Footnotes

• Legendary Texan racing driver Carroll Shelby's team had been campaigning Ford's Mustang 'pony car' with considerable success in North America, winning the SCCA's B-Production title three years running in the mid-1960s. Capitalising on his success, Shelby began manufacturing modified Mustangs, which were officially sanctioned and sold through selected Ford dealerships. Ford supplied Shelby with part-completed 'Sportsroof' (fastback) Mustangs, which were finished off at Shelby's plant in Los Angeles.
  The first Shelby Mustang - the GT350 - arrived in 1965 powered by a modified version of Ford's 289ci (4.7-litre) small-block V8 producing 306bhp, with options of a 340-360bhp unit in competition trim or 400bhp supercharged. A four-speed Borg-Warner manual gearbox was the stock transmission on early Shelby Mustangs, though a heavy-duty, three-speed automatic soon became available as an option.
  The running gear was appropriately up-rated to cope with the GT350's increased performance, incorporating the optional Kelsey-Hayes front disc brakes, stronger Ford Galaxie rear axle, Koni adjustable shock absorbers and alloy wheels. The first cars were supplied minus the rear seats, thereby qualifying the GT350 as a two-seat sports car! Outwardly there was little to distinguish Shelby's GT350 from the standard product apart from a pair of broad 'racing' stripes down the body centreline. On the open road there was, of course, no comparison.
  When the factory introduced a 390ci 'big-block' V8 option on the Mustang for 1967, Shelby went one better, installing Ford's 428ci (7.0-litre) Cobra Jet V8 to create the GT500, one of the great, iconic musclecars of the 1960s. Produced at the A O Smith Company's plant in Ionia, Michigan from 1968, the Shelby Mustang continued to be based on the stock version, receiving the latter's styling changes and mechanical improvements while retaining its own distinctive special features, until production ended in 1970.
  A 1968 model, this GT500 was completed at Ford's Metuchen plant on 22nd December 1967, four days ahead of schedule, and comes with the all-important Marti Report confirming the chassis number. Retailed via Al Grillo Ford of Lynn, Massachusetts, it is the 833rd Shelby scheduled for production and was delivered finished in Candyapple Red, its present colour scheme. The Mustang was equipped with the C-6 automatic transmission and standard (3.5:1) axle ratio, and ordered with the following options: extra cooling package, visibility group, wheel lip mouldings, sport deck rear seat, power steering, power front disc brakes, tilt-away steering column, AM radio, interior décor group, heavy duty battery, tachometer and trip odometer.
  Fully restored, this GT500 is described by the vendor as in generally very good condition and offered with the aforementioned Marti Report, current MoT/tax and Swansea V5 registration document.
  

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Category: Motoring / Motor Cars

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