Shelby Mustang
Introduction to a Legend
The year was 1952, and Carroll Shelby had only begun his racing career, but he was instantly a dominant factor. That dominance quickly got the attention of those in need of a driver who could win, and as Carroll was given chances to race in bigger events, he seldom failed to impress. By 1954, news of this racing phenom had reached overseas car owners, and Shelby was given a chance to prove himself on the world scene, and as usual, he did so with flying colors. He continued winning, regardless of the type of race, or the car, until 1960 when he hung up his racing gloves and opened the "Shelby School of High Performance Driving". It was while running the driving school that Shelby became involved with AC Cars of England, using their chassis and Ford motors to assembly a car that proved to be just as overpowering as their inventor, the AC Cobra would make a name for itself and for Carroll Shelby around the world. Due to this use of Ford engines in the successful AC Cobra, a call was made from then-President of Ford Motor Company, Lee Iacocca, to Carroll Shelby to help improve the performance of their new sporty car, the Mustang.
The G.T. 350
While the Mustang was an instant success with its late 1964 release, Chevrolet and Chrysler were quick to respond with higher performance models (the Camaro and Barracuda, respectively) into the new pony car class. Ford Motor Company had plans of their own for higher performance Mustangs, but they had hoped to become more successful with the help of Shelby, and in 1965, the first batch of those new Shelby Mustangs was offered. Ford's intention was to have the Shelby Mustangs become a factory production race car, and the 1965 G.T. 350 did just that. The G.T. 350 was offered only in as fastbacks, painted Wimbledon White with Guardsman Blue stripes and black interiors. The street version G.T. 350 featured a tuned version of the Ford 289 cubic inch engine, making 306 horsepower (35 horsepower more than Ford's performance model 289), as well as no rear seat and high performance tires. The G.T. 350R, which was intended for racing purposes only, including a race ready suspension and brakes, high performance tires, and an upgraded cooling system . When the 1966 model year came to an end, 564 Shelby Mustangs had been sold, with 516 of those being street production models.
The 1966 Shelby Mustangs all still carried G.T. 350 name, although the street models received some touches to make them easier for street use. The 1,368 G.T. 350s got back the rear seat and glass rear quarter windows, as well as the addition of color options such as Raven Black, Ivy Green Metallic, and Candy Apple Red to the original color of Wimbledon White. The 1966 Shelby models also received the addition of the Cobra logo to the gas door, previously only seen on the AC Shelby Cobras, and this helped to differentiate the Shelby models from the basic Ford models . Similar to the 1965 Shelby Mustangs, 1966 also saw the production of the G.T. 350R, as well as the introduction of the G.T. 350 convertible and the G.T. 350S (The S standing for supercharged). There were 4 race models produced and 11 of the 390 horsepower 350S models. The G.T. 350 convertibles were the rarest of any Shelby, and the rarest of any Mustang convertible ever built. There were originally 6 convertibles slated for production, but it is rumored that the final two were not completed, so depending on the opinion of your source, there were 4 to 6 1966 Shelby convertibles produced.
1966 also marked the introduction of an interesting sort of marketing campaign by Ford Motor Company, with cooperation from Hertz Rental Cars . Having noticed the rave over these high performance Mustangs, as well as the surge of interest in performance cars, Hertz wanted a rental performance car. Shelby was contracted to make 1,001 units of the G.T. 350H. These cars were predominantly black with gold stripes (about 800 units), and were mechanically similar to the G.T. 350 street models. The rental fees were high for these, around 17 dollars a day and 17 cents a mile, and in some cases renters wanted to make sure that they got their money's worth. These innovated thieves would rent a G.T. 350H for a few days, take it home, and as quickly as possible they would pull the Shelby 289 out, replacing it with the stock 289 from their own Mustang, then return the car to the rental agency. Come the end of the 1966 model year, a total of 2,388 Shelby units were produced.
Big Block Shelby Mustangs
The horsepower wars were well underway by 1967, and both Ford Motor Company and Shelby realized that the high performance small block engines just were not going to get the job done against the big blocks from Chevrolet and Chrysler , so in 1967 Shelby launched the newest installation in the Shelby saga; the G.T. 500. The G.T. 350 was back, and along with the new G.T. 500, they were all fastbacks. Unlike previous year's Shelbys, the 1967 units were physically very different from the Mustangs. The most obvious changes were the front and rear ends. The Shelby models had large grille mounted lights, but due to some states' laws, they were forced to move the lights on some units out to the edges of the grille, which proved to allow the engine to cool more efficiently and hanging over that grille was the Shelby specific hood with a center mounted integrated hood scoop. The taillights, unlike the typical Mustang tri-bar slotted lights, were now the elongated horizontal taillights previously found on the Mercury Cougar , and along the top of the rear end, was a molded "duckbill" style spoiler. Both of the offered Shelby models now came with side mounts scoops where the rear quarter window had been on the 1966 models, and a lower mounted set, just past the end of the doors. The nose of the car, rear spoiler, and hood were all fiberglass to help cut weight for racing purposes. Along with the Shelby badging and striping, the 1967 Shelby models clearly stood out in a crowd of similar year Ford Mustangs.
However, the exterior trim was not the biggest addition to the 1967 Shelby Mustangs. That title was reserved for the 428 cubic inch big block Ford engine found in the G.T. 500, making 355 horsepower, while the G.T. 350 still came equipped with the 306 horsepower 289 "hi-po". Mechanically, the G.T. 350 was similar to previous years, with the intention of the lower end model being intended for more of a street cruiser, but the G.T. 500, which was intended to see a great deal more track time, was equipped with a roll cage and racing style safety harnesses. Unlike many other performance models, the G.T. 500 could be ordered with air conditioning, and powered steering, but many found that with these engine bay additions, the car's handling was negatively impacted.
There was one special edition Shelby made for 1967, and this one made no mistakes about its intentions. The Shelby Super Snake came equipped with the same high performance 427 cubic inch engine that was found in the AC Cobra, and when fitted with aluminum cylinder heads, race headers, aluminum intake manifold, 4 speed close ratio manual transmission, and a Detroit locker rear differential with 4.11 gears, it made 520 horsepower and with Mr. Shelby at the helm, it turned out an amazing top speed of 170 miles an hour. However, Shelby American opted not to offer this unit for production as it would have cost just as much as the Shelby Cobra roadster (around $7,500, where a Ford Mustang base price was around $2,800), so rather than the intended 50 units, the Super Snake saw only one unit made.
1967 also saw the introduction of Shelby de Mexico, with 169 units for the foreign market produced that first year. These Mexican Shelby's were similar in almost every way to the American models, and they all came equipped with the 289 cubic inch engine.
1968 brought about few changes for the Shelby Mustangs. The G.T. 350 got a bump in engine displacement to the new 302 cubic inch engine and a drop to 250 horsepower, while the G.T. 500 still came equipped with the 428, and the newest trimline, named the G.T. 500 KR came with a new derivation of the 428, now called the "Cobra Jet". The KR edition was equipped with some extra trim to allow it to stand out from the previous G.T. 500 models, and it was rumored that Shelby used the "KR", which stood for King of the Road, to prevent General Motors from using it on an upcoming model.
1968 also marked the first year where the Shelby Cobra saw a full production of convertible models. While still seemingly low production numbers compared to most vehicles, the 404 G.T. 350s, 402 G.T. 500s, and 518 G.T. 500 KRs offered as convertibles made 1968 the year that Shelby introduced a large volume of drop top Cobras.
Also in 1968, Hertz rent-a-car was back to doing business with Shelby, as there were 224 G.T. 350 units produced for Hertz, as well as 2 G.T. 500s and 1 G.T. 500 KR convertible offered to the public for rental, at a premium price. This year would mark the peak of single-year production for the Shelby Mustangs, and at the same time, it would show the beginning of the demise of the line. Ford Motor Company had begun making high performance models of their own, and for the first time, the Shelby Cobra was not the top of the food chain as far as power goes, as you could also buy a Ford Mustang with the powerful 428 Cobra Jet.
1968 saw a slight increase in Shelby de Mexico production, with the volume bumped up to 203 units for this model year.
1969 - The end of the Shelby?
1969 marked the first time since the inception of the G.T. 350 or G.T. 500, that a Shelby model was not the top dog in the Mustang stable. This was due to the introduction of the Boss 429, which was a 376 horsepower beast, along with the 290 horsepower Boss 302, Ford Motor Company was offering their own alternatives to the Shelby models. Ford, having spent the previous few years watching the Shelby name become associated with "fast Mustangs" was looking to steal back some of that thunder, and the Boss cars did just that, and the introduction of the new "Mach 1" added to their cause. The Shelby Mustangs still had a look all their own, with a unique front end, including a hood that had 5 openings in it; 3 to take in air along the front and 2 to allow hot air to vent out along the cowl. The rear end still had the distinct Shelby touch, with the integrated wing and horizontal taillights, similar to those found on the 1965 Thunderbirds . Shy of the new front end, there was little change for the 1969 models, as the drivetrain remained the same for the final few years of the Shelby Mustangs.
1969 did see another increase in production for Shelby de Mexico, along with some changes. While still named the G.T. 350 it came packed with a 302 cubic inch engine rather than the 289, and the 306 units sold for 1969 looked more like a Ford standard issue Mustang than they did a Shelby unit, thanks in part to the lack of the unique Shelby front end. Each G.T. 350 from Shelby de Mexico did receive an unusual fiberglass roof extension, making what came off the assembly ling as coupes look more like a fastback.
When 1970 rolled around, there were no plans to produce any more Shelby Mustangs, but there were still 789 remaining in the inventory, so these "leftover" 1969 models were titled as 1970 models. In order to give these 1970 units some distinguishing characteristics from the 1969 models, they added a modified lower air dam, as well as matte black stripes on the hood. The Boss 302 and Boss 429 had effectively stolen the show from Shelby, and even though they were no cheaper than the Shelby models, they packed a bigger punch, making them the more popular choice for high performance Mustang enthusiast with over 7,500 units sold.
The 1971 Mustangs hit the showroom with an exciting new look, which some consider to be similar to the front end of the previous Shelby models, and the car had gone through a complete "refresh" for the new model year. That refresh included the removal of the Boss lineup as well as the Shelby lineup from the American market. Shelby de Mexico rolled on, producing around 200 of their new G.T. 351, which came equipped with the 351 Windsor engine, but that would not prove to be enough, as this would be the final year for these models as well.
1972 brought about the end of the Shelby Mustang for North American. However, a deal made between Carroll Shelby and Belgian racing legend/European Shelby retailer Claude Dubois allowed an American Ford dealership (not Shelby's company) to ship 14 Shelby Europas to Europe for 1971 and 1972. These rare models were offered as both a sportsroof and a convertible, with the option of either a G.T. 350 or a G.T. 500. Full details on these models are sketchy at best, and while most of the Europa models were powered by 351 Windsor engines, there were a few that came equipped with high performance engines; one of which was a 400hp 429 with the Shelby Drag Pack. Only 9 of the original 14 are accounted for currently, with one of the 5 missing units having been stolen in 1987. Fuel prices around the world were increasing quickly, and this caused the Europa to become gradually less popular, so after 1972 Dubois called it quits.
Once the Europa and de Mexico models had been done away with, it appeared as though the Shelby name would not find its way onto another Mustang. After this period, Carroll Shelby was also involved in some non-Ford ventures, such as the design process for the Dodge Viper , but to many, he had become just a legend, along with his high performance vehicles, but with the introduction of their ultra retro 2005 Mustang release, the Shelby name was about to grace the presence of Ford showrooms once again.
The Return
It would only make sense that a car so wonderfully designed to be a modern version of a classic look, as is seen in the 2005 and newer Ford Mustang, that a vintage name would come with it. Ford's new Mustang, named the
S197 , was as much of a hit as the original was in 1964 thanks in part to its retro design scheme, and while nothing was certain, there was an underlying buzz that the Shelby name would return to the Mustang, possibly as a GT500. Ford Motor Company later confirmed that the GT500 would return, although they were very tight lipped about the details. Rumors soared about what engine it would have, what exterior trim, and of course, how much power. It was speculated that the new GT500 would have at least 450 horsepower and when the production models began hitting the floor, Ford had outdone themselves, packing this new Shelby with 500 horsepower.
A complete review of the 2007 GT500 can be viewed here:http://www.mustangforums.com/ford/2007-gt500-mustang.asp
To help promote the already popular new Mustang late in 2006, Ford renewed their partnership with Hertz Rent-a-car, offering their new Shelby GT-H. These models were similar to the Mustang GT , with the exception of bigger rear end gears (3.55 rather than the standard 3.31), Ford Racing suspension, 25 more horsepower (giving it 325 total), and an exterior trim package which made this new GT-H look like a modern version of the original G.T. 350H. There were 500 of these Black and Gold GT-H units available at select Hertz branches around the United States, and roughly a year later, 500 convertible units became available. However, those looking to take part in the more recent "Rent-a-Racer program" will have to expect to pay quite a bit more than the 17 dollars a day and 17 cents per mile, and just to ensure that no one attempts to "trade" engines in the new GT-H, each car is closely inspected before and after the vehicle is rented.
The early years of the Shelby Mustangs offered the G.T. 500 along with the lower performance G.T. 350 for those who wanted the style and feel of the Shelby Mustang without the huge power, and for 2007, Ford began offering the Shelby GT. Like the GT-H, the Shelby GT has improved handling thanks to the Ford Racing Handling Pack, with higher quality tires at all four corners, and an extra 19 horsepower packed under the hood. The Shelby GT is offered in Black or Performance White, and has some minor exterior cues to enhance the look of the vehicle, along with the familiar Shelby badging.
While the Ford Mustang has always made a name for itself, becoming one of the most iconic performance cars of all time, both in the US and around the world, Carroll Shelby has certainly bolstered the Mustang's image of being one of the most dominating performance cars on the road. The G.T. 350 and G.T. 500 were among the most feared cars on the street and at the strip in the 1960s and 1970s, and with the release of the 2007 GT500 , it has given the new generation of gearheads a good idea of how the Shelby name came to be associated with the biggest names in American automotive performance history.
