Immensely proud of its legendary history, Ford Motor Company created the Ford GT to celebrate the company’s 100th anniversary. It appeared during a wave of both fresh thinking and retro-inspired design that saw several nameplates reappear in their product line, as well as the rebirth of period styling in the iconic Mustang and Thunderbird.

Dubbed “the pace car for an entire company,” the concept was shown at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan in 2002. It debuted with a look and a name that paid tribute to the company’s legendary Le Mans–winning GT40 of four decades prior. By the end of 2004, actual production had begun on this mid-engined, 43-inch-tall supercar, which was now called simply the GT. Production of each Ford GT involved multiple facilities, with each car starting life in Ohio and being completed at Ford’s own SVT facility in Michigan. Just over 4,000 cars were built in the US from 2004 to 2006, with 2,027 being completed for the 2005 model year.

This Ford GT was the 941st to complete final assembly that year, its relatively advanced build number helped it to avoid the suspension faults occurred in the early examples. It was sold new, five days after Independence Day in 2005 at Battlefield Ford Mercury in Culpeper, Virginia. Only four options were available with the GT when new, and this example features every one. The GT’s four-piston Brembo calipers were painted to match the Mark IV Red, with optional white stripes echoing the livery of the GT40 Mk IV that beat Ferrari at Le Mans in 1967. After adding lightweight, forged BBS aluminum alloy wheels – 18 inches in the front, 19 inches in the rear – and the optional McIntosh stereo with subwoofer, the optional extras added $13,600 to the original price of the GT.

Values for Ford’s analogue supercar have remained strong since its debut. Interest in the first-generation GT has risen further after the announcement of the second-generation model in 2015 and the debut of the feature film Ford vs. Ferrari in 2019. This 2005 Ford GT has, by all accounts, led an easy existence – the Carfax accompanying the sale notes regular dealership servicing, including recall-related replacement of the original airbag. When it came time for the original owner to sell this GT in 2016, he brought it back to the original dealership group, Battlefield Ford. The second owner followed suit, also servicing the GT at Battlefield Ford in Manassas, Virginia, then selling it back to them in 2020. The distance from the Ford dealership where the 2005 GT was first purchased to where it sold 15 years later adds up to a mere 36 miles. With an odometer showing fewer than 450 miles, this 2005 Ford GT has been cared for respectfully; a clear opportunity for those who appreciate the great American analogue supercar.