A very special Shelby Mustang is going up for grabs in the new year—one driven by the man the muscle car is named for.
A head-turning 1969 Shelby GT500 fastback that was owned by Carroll Shelby himself will go up for bid during Mecum Auctions’s upcoming Kissimmee sale. It is one of the few precious examples of to leave the factory finished in Grabber Yellow, and it has the kind of provenance you won’t get from many muscle cars of the era.
If you’re familiar with the legend of Carroll Shelby, you know there were few things he liked more than taking a performance vehicle and pushing it even further. The Ford Mustang was no different, with Shelby selling a high-performance variant called the GT350 almost from the start in 1965. This version of the muscle car survived a mid-generation refresh and was built until 1970, with Ford handling the last two years of production. Shelby appears to have been a fan of the vehicle and bought this particular 1969 example brand new from Russ Davis Ford in Covina, California.
Shelby’s GT500 is likely to be one of the coolest-looking cars to hit the auction block in the early part of 2025. The muscular fastback is finished in a striking coat of Grabber Yellow—a color believed to have graced just 18 examples of the model—with black stripes running along both sides. The final Shelby Mustangs had a revised front fascia, with a hood that juts out further than that found on the regular Ford version, a hoop grille, and the tuner’s cobra logo. Other sporty details include five NACA-style scoops and a set of five-spoke wheels wrapped in Goodyear Polyglas tires.
The car’s exterior may be bold and brash, but its interior is a bit more understated. The cabin’s Clarion front seat and back bench are covered in black leather. This is offset by liberal use of wood on the steering wheel, dashboard, and door panels. A roll bar and inertia-reel harnesses help signal the vehicle’s high-performance character.
The GT500 is powered by a massive 7.0-liter Cobra Jet V-8. The brawny mill is connected to a five-speed manual that routes power to the rear wheels and produce 335 hp and 440 ft lbs of torque. The car has less than 5,000 miles on the odometer and looks to have been exceedingly well-maintained over the years, no huge surprise considering who its owner was. The history of the car is also listed in the Shelby Registry.
Looking to buy a piece of muscle car history? Shelby’s old GT500 will go up for a bid on Saturday, January 11, as part of Mecum’s annual Kissimmee auctions. The car is being sold without reserve, but regardless it wouldn’t be a huge to see it sell for more than the $95,700 another Shelby-owned GT500 sold for in 2023.
