Born in Long Island, Gurney was the son of bass-baritone John R. Gurney and born into a family of engineers. After achieving two podiums in only four races at Ferrari, Gurney joined BRM in 1960. Outside of Formula One, Gurney entered ten editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1958 to 1967, winning the latter alongside A.J. Foyt in the Ford GT40 Mk IV.
