Rare Shelby GT350 prototype set for sale

A special Shelby

2020 has been a lot of things, and one of them is a great year for auctions of famous Ford Mustangs.

And it looks like 2021 is going to start in the same way, because Mecum has revealed this car on the lot list for its Kissimmee sale on 7-16 January.

It doesn’t have the same claims to fame as the other notable cars that have gone under the hammer this year, but it is still a special Shelby. Let’s find out why.

Bullitt breaks record

First, we need to rewind almost a year to 10 January 2020, when a packed crowd gathered to see this car, the Ford Mustang GT raced round San Francisco by Steve McQueen when filming the 1968 film Bullitt, crossed the block – again with Mecum at its Kissimmee sale.

It sparked an intense bidding war which ended with a final bid of $3.4m (£2.6m), making it the most expensive Mustang ever sold at auction.

Miles’ Mustang

From Steve McQueen to Ken Miles and his 1965 Shelby GT350R Prototype, that on 17 July 2020 eclipsed the Bullitt car’s record at another Mecum sale.

This car was a test car, the first racer (and it won on its debut in Miles’ hands at Green Valley Raceway, Texas!), plus it was the car used to introduce the GT350 model to the world’s media.

Raced by Miles as well as Bob Bondurant, Chuck Cantwell, Peter Brock and Jerry Titus, it sold for $3,850,000 (£3.06m) to surpass the Bullitt car and become the most expensive Ford Mustang in the world – read its full story here.

Spot the difference

It has to be said that the latest ’65 Shelby GT350 to be consigned to a Mecum sale bears more than a passing resemblance to the last.

That’ll be the Wimbledon White body with double blue stripes.

Poster car

This is Shelby GT350 fastback number 13 – and on its completion on 25 January 1965 it was designated by Shelby American as an ‘advanced prototype’.

It was also a PR car for Shelby American and appeared on a poster.

Calling Carroll

We all know the story by now. Ford launched its Mustang in 1964 and its popularity was instant, so the Blue Oval charged Carroll Shelby to produce a competition variant to dominate the Sports Car Club of America’s (SCCA) B Production racing series.

The Shelby GT350 was the awesome answer.

Well preserved

The auction house describes this car as ‘quite likely the most well preserved original GT350 in existence’. 

This is chassis number SFM5013 and its story begins when it arrived at Shelby American’s Venice, California, shop on 20 December 1964 as a special order.

In the beginning

It was delivered to California as a partially completed Mustang 2+2 from the San Jose assembly plant, its arrival organised by the GT350’s Project Manager, Chuck Cantwell.

After what we can only presume was a break for Christmas, work started on this car – now officially designated an ‘advanced prototype’ on 5 January 1965.

Quick work

And just 20 days later, on 25 January, it was finished.

It went on to serve as a PR car as well as starring in the model’s advertising.

Time to say goodbye

However, SFM5013 wasn’t kept by the manufacturer very long. But that’s not to say that it passed into obscurity.

Hi-Performance Motors in Los Angeles sold it to its first proper owner, automotive journalist and friend of Carroll Shelby, John Christy.

Editor goes large

At the time, Christy was editor of Sports Car Graphic, a magazine published between 1961 and 1971, before being folded into Motor Trend.

He’d long known about Shelby’s GT350 programme and he’d covered the Cobra’s development in Sports Car Graphic.

Taught by the best

Not only that, Christy was one of the first to drive the famous CSX2000 Cobra.

But then he was well prepared for handling such high performance machines: he’d completed a course at Shelby’s School of High Performance Driving and he raced with the Sports Car Club of America.

Road trip inspiration

What’s more, Christy had been invited by Shelby to test drive a new GT350 (chassis number 5007).

He later undertook a 10,000-mile road test in the same car, travelling from Los Angeles, California, all the way to Sebring, Florida, then to New York City and back to Los Angeles, which was covered in the June and July 1965 issues of Sports Car Graphic.

Sealed the deal

And the road trip sealed the deal.

The car’s handling and performance won Christy over and once back home, he committed to buying this car, 5013, on 24 May 1965.

Ready for the road?

Having enjoyed such an epic drive, you might have thought that now with a Shelby GT350 of his very own, it would be hard to stop him getting behind the wheel.

However, today this car’s odometer shows a mere 6950 miles.

Loving care

He might not have used the car a lot, but he looked after it very well indeed – as have all those who have owned 5013.

It is said that Christy maintained this GT350 in ‘as-new condition’ and he held onto it from 1965 until 1976, when he sold it to, according to the Shelby Registry, Steve J Karlock of Camarillo, California.

A keeper

After Karlock, the car had several owners during the 1980s, including some well-known collectors and racers in California.

And it is with one such custodian that this important Mustang has resided since October 1989.

Resisting temptation

Amazingly, this owner was able to resist the temptation to jump behind the large, wooden steering wheel, fire up the V8, slot it into first and hit the open road.

We’re not sure we would have such self-restraint.

Uniquely original

Instead, in acknowledgment of the car’s uniquely original condition, the car has barely moved.

The only exceptions to this have been when it has been serviced.

As good as new?

This GT350’s mechanical and cosmetic well being have been the priority across the years, and it has been kept in a secure environment, beneath a cover.

And in case you’re wondering, yes, that is an Autolite battery you can see in the boot.

In the press

After starting life in the hands of a motoring journalist, in more recent times this Shelby GT350 fastback prototype has enjoyed more time in the media spotlight.

It was featured in the October 2017 edition of Mustang Monthly.

The beating heart

Of course, what’s under the bonnet is one of the things that makes this car so special, and that is a 289cu in, 306hp V8, with a Holley 715 CFM four-barrel carburettor, a Cobra aluminium high-rise intake and Cobra ‘Powered by Ford’ aluminium valve covers.

It also has a Borg Warner four-speed manual transmission.

Ringing endorsement

It also has a side exhaust, Koni adjustable shock absorbers and front disc brakes.

Shelby stalwart and US automotive legend Pete Brock has described this car as “probably the only example extant today that remains virtually untouched”.

One of few

There are many Ford Mustangs, but relatively few were chosen to receive Shelby’s modifications.

Fewer still can claim this car’s history – and when ‘lost’ examples are found, it is not very often that they are in such pristine condition.

History holder

It even still wears its license-plate holder with the word ‘Cobra’ at the top and ‘Carroll Shelby Motors’ at the bottom.

Not only does this look very cool, it also serves as a small hint at 5013’s unique history.

Wheel deal

Oh, and those wheels?

In case you were wondering, they are Shelby-Cragar 15-inch wheels, which back when this car was new in 1965 were a $273 option.

What’s next?

So, what will the next chapter of this GT350’s life involve?

It might have fewer than 7000 miles under its wheels, but it is not ‘just another’ low-mile Mustang. Far from it.

Under the hammer

Well, this GT350’s most immediate appointment is with Mecum Auctions at its big sale in Kissimmee, Florida, on 7-16 January.

It is being offered with no reserve, but is anticipated to achieve in the region of $400-500,000 – that is around £295-370,000, or €328-410,000.

The record is safe

This car is unlikely to be breaking any records, then, but then it wasn’t in an international blockbuster movie (Bullitt) or driven to victory by Ken Miles, part of whose story was later told in the film Ford v Ferrari.

They are pretty tough acts to follow, by anyone’s standards.

A nose ahead

But the Ford Mustang was a popular car when new with record-breaking sales – it is said that 22,000 orders were placed as a result of simply its first public outing.

Around 1.3m Mk1 Mustangs were built in the first two years of production.

Standing apart

That’s a lot of Mustangs.

But of that 1.3m, very few received the Shelby treatment that this car did, nor can they claim such a prestigious history.

Expert care

This, then, is one very special fastback – with a small, sub-7000 mileage to boot.

Indeed, back in 2016, its keeper was so determined to keep that figure low, that his GT350 was transported to a specialist for its service, where its brake and fuel systems were refurbished.

Looking ahead

Now, after 30 years of what the auction house describes as ‘museum-quality’ storage, this slice of Ford and Shelby history is looking for a new home.

Lot F176 in the Kissimmee 2021 sale, it will cross the block on Friday 15 January – and, as we said before, it is being sold with no reserve.

The future’s bright?

Who knows what this Shelby GT350 will achieve, but let’s hope it finds an appreciative home where it and its history will be treasured and preserved.

And you can find out more about Mecum’s Kissimmee 2021 sale on 7-16 January at Osceola Heritage Park here.