The History of Shelby Mustangs
The Shelby Mustang is one of the most sought-after vintage performance cars, with an asking price of up to $250,000. The Mustang was Ford's sporty coupe, convertible and 2+2 fastback and became an instant hit in the burgeoning baby boomer market of the mid-1960s. With the fastback's introduction in mid-1964, Ford sought out retired race driver Carroll Shelby to modify its cars.
Other People Are Reading
-
Background
-
Carroll Shelby was a popular rally race driver who competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and other European and U.S. races. A bad heart forced him to retire, and he turned his attention to developing high-performance production cars. When Ford introduced the Mustang, the company asked Shelby to develop a car to compete against the Chevrolet Corvette, according to muscularmustangs.com.
Initial Plans
-
Ford sent Shelby a fleet of white fastback Mustangs to his Southern California garage. They were not equipped with a rear seat or a hood. Ford gave Shelby the green light to do what he wanted with the vehicles, according to muscularmustangs.com.
-
The First Shelby Mustang
-
The first Shelby Mustang was equipped with a fiberglass hood with functional scoops, an aluminum intake manifold to boost the power of the 289-cubic-inch V-8 from 271 to 306 horsepower, a Borg-Warner T-10 four-speed manual transmission, adjustable Koni shocks and rear traction bars and 15-inch wheels. The Mustang was sold only in white with blue racing stripes, according to muscularmustangs.com.
Unleashed on the Public
-
Ford launched the Shelby Mustang GT350 on Jan. 27, 1965, with a $4,000 price tag. For the money, in addition to the performance features, the buyer also received a black-only interior, three-spoke racing steering wheel, competition seat belts and the spare tire located where the rear seat once was. Ford only made 562 GT350s, according to muscularmustangs.com.
Toned-Down Model
-
The 1965 Shelby Mustang received some complaints for its spare racing features and poor-quality fiberglass hood. For 1966, Ford added more body paint schemes and replaced the fiberglass hood with a steel one. Fourteen-inch wheels replaced the 15s, and Ford heavy-duty shocks replaced the Konis. An added option was a supercharged V-8, increasing the horsepower to 390. Ford produced a limited edition of 1,000 black-and-gold Shelby GT350s for Hertz Rent-A-Car, according to muscularmustangs.com.
Restyled Mustang
-
The Mustang underwent a makeover for 1967 with a more muscular appearance. The Shelby version featured functional side scoops, a pair of hood scoops and a rear spoiler. Another feature were the rear horizontal tail lamps taken from the Mercury Cougar. The hood, trunk lid and fenders were now fiberglass. In 1968, the GT500 debuted and was powered by a 427-ci V-8. The GT500KR "King of the Road" version also became available with a 428 Police Interceptor V-8. Shelby's relationship with Ford ended in 1970, according to muscularmustangs.com.
Today
-
Ford brought back Shelby to help produce a new GT500 for 2007. It featured a supercharged 500-horsepower 5.4-liter V-8, since boosted to 540 hp, a Tremec TR-6060 six-speed manual transmission and high-performance suspension. For 2007, Ford built 5,632 GT500s. Ford produced 1,570 GT500KR versions for 2008 and 2009, according to mustangsandfords.com.
-
References
- Photo Credit Ford Motor Company, Pierre J, Chad Horwedel, jacksnell, omniNate: flickr.com
