1966-Shelby-GT 350 Hertz

Description

1966 Shelby GT 350 Hertz
s/n 6S1855
Black with Gold Stripes and Black Interior

When Ford wanted a genuinely high performance race ready variant of the already wildly successful Mustang, they knew who to ask. Carroll Shelby had already fashioned a name for himself in the motoring world with the outrageous and legendary Cobra, and by winning some sort of 24-hour race in France driving some foreign car called and Aston Martin. Shelby arranged with Ford’s San Jose, California plant to make nothing but partially complete white on black Mustang fastbacks with high performance 289 cid V8s and 4-speeds for two days straight, and then had the cars trucked to Shelby-American`s Los Angeles plant. Once there, the cars were fitted with special cams, larger intake manifolds and carburetors, tubular headers, and finned and baffled high capacity oil pans. Heavy duty brakes were fitted, along with a limited slip differential and shock tower brace, and the suspension substantially modified (including the fitment of larger front sway bar and Koni shocks). Numerous other modifications were performed, including the relocation of the battery into the trunk.

In 1966, Ford leased about 1000 GT350’s to Hertz Rental Car Company for the “The Hertz Sports Car Club”. Almost all examples were finished in black with gold stripes, and were rented for $17 a day to just about anyone over the age of 25 with a valid driver’s license who was a member of their club. There are countless stories of these cars being returned after weekends with considerably less rubber on the tires, and even with evidence of racing numbers having been applied. The first 100 examples were fitted with manual transmissions, but following Hertz offices complaining of cars being returned with ruined clutches, the remainder of the run had automatic transmissions.

This particular car was originally an automatic transmission car, and was converted to a 4-speed manual early in its life. Relatively early in the car’s life, it was also fitted with a Paxton supercharger and Detroit locker differential, as noted in the 1987 Shelby American World Registry, which also notes that this is an original Hertz car. It was originally supplied to Archway Motors in Baltimore, Maryland, who prepared the car and then passed it on the local Hertz office. After its rental career, this car was then sold to by a number of owners in Virginia, and eventually ended up on the West Coast. In recent years, the car has been thoroughly restored. The car was repainted in 2005, and all fender numbers match. In 2007, the engine (non-matching) was rebuilt, and was dyno-ed at 323hp. The interior was also restored, including the chrome, mats, carpet as necessary, seat guards, seat belts, and various other trim. The engine and undercarriage were also detailed, and a number of parts replaced, including heater, wiring harness, battery, carburetor, clutch and pressure plate, and complete exhaust system. Additionally, the transmission and suspension were rebuilt.

The car is currently in great cosmetic shape. The paintwork was done to very good standards and remains in nice shape, with only a few small areas of touchup, and a few stress cracks on the fiberglass hood. The body panels are straight and solid, and the glass is in fine shape as well. The rear quarter windows are lexan. The wheels are nice Magnum 500 items, including a spare without tire, and the wheels have the correct Hertz center caps. The chrome is in very good condition throughout, with only a few light marks and very small pits in selected areas (not the bumpers).

The interior is in fine shape as well. The carpets, seats, and dashboard are in great shape, as is the headliner. The car has been fitted with a lovely genuine wood-rimmed Shelby steering wheel from a 1965 car (1966s originally had plastic rimmed steering wheels painted to look like wood). The car also has competition type lap belts. The instruments and controls are in fine shape throughout, and quite possibly unrestored. A boost gauge and fuel pressure gauge have been added under the dashboard, and the car has a sticker warning of the high pedal effort required of the competition type brakes, as were originally fitted to the cars.

The engine compartment is very clean and nicely detailed, with correct-type Paxton supercharger, airbox, and intake piping. A cone type high performance air filter has also been fitted, along with an Optima red top battery. The car has an original type FoMoCo windscreen washer bag. The trunk is tidy as well, with correct spare tire cover and plaid mat. The undercarriage is solid and very clean. Certain areas of the floor were replaced as part of the restoration.

This is a great opportunity to acquire a genuine Hertz GT350, with some thoughtful and unique upgrades, including supercharger, manual transmission, and genuine wood steering wheel. Its owner is a highly regarded collector and racer who was also a Trans Am champion driving a Ford Mustang. This car has been nicely restored, but is not so nice that the new owner will not want to drive and enjoy the car. It runs and drives very well, and it comes with GT350 manual supplement, as well as invoices from the last ten years, which covers the restoration. Additionally, the original matching number engine has been located and currently belongs to another Shelby enthusiast and GT350 owner.