Carroll Shelby’s Personal Shelby Mustang GT500 Is A Muscle Car Collector’s Dream

Featuring Carroll Shelby’s signature on the dash, this example of the original Shelby Mustang GT500 created one of the most fearsome badges in automotive history.

Within the pantheon of hi-po pony cars, the 1967 Shelby Mustang GT500 is king. Carroll Shelby’s big-block brother to the GT350 launched a flagship ‘Stang badge that has denoted unabridged and unabashed power ever since. So significant is the ’67 that it was made a car-boosting crew’s crown jewel in Gone in 60 Seconds, which then propelled it into the movie car hall of fame. And of all the 2,048 fastback examples produced for the 1967 model year, this one—owned and autographed by Carroll Shelby himself—has to be the one to have via Bring a Trailer.

Granted, the ingenious American automotive designer acquired the car a few decades after it was originally delivered to Chuck Jones, who, according to Car and Driver, was a racer, engineer, and team owner of renown. It wasn’t until 1999 that Jones sold it to Shelby and Stephen Becker, his longtime business partner.

Under Shelby’s ownership, the car received upgraded the headers, which likely upped the 428-cubic-inch Police Interceptor V8’s output to over 400 horsepower—a fearsome rating for an auto of its age. Power is routed to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual transmission.

As its Bring a Trailer listing points out, the car’s factory spec included aluminum 10-spoke 15-inch wheels with Shelby Cobra center caps, an upgraded suspension system with heavy-duty coil springs, an anti-roll bar up front, a ducktail rear spoiler, fender extensions, air scoops on the sail and quarter panels, and a fiberglass ventilated hood with a ram-air scoop. This example is finished in Wimbledon White with GT500 side stripes, a colorway that was repainted in the late 1980s.

Inside are front bucket seats and a folding Sport Deck rear seat that were reupholstered at some point in black vinyl, along with an AM/FM radio. The woodgrain steering wheel fronts a 140-mph speedometer, a 59,000-mile odometer, and an 8,000-rpm tachometer, as well as gauges for fuel level, coolant temperature, oil pressure, and amperage. Shelby added a 1990s-era A/C unit, as well as a priceless customization—his signature on the dashboard.

A mint-condition 1967 Shelby GT500 is valued at over $300,000, according to classic car insurer Hagerty. But truthfully, any 1960s-era Shelby GT500 is a dream muscle car. The ’68 GT500, for instance, is considered the most refined of the original run, despite its $108,000—$219,000 valuation range. It kept the 428 engine but offered the GT500KR (“King of the Road”) variant, which swapped in the new 428 Cobra Jet engine. Even the 1969 GT500, which some saw as a more aggressively optioned and heavier factory car that diverged from Shelby’s vision, will command north of $250,000 today.

Right now, the top bid on the Shelby-owned GT500 here sits at $263,000—expect that to climb over the auction’s three remaining days.