1969 Shelby GT500 Convertible

1969 Shelby GT500 Convertible
Chassis no. 9F03R481878
428ci OHV V8 Engine
Single 4-Barrel Carburetor
335bhp at 5,600rpm
3-Speed Automatic Transmission
Independent Front with Live Axle Rear Suspension
Front Discs and Rear Drum Brakes

*From the personal collection of Carroll Shelby
*1 of only 335 1969 GT500 Convertibles produced
*Restored by marque experts
*Offered with Shelby authenticity certificate and Marti report
*Desirable options including air conditioning, traction-lok diff and competition suspension

THE SHELBY GT500

1969 was, effectively, the final year for the Shelby Mustang. By now assembly had shifted in Michigan from California where it was contracted out to A.O. Smith Corporation. Smith, an established Motor City contractor, had brought a level of serious manufacturing skill, supplier management, procedure and standards never seen at Shelby's facility where LAX met the vibrant (and sometimes extreme) subculture of Venice, California.

Now largely designed and specified by Ford staffers, the 1969 Shelby Mustang was drastically different visually from the standard Mustangs, with a completely different nose and grille, a wide rectangular opening with blacked out grille flanked by 7" headlights and with Shelby's characteristic driving lights now smaller rectangular pieces below the attractive, but largely ineffective, bumper. The special Shelby hood had five ducts, three NACA-style surface ducts replaced the complicated but entertaining shaker hoods of years gone by to supply cold air directly to the engine air intake and two extractors at the back of the hood relieving underhood pressure and exhausting heated air in front of the windshield.

A surface duct behind the headlights and a scoop behind the door and in front of the rear wheel arch that was ducted to the rear brakes continued the performance theme. The rear panel was completely different from the Mustang, housing a set of 1965 Thunderbird sequential taillights with the rear license plate placed between them and including a small ducktail spoiler. The area under the bumper where standard Mustangs carried their license plate contained two rectangular outlets for the Shelby's dual exhaust system. Standard wheels were unique 5-spoke Mag Stars with alloy centers and chrome steel rims.

Under the hood lay the 428 Cobra Jet which had powered the '68 Shelby GT500KR. Both Ford and Shelby recognized the superiority of the high performance CJ and made it the standard engine for 1969's Shelby Mustangs.

At the end of the 1969 model year 789 Shelby Mustangs were in-process at A.O. Smith. They were visually updated with black hood stripes and a chin spoiler and given new VINs. Otherwise the 1970s were exactly the same as the '69s making these two years essentially identical examples of the end of the Shelby Mustang series which had begun only a scant six years before.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

This king of the Mustangs was built at the Dearborn plant on April 14, 1969. The car was ordered new as a Shelby GT500 Convertible with the mighty 428 Cobra Jet and a C-6 Automatic transmission. The car was specified with Candyapple Red paint and white knit vinyl hi-back bucket seats. Some of the more notable options included a traction-lok differential, air conditioning, competition suspension, and a tachometer with trip odometer. According to the Shelby Registry, the cars MSRP was $5,597.70. The car would spend its early days on the

East Coast before making its way to California where it was acquired by Carroll Shelby. Some years ago, the Shelby is reported to have been fully restored by Barry Smiths Legendary G.T. Continuation Cars, Inc., a licensed Shelby partner.

Accompanying the sale of the car is a Shelby vehicle authenticity certificate, certifying that the car has been owned by the legend himself, Carroll Shelby. This is an incredible opportunity for an astute collector to acquire a particularly significant Shelby Mustang from the last, and most highly developed series with the ultimate provenance.