Shelby on American Muscle Car - Dodge Production History

Re: Shelby on American Muscle Car

Dan,
I am the same age as you and can remember test driving a brand new '86 Shelby GLHS back in the day. The car definitely flew but I knew then that car would never surpass the mystique and desireability of a 65 to 70 Shelby Mustang. I own a 67 GT350 and would not hesitate for a second on purchasing an original GLHS Shelby. These cars are definitely the forgotten step-child of Mr. Shelby. My advice to you is to enjoy the heck out of them now, and who knows what will happen to them in the future. They may get the proper recognition sometime in the future. Who knows???? Take care - David

 

Re: Shelby on American Muscle Car

Dan... it is true that the FWD cars are considered stepchildren by the community.

Can you educate us on this one point...if you are into the history:

Were these cars actually built by Shelby in a separate facility?
Did they race, in the day?

Honestly, I have always considered them more efforts in marketing, not performance technology....dressed up in endorsement, like Michael Jordan sneakers. Give us some history to help change that perception.

 

Re: Shelby on American Muscle Car

Hello,

To provide some brief "History" towards your question hope this helps. "Mr. Carroll Shelby's involvement with the Dodge division of Chrysler Corporation began in the early eighties to breathe some life into an industry that had become at best, ho-hum. This relationship grew to produce the legendary Omni GLH and Shelby Charger and progressed into limited production full blown Shelby Dodge performance cars such as the Shelby GLHS and Shelby CSX, straight from Shelby's Skunkworks in Whittier California. This relationship continued into the late eighties with more factory Shelby Dodges pioneering leading edge technology. The 1990's brought to life the Shelby influenced 1989 Viper Show car and the Dodge Shelby Can-Am spec racer." I pulled this from the FAQ's section of the SDAC website.
As far as the racing of these vehicles I believe they were entered in "IMSA Drivers Championships", SCCA racing events, and the IMSA GTU events (where the 1987 daytona shelby z I believe was entered in). In all of these races the cars faired quite well from what I have read.

Hope this helps out a bit to answer any questions you may have had. But back to Dan I hear ya, at least you have a "numbered car" as I have only the Shelby Z which I am always being told is not a true Shelby (though I like to think of it as). But heck I love it anyway and it is still fun to drive becasue it still carries Mr Shelbys genreal idea and philosphies.

Have a good one,

Brian
1987 shelby z Glen Cove NY

 

Re: Shelby on American Muscle Car

To be a little more specific about the Dodge cars and CS involvement.

In the very early 80's when CS was approached by Lee Iacocca, the Chrysler Shelby Performance Center was established in Sante Fe Springs California. The purpose was to develop performance pacakges (engine & handling) for the fledgeling line of Dodge fwd cars. As stated earlier in this thread, the first two cars to get the CS touch, while produced on the Dodge assembly line, were the Shelby Charger and the GLH Omni. Other cars would also get special packages that were engineered by Shelby in the future, including the Daytona Shelby Z, and the Daytona CS models.

In 1986 another step was taken. CS opened the Whittier California production facility under the corporate name Shelby Automobiles. The first car to come from there was the 1986 Shelby GLH-S. It started life as a Dodge Omni GLH Turbo, and was then shipped to Shelby Automobiles where the engine and suspension were upgraded, and special graphics packages and interior touches were applied.

There were 500 GLH-S models made by Shelby Automobiles in 1986 each had it's own numbered CS signature dash plaque. The sticker on the inside of the drivers door jamb listed Shelby Automobiles as the manufacturer, as did the MSO's that tracked each car's production. The cars were then sold by select Dodge dealers across the country. In many states, the cars were originally titled as being of Shelby make, not Dodge, and many of them are still titled as Shelby today.

In 1987 there were 3 vehicles that Shelby Automobiles produced, the Shelby Charger GLH-S, the Shelby CSX, and the Shelby Lancer.

In 1988 only one model was produced, the Shelby CSX-T, and essentially the entire production run was sold to Thrifty Rental Cars, in a pre-arranged deal. These cars had only cosmetic & graphics packages installed with no engine or suspension modifications made. In 1989 we saw the last two models to leave the Whittier facility, the Shelby CSX-VNT, and the Shelby Dakota.

All of the cars produced at Shelby Automobiles during the last 3 years followed the same pattern established with the 1986 GLHS in documentation regarding manufacturer status.

Dodge continued to produce cars on it's own assembly lines at the time with the Shelby name and packages, mainly in the Daytona line, but some items did make it into other models also (Shadow competition series, etc).

 

Re: Shelby on American Muscle Car

I thought that the 88 CSX-T received the same suspension upgrades that the 87 CSX did. (Higher Spring Rates, Monroe Formula GP struts and shocks, Goodyear Gatorbacks, 4 wheel disc brakes etc.)

robin

 

I stand corrected, partially.

The 88 CSX-T did get the Formula GP struts/shocks all around, but that is all that is listed in the parts manual as being Shelby package specific. The springs are the same as found on any a/c equipped P-body for 1988.

The wider low profile tires on the Shelby rims, I include as cosmetic upgrade rather than handling, but they could be looked at either way.

Barry

 

I know I am not in the same boat as you guys, I am 18, in high school, and can't remember anything before 1990. I grew up Chevy. My dad had a sleeper 70 Nova SS clone when he was a kid, and I was in the process of buying a 1979 El Camino (with a 1970 350!) as my first car. But then I ran into issures of the availability of obscure parts for a car to old for the dealer, to new for reproduction parts, so I was forced to give up, literlaly, my folks wouldnt let me get the El Camino.

So I cruised the newspapers, looking for something, looking for something RWD, V8, big cubes, when I saw an ad for the Shelby. I did some research and saw something I could never get from the "muscle cars" I had been chasing. Reliability. Fuel Efficiency. 4-cylinder Insurance. So I bought it.

I found a car that wasn't what I was looking for, but that I am actually happier with than I would have been with the muscle. My dad and his chums appriceate it, it is a Shelby, limited production, high proformance, good stuff.

However my peers, in their tuned VWs and Civics, appriciate it as well. I think this is the main issue of our cars not being at "home" with the other Shelbys. Our cars are more like the imports and hopped up Cavilers in my high school parking lot than the Chevelles, Baracudas, and "true" Shelbys that people of your generation gravitate to.