Shelby sets new Mustang auction record
At the 'Dana Mecum's 26th Original Spring Classic' auction, held in Indianapolis from May 14 to 19, a 1967 Shelby GT500 Super Snake fastback sold for a staggering US$1.3 million (AU$1.32 million), setting a new record price for a Mustang sold at auction.
What made this particular Mustang so special was its 427ci V8 engine, a GT40 MkII-spec unit built specifically for this car. While two other GT500s were built with the 427, neither were reportedly badged or sold as Super Snakes.
Additionally, what set this particular Super Snake apart was a set of Goodyear Thunderbolt whitewall tyres, which are virtually impossible to locate nowadays. A new compound back in 1967, the Thunderbolts were fitted to the Super Snake to test their durability at high speeds and long distances. In the test, (where the tyres were filled with nitrogen to supposedly prevent sidewall flexing and overheating), the Super Snake drove 500 miles at an average of 142mph (227kph approx.) on the Thunderbolts, with 97 percent of the original tread supposedly still on the tyres aftewards.
Other identifying features that made this car unique included special 'Le Mans Blue' bonnet stripes in a different pattern to the normal Shelby stripes, and chromed inner headlight surrounds.
The Super Snake - or at least the idea of slotting the GT40 427 into a Shelby - was the brainchild of Don McCain. A former employee of Shelby American, McCain was working for both Mel Burns Ford and Dana Chevrolet at the time. He reportedly suggested a special GT500 for the Goodyear tyre test, adding that he believed he could sell up to 50 examples of the super high performance Shelby annually through the Burns dealership.
Despite McCain's initial confidence, the run of GT500 Super Snakes never materialised, due largely to the exorbitant sum required to cover the cost of the race-spec 427 V8. A projected retail price of US$8,000 was close to double what a standard GT500 cost in '67, and more than 40 percent dearer than most Cadillacs from that year, too.
As such, just the one example was built - the car auctioned at Indianapolis - which no doubt added to its million-plus value. Incredibly, the Super Snake sold for "only" US$5,000 in August, 1967.
Initially sold to a pair of airline pilots who modified it for drag racing, the GT500 Super Snake passed through a succession of owners, one of whom kept it for 25 years, before it was purchased again in 2002 by Richard Ellis, a collector of rare Mustangs, and restored.
Needing little work, the most intriguing part of the restoration was the acquisition of a set of original Thunderbolt tyres to bring it back to its authentic 1967 Goodyear tyre test specification. The super-rare skinny tyres are a distinctive feature on the Shelby today, as are the 10-spoke alloys and non-standard striping.
"The Thunderbolts were made for boring family cars in the '60s, which is why nobody reproduces them or has even heard of them for 35 years," explained Ellis, who consigned the car for the Mecum Indy auction.
"I found what has to be the only surviving set in a warehouse in Akron, Ohio. I'm sure Shelby pulled the original Thunderbolts and threw them away when the car got back to California.
"Now, when you see a picture of the Super Snake and it's got skinny whitewall tyres, you'll know it is either from the Goodyear test or from the time it's spent in my collection."
The US$1.3 million the GT500 Super Snake achieved set a new record for a Mustang at a public auction, and was closely followed by another Mustang - a 1967 'Eleanor' fastback used in the Touchstone Pictures movie 'Gone in 60 Seconds' - which sold for US$1 million (AU$1.02 million).
A "hero car" from the movie and something of a star in its own right, the modified Shelby G.T. 500 clone was originally constructed by Cinema Vehicle Services, and used for the bulk of the movie close-ups and photographed for posters and other promotional materials. Since the movie was released in 2000, the car revered by Nicholas Cage's Memphis Raines character has spawned innumerable copies.
Sold in "movie used" condition with minor repairs, the car featured a 351 Ford V8 rated at 400 hp, a four-speed manual trans (complete with a 'Go-Baby-Go' Line Lock button atop the shifer), four-wheel disc brakes, a lowered coilover suspension, PIAA driving lights, a non-functional nitrous oxide system and a distinctive fiberglass body kit sketched by designer Steve Stanford.
Reportedly part of a private collection since the movie's completion, the Eleanor was the only other car from the Mecum auction to sell for a seven figure sum. Vehicles from the Ford family featured prominently in the top ten sales from Indy, with a '65 Shelby Cobra roadster selling for US$320,000, a one-of-15 factory race-spec 1957 Thunderbird achieving US$320,000, an ex-Don Nicholson Mercury Comet drag car reaching US$410,000, and a pair of 1969 Boss Mustangs each selling for over $220,000 each.
Full results and further details from this auction at www.mecum.com
Images: courtesy of Mecum auctions
