In 1965, legendary Carroll Shelby
customized 562 G.T. 350 Mustangs for
Ford. Starting with stock Wimbledon
White Mustangs, built at the San Jose,
California, assembly line,Shelby
transformed the vehicles in a hanger at
the Los Angeles International Airport.
Ford's factory 289-cubic-inch V-8 was
given an aluminum intake manifold, a
Holley carburetor and special Tri-Y
tubular exhaust headers, bumping output
from 271 to 305 horsepower. Shelby also
added side-exiting, dual-exhaust setup
featuring glass-pack mufflers. The
suspension was fortified with stiffer
sway bars and traction bars. Special
"Blue Dot" tires rated for 130 MPH
replaced the factory offerings. Since
this car was meant to race rather than
transport passengers, the back seat was
removed and a fiberglass shelf was
installed. The transmission was a four
speed manual Borg-Warner.
Because only 562 original Shelby G.T.
350s were built they are a car
collector's dream. Fortunately for Mike
Nowak, he was able to purchase car
number 550 of the originals back in
1987. The three previous owners used the
car for competitive racing. But Mike had
a different idea. He began restoring his
Shelby to a pristine show car. Mike did
such a remarkable job restoring the
racer that he is invited to many shows
around the Midwest including the 2013
Barrington Concours as seen above.
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