Vehicle Description
Shelby's GT350 was conceived for SCCA B-Production road racing, but
it was also a potential "Corvette Killer" on the drag strip. In
early 1965, Don McCain, Shelby's national sales director, conceived
a drag-racing GT350, working with Ford racing expert Les Ritchey's
Performance Associates. This 1965 Shelby GT350, SFM 5S242, was
delivered to Mel Burns Ford in Long Beach and tagged as a showroom
car and demonstrator at the urging of Shelby American and then sold
on January 22, 1966, to San Jose racer Jerry Mendes, who
immediately sent it to Performance Associates for the drag unit
upgrades. Stamped "GT6" on the engine, transmission and rear end,
5S242 remained with Mendes until 2013. While eight GT350 drag cars
were previously known, 5S242 is in fact the sixth drag racing
Shelby GT350 built at Performance Associates. The parts and
precision work added $1,494.63 to the GT350's cost; all original
take-off items were returned to Mendes and remain with the car
today. Mendes either drove or flat-towed the car to races at
Sacramento, Fremont and Carlsbad, reaching 12.38 seconds at 110.83
mph and setting an NHRA class record. The car saw limited use after
the NHRA combined Sport Stock and Super Stock classes for 1968, and
it was stored at 6,455 miles from 1971 until 2013 when the
consignor, a die-hard Shelby enthusiast and collector, purchased it
directly from Mendes with the condition of keeping the car as
raced. Never wet, at least since Mendes' purchase, 5S242 retains
the original paint, plus factory overspray. While stored since
1971, Mendes kept the GT350 registered yearly, and the annual
registration stickers and original CA title are included, plus the
original invoices, documents and correspondence from Shelby, Mel
Burns Ford and Performance Associates, along with the original
owner's manual, racing trophies, awards and articles on GT350 drag
cars in general - including a 2013-dated Mustang Monthly article on
5S242 specifically. Never restored, 5S242 is an amazing,
four-wheeled document of Shelby history with showstopping,
investment-grade originality, affirmed in Shelby circles by
achievement of the SAAC-38 Premier Award and Concours Gold at
SAAC-46.