A new guy here, i currently own a 1968 GT/CS Mustang, Presidential Blue with a 289 C-4. This was my first classic mustang which was in rough shape when i took her home. After 4 years of restoration she is in much better shape. i think i am ready to move on to a 65 shelby project now, hopefully i can find one on this forum in the future! Can anybody on this forum tell me what type of $ i am looking at for say a "Shell" with no engine? Thanks Tom
First of all, welcome to the Forum! You picked what is certainly the biggest $ Mustang based Shelby to find, especially in the Internet / Barret-Jackson age where every schmo who has anything even remotely related to a Shelby thinks it is worth huge $. Before I found my 5, I was aware of only two "shells" available, one of which was completely stripped, just a uni-body, the other was close to that, not nearly as "naked". Both were legit cars, and both owners were adamant about $100K +. I understand the less naked one (late 4xx) did sell for somewhere around 90 last year. I was fortunate enough to pay about that for a complete, early car in need of a resto. It took a lot of homework and a bit of "Stalking". Buying a shell, or any Shelby missing important parts will set you back huge $ if you intend to bring the car back to the way it left Venice or LAX. If you can, buy the most complete car you can afford. As an example, a BW T10M can set you back 10k if it is missing. Real 65 Tachs and other bits are made of "unobtainium" or can take years to track down. I am not trying to discourage you, just give you a sense of reality. Finding a car that is not currently known to others can be both a difficult, frustrating journey, and a joyful one if it ends well. Good luck, and keep us posted on your progress. Mike SFM 5 017
Hey welcome to the forums! Post some pics of the gt/cs! Were you at the cobra show at KCIR earlier this year? Best Regards, Vern
Mike- thanks a million for your time to respond and especially for your honesty in telling me what i can expect. when you say $100k + for a "shell" do you mean with the engine or without? i just want to get an idea as to price ranges for anything i may come upon in the future. thanks for all of the "welcomes" i look forward absorbing everyone's knowledge on this forum!
By Shell, I do indeed mean a bare unibody. Complete cars in need of a restoration are in the high 180's to 200 or so. Have seen several very original cars with no questions in a need of a resto go for over 200. Do your homework first - good luck. Mike
mike- how large of a final value difference is there between a restored 65 with its original engine and one without (donor k code)? thanks tom
That's a tough question to answer. If all the date codes are correct, and all the Shelby specific parts are on a correct, but non-numbers matching block it would be up to the buyer to make a decision on how much that meant, money-wise to him. A lot of these cars were driven hard and put away wet - I would hate to even guess the % of cars with their correct original drive-train, I suspect it is pretty low. A guess would be 5 to 10k less. Anyone else have an idea on how the prices trend for original engines vs non-original? Mike
