
DFV V-8 engine makes Formula One debut, driven to victory by Jim Clark in
a Lotus-Ford in the Dutch Grand Prix. Between 1967 and 1983 the engine
would win 155 races, power 12 world champion drivers and 10 world champion
constructors. |
|
|
| 1971 |
Ford
(North America) ends all racing support and involvement. |
|
|
| 1976 |
Al
Unser wins Pocono 500 in a Parnelli-Cosworth, first victory for the
turbocharged Cosworth DFX V-8 engine. It would go on to win a total of 153
Indy car races through the 1987 season. |
|
|
| 1977 |
Tom
Sneva, driving a McLaren-Cosworth, wins USAC national championship; it is
the first of 11 consecutive USAC and CART national championships for the
Cosworth DFX engine. |
|
|
| 1981 |
Ford
establishes Special Vehicle Operations as its administrative center for
all racing activities. The Miller Mustang, driven by Klaus Ludwig in IMSA
GTX racing, scores the first two victories in Ford's resurgent program. |
|
|
| 1985 |
Ford
Thunderbird driver Bill Elliott wins a record 11 NASCAR superspeedway
events, including the Talladega 500 at 186.288 mph, fastest 500-mile stock
car race ever run. |
|
|
| 1988 |
Bill
Elliott wins NASCAR Winston Cup championship in a Thunderbird -- first
Winston Cup title for a Ford driver since 1969. |
|
|
| 1992 |
Ford
re-enters Indy car racing with the new Ford-Cosworth XB engine. Ford wins
its 10th NASCAR manufacturers' championship, the first since 1969. Alan
Kulwicki wins Winston Cup title in a Thunderbird. |
|
|
| 1993 |
Nigel
Mansell wins IndyCar PPG Cup and Rookie of the Year in a Ford-Cosworth XB-powered
Lola, Ford's first drivers' title since 1971. |
|
|
| 1994 |
Ford
introduces the Zetec R V-8 Formula One engine. Michael Schumacher drives a
Benetton-Ford to F1 World Championship, Ford's first since 1982.
Schumacher's eight wins push Ford's all-time F1 victory total to 174,
higher than any other engine manufacturer in the history of F1 racing. |
|
|
| 1995 |
Jacques
Villeneuve wins the Indianapolis 500 in a Reynard Ford-Cosworth, Ford's
first Indy 500 victory since 1971. |
|
|
| 1997 |
Ford
launches the Taurus NASCAR Winston Cup race car for competition in 1998
and beyond. |
|
|
| 1998 |
Ford
buys Cosworth Racing, the company's partner in racing engine development
and production for more than 30 years. |
|
|
| 1999 |
Ford
purchases the Stewart-Ford Formula One race team. |
|
|
| 2 |
Ford
renames Stewart-Ford as Jaguar Racing, signaling the British marque's
first entry into Formula One racing. |
