Is it real or is it memorex?
 

Gentleman,

Thisi is my first post since acquiring a 2008 Torch Red '08 GT 500......One of my good friends has already pointed out that my [our] car is badged a Shelby but in actuality it is a Ford with Stickers.

In some sense he is correct but since I am a baby boomer [59 yrs young] and clearly remember the 60's when Carroll was building cars in LA from 64 thru 67..I also remember when Ford pulled Shelby Vehicle manufacturing back to Michigan and continued to punch out Shelby's thru 1970...Those cars are worth huge bucks today and nobody mentions a word about the fact that Carroll was nowhere near the production site. They are in the registry just like the LA cars.

Now to my point. Carroll Shelby licensed Ford to use his name on the GT 500 cars. They ARE Shebly's because his name is on the car and HE put it there....I understand that this is all marketing today because in the old days when Shelby started with Ford, it had direct racing roots. This is obviously not true with the current GT 500 car.

In my opinion, that does not change my premise that my car IS a Shelby. If it wasn't a Shelby then it would be called a Cobra or some other iconic mustang name. There are snake badges all over the car because of SVT influence but on the back of the car in big letters is the man's name...

Why is this important? Well, for the obvious reasons......Mostly money! Our cars will retain more value if they are viewed as licensed and registered.
I know that some of you will not care and think that this is nit picking or a petty issue. I assure you that since I have owned other Shelby vehicles it is a most serious issue with real financial consequences.

Most of us will enjoy the car and then like everything else we own, we will want or need to move on. I would hope that when someone decides to buy my car that they are getting the whole value of having Shelby's name on the car.

So in conclusion, I am wondering if our cars will be allowed in the Shelby Registry as those cars in the late 60's that were also made in Michigan were allowed in. They are every bit as much a Shelby as the earlier LA cars.

In the end, I gambled that the car will be allowed in the registry if we petition Shelby. The registry is NOT a Shelby body but an independant group that tracks cars that bear his name.

I am interested in others opinion on this topic..

Clinck:hail:

That's crap! I have a Mustang Monthly article from July 2004 with Mr Shelby discussing working with Ford on the then upcoming Shelby Mustang. He says, and this is a direct quote, "If they're going to put my name on it, I better like it hadn't I?" With all the effort he has put into protecting his name from kit car dealers and "tribute" car fitters I don't think he would lend it to just any Mustang.

So SVT has no direct racing roots?


I don't understand did you buy the car to enjoy it or did you buy it as an investment? If your thinking investment then I think you made a big mistake. These are cars for enthusiasts and were built to be driven. It is extremely unlikely these cars will ever go up in value to anywhere near the extent the originals did. They(the originals) were more rare and far fewer of them were tucked away in garages by people like yourself hoping to some day cash in on them. They were raced and driven hard, leaving few survivors but plenty of smiles and memories of glory. That is what inspired the demand and subsequent meteoric rise in value. There isn't another baby boom generation with too much money and the memories of the originals to replace you. If you want an investment sell your GT500 to someone who will enjoy it and put the money in a mutual fund.

Again I don't understand. You gambled? Meaning if you didn't think the car could be registered and therefore worth less in the future you wouldn't have bought it? If that's the case you really should have put your money in safe investments and let that car have gone to someone who would enjoy and cherish it for what it is. It is a great running well built car that inspires memories of the glory days of American Muscle Cars. Nothing more, nothing less. The whole idea of investment value on these cars just really burns me up as that is exactly what fueled the whole ADM thing which almost kept me from owning one.
For what it's worth the point is pretty moot as I had no trouble registering my GT500 on the registry just a couple days ago.

clinck, while I absolutely love and respect the modern GT500's (maybe even more than the originals), my admiration stems from an "affordable" 500 hp Mustang being let loose on the street. The fact that Carroll Shelby made some recommendations on suspension settings and ordered wider rear tires (285's versus just 255's like the fronts) hardly justifies putting his name on the trunklid, but it sure was a great marketing gimmick. I personally believe this car should have just been called the SVT Cobra, or maybe SVT Cobra 500, as it was the great folks at SVT that deserve all the credit for this monster becoming a reality! However, either way, the modern GT500 is an awesome machine, regardless of which name it has.

The 2006-7 Shelby GT-H's, and the 2007-8 Shelby GT's are "true" Shelby's in the original sense. Ship a base V8 Mustang from Ford to SAI, then SAI employees make the conversions and upgrades before shipping to the dealers, and you've got a "real" Shelby product. Just like the '65-'67's were done. While the '68-'70's still wore Shelby's name, they were in-house Ford products with little inspiration from Shelby, and as such I believe they are horribly overvalued on the auction circuit these days. Even if I had the money for a classic GT500 or GT500KR, I wouldn't pay the silly prices that people are commanding on these "non-Shelby" Shelby Mustangs.

Just one man's humble opinion here. I'm sorry in advance for offending those who opine differently on the subject.

Well, I guess I've been told...Huh!!
Geez, I am curious why a number of posters on this site are so antagonistic towards perfectly honest and legitimate questions. Why is it that putting someone down makes people feel superior.
I honestly don't need to told why I should have bought my car and for what purpose it was intended....That's obvious and wasn't part of the question.

The response I was curious to read was, "do owners of these cars believe them to be Shelby cars or just badged product from FoMoCo". Every Shelby Car that I have owned came with it's own Shelby Vin and was registered.....

I am sorry if I cut you the wrong way..:doh:

I am 60 years old soon and have owned many performance cars over my driving career. This car is just another in a line of thrilling rides that amuse and delight the senses.

I wasn't besmerching or belittling SVT by the way....They have produced some great product, like the '96 Cobra I owned a few years back....

Well, anyway..I am glad to hear that you registered your car, Tom....
I will do the same.

Have a nice day.......

Brian, your repsonse was the one that I was looking for...I ,ofcourse agree with you about the naming of the car....It IS the Cobra that SVT was bringing to market. They had been planning the 5.4 liter motor for a couple of years. I guess it suprised me that Carroll got involved on that particular car since he was inking a deal to make some GT350 hertz cars at the time. I also concur that the prices of the 60's stuff is overboard..That's why I sold all my 60's era cars in the last 24 months. I see that it has peaked and I expect the cars to stay where their at for a few more years and then begin to decline.
I took an early morning ride today into the foothills around my area and was just blown away on how well the stock car tracks...great ride and gobs of power available anytime you want it....I'm having a lot of fun just looking at her..

i feel the gt500 is more of a shelby than the shelby GT

thats my personal opinion. i also feel that 40 years from now the gt500 will have a huge classic car price just like the 60's shelby's do today...

there are many people on this site that feel that the gt500 is just an svt and not a shelby and that the shelby gt is more of a shelby than the gt500

My crystal ball says the the modern GT500 will be worth more than the modern Shelby GT, but not because of its Shelby or SVT pedigree. I simply believe that the GT500 will be worth more long term as it is the top performing Mustang (powerwise), which have typically been the more desired cars in the long run.

The GT500 and the Shelby GT are both wonderful automobiles in their own right, and for different reasons. The GT500 is a bruiser in a straight line, and not too shabby in the twisties considering the heft it carries. The Shelby GT is quite a handler in the twisties and is very well balanced, even if it's no faster than a stock Mustang GT in a straight line.

I maintain that the GT500 is a fine SVT product with a little influence from Carroll Shelby. The SGT is a fine Ford Racing product (Ford Racing parts engineered by Ford) that's converted by Shelby's employees in Las Vegas. In both cases, it is SVT and Ford Racing parts that are being used. However, the labor pool is the difference (Ford's Flat Rock personnel in the case of the GT500 or Shelby's Las Vegas personnel in the case of the SGT).

you have a very good point! they are both shelby's in my mind. the only difference is the performance value of one over another.

If the car can be registered in the Shelby Registry then it is a recognized car.....That really is the crux of what I was asking...now I have my answer thanks to Tom...

Clinck,
I think answers to all your questions can be found here. http://www.teamshelby.com/

Mustang Source is undoubtedly the best, most informative, and normally friendly Mustang forum on the web, but there are certain topics that do incite a bit of emotion. Try asking if it's ok to put snakes on the fenders of your V6! Mr. Shelby's site is more focused on his products, and I think you'll find that he welcome's adding all GT500's to his registry. He wants them to appreciate in value as much as we do, and in fact has made claims as to their probable future value, but I don't think anyone can seriously know for sure. I have heard more arguments against skyrocketing values than for them, but you can't deny they're great cars! Enjoy it, and if it appreciates, great, if not, so what.

I would have to agree completely with this statement and therefore apologize for the tone of my original post. I am sorry Clinck, that is not in any way what this forum is about. In my own defense I will say that yes you did touch a nerve. Statements in your original post did not, IMO, seem to indicate that:

Honestly, again IMO, you came off as being more concerned with the future monetary value of the car rather than it's current intrinsic value as an extremely fast, fairly nimble, and just plain fun car. I am truly glad to be proven wrong in this case and always glad to meet a fellow enthusiast, even only virtually. I guess my ire comes from, as I alluded previously, the difficulty in attaining my car due to unreasonable pricing I feel came, somewhat, from value speculation. Just like working men and women are hurting from rising gas prices due to oil speculation, people "investing" in these cars artificially inflated the cost through ADM's making it nearly impossible for some of us to achieve our dream of owning one. Thank God it was only temporary!

As to your question, yes I do consider my GT500 a Shelby! Just because Mr Shelby may not have had as much input in the design of the car as purists would like, there is no denying that he had a great deal to do in the INSPIRATION of the vehicle. I have not heard anyone from SVT complaining that he stole their thunder. I believe that they likely feel greatly honored to have worked on the deisgn of a vehicle bearing his name. If you look on blueovalnews.com you can find numerous posts from employees involved in various stages of design and production and they all report great pride in working on the SHELBY GT500.
Again I am sorry for the tone, if not the sentiment of my original post. Congrats on your purchase of a GREAT car and welcome to the forum.

Not to get off the subject, but what was the deal with the "Shelby Charger" crap in the mid to late 80's?. I remember a co-worker of mine had one. It was Dodge's fwd 4-banger at the time. Please don't tell me those cars are available to be registered at the Shelby registry.

Ummm, errr, OK I won't tell you. :werd:

As n8rfastback said that is an excellent point Brian! One need only look to the Boss 429 to see a perfect example as proof of your logic.

P.S. Thanks again for all your help in purchasing my GT500!

Don't go overboard on the apologies. I read the post, started a reply, and then clicked off thinking it wasn't worth it. The post had the tone of someone buying a car to fit into a club, and hoping it would be a good investment.

That said, I'm glad it's not true. Welcome to TMS, this is a great place to hang out w/ a ton of Mustang info and great people.

Tom, I appreciated your thoughts on your second post.....I am easy going and can roll with the punches too..

I LOVE my car..infact..I love most cars and have since early childhood. It's a blessing and a gift to be able to afford one of the great cars to roll off a ford assembly line in the last 50 years..

Let's get on with the business at hand and enjoy our mutual passion.....the Shelby GT500

Regards to you Tom,

Chris

No problem there Chris! I don't have the benefit of as much first hand knowledge of the original Shelby's as you do but I do have one story I often like to share. Back in 1972 I went with my dad to the local ford dealership to buy his brand new Mach 1. On the lot was a low mileage 1970 GT500 that we took for a test drive, he ultimately decided on the Mach 1 because it was new and my younger sister and I fit better in the back seat. After the drive that left the salesman white-knuckled and sweating (my Dad used to do a little racing!) I clearly remember telling him,"I'm gonna get one of these daddy!" A statement he reminded me of the other day when I called to tell him of my purchase. He is coming to visit in 2 weeks and I can't wait to take him for a drive. I just hope it doesn't give him another heart attack!

I think this Shelby is a true Shelby. That is what Ford named it. If the value stems from the car being made at SAI instead of AAI, then the market will reflect that. IF the value comes from it backing up the Shelby name on the trunk with the performance, then the market will reflect that. So far, the GT500 is getting the most love. To me being called Shelby is about its performance, not where it was assembled.

Following the logic of "Shelby did no more than a few suggestions" would mean that the modern Mach 1 is not a Mach 1 and the (likely) forthcoming BOSS will not be a Boss as Larry Shinoda had zero to do with those cars.

Unfortunately, a lot of the current "value" is bloated by the hype. Ford's marketing dept hit this one on the head. By taking it out of the SVT dealerships and giving it a "rare" Shelby perception, they made this car very desirable.

I understand where Tom is coming from. I went through the whole ADM hating process a long time ago. I had to wait an extra year to get mine at my price. I was blaming the "investors" too. And of course the dealers ran with it by taking advantage of the "investors" by leading them to believe the car was super rare. I still feel that this car is meant for "affordable performance." That got taken away with the ADM craze. Now that the ADMs are virtually gone, maybe the true SVT enthusiast will be able to own and enjoy this car.

The answer to you question is simple.

If '68, '69 & '70 Shelby Mustangs in the registry, then it has to allow 2007+ GT-500s into the registry.

The '68 &'69 Shelby GT-350 & GT-500 were NOT built by Shelby. They were build by AO Smith Co. in Michigan. 1970 Shelby Mustangs are even worse, all they are, are left over '69 Shelbys that couldn't be sold, so they were re-tagged as 1970 models.

It is all about perspective, who gets the design and engineering credit, who does the manufacturing, and who gets royalties for the name use.

Perhaps you can recall the fact that at least two of the top Shelby Autos' reps were very adamant with regards to the GT500 not being a real Shelby since their involvement was mininmal thus not meeting the Shelby criteria requirements to allow individual registry.

Shelby fans' emotial outrage of exclusion, Ford's imput regarding the matter, plus the likely financial compensation to Shelby Autos by including the excluded changed all that, althought the original assessment and position were probably the correct ones.