Vehicle Description
On offer here is a 1966 Shelby GT350 Mustang which was the very first Shelby I was ever able to purchase! This car is 6S825 and it is a factory Sapphire Blue Hertz GT350, one of roughly 50-55 which were produced in 1966 by Shelby American! All in all, the story of 6S825 is one of great care and preservation. The car was original delivered to S&C Motors in San Francisco and was rented out of the San Francisco Airport. After being rented, it was sold to a local and stayed in San Francisco until roughly 2009 when the second owner took the car to Washington State. Overall, the car was a California car almost its entire life and the benefits of such a life are apparent!
The most amazing attribute of 6S825 is that it retains 100% of its original sheet metal as well as its original drivetrain which it left Shelby American with! It has never had any rust and has been lovingly maintained its entire life as opposed to being restored. I am the third owner of the car.
The history of 6S825 is equally as unique as its originality. Unlike today, where GT350Hs are revered by enthusiasts for their history as “Rent a Racers”, GT350Hs used to be seen as “old used rental cars”. Owners of showroom delivered 66 GT350s would look down upon those who bought the used rental Mustangs! For that reason, 6S825s first owner went about accessorizing the car, like so many did, to ensure that the cars ex-rental life was not apparent. In order to accomplish that, he went about adding the white stripes and as many original “over the counter” accessories as he could! They include: original Cobra dual Carter carbs on the small letter Cobra intake, real wood wheel, original ten spokes, rare AM/FM radio, January 1966 dated bench seat, “day-nite” mirror, an Autolite cigarette lighter/map light, and matching original blue mustang rubber floor mats in front with complimenting blue knock off MG Mitten mats in the back since Ford didn’t sell rear Mustang floor mats. All of these accessories were available at the time through the Shelby American Accessories catalog in 1966-67. The fact that they are all still present on this car makes it an incredible “day 2” car. Many cars used to be accessorized out like this, however, few still exist with similar accessories which makes the car quite unique!
It is worth noting that, if someone wants to go back to "stock" with the car, the over the counter accessories which are on the car are far more expensive than the stock parts which would be needed.
Adding to the uniqueness of 6S825, being a San Francisco Hertz car, is the fact that it features a very rare parking brake warning light underneath the dash! This was a feature which was exclusive to San Francisco Hertz cars, being that they had to park on so many hills, and only roughly 8 cars have been documented as having this parking brake light from the factory! Also rare is the fact that this is a MICO master cylinder car, one of around 200 cars to have that particular master cylinder.
6S825 has never been restored and has never been disassembled. The benefit of never being taken apart is that the car drives like one of these Shelbys should when they were new! The suspension feels spot on and everything is tight. Not squeaks and rattles to speak of. The car accelerates well, shifts through the gears smoothly, and the brakes work very well. The car also runs nice and cool thanks to a brand new 3 core reproduction radiator. It is worth noting, I also have the original WMO 10-65 dated radiator which came out of this car. It has been re-cored and is ready to be reinstalled if the next owner chooses to do so! I have kept the reproduction in the car simply because it is a bigger radiator and cools much better than even a re-cored original. Also included in the car’s spares is an extra, original MICO master cylinder in case the one on the car ever goes bad! This is a rare part indeed to find!
Interior is original from carpet to headliner. Without a doubt, the nicest original interior car which I have ever had the pleasure of owning. Every part of the interior is extremely presentable but has just that right amount of patina which makes you feel good about the car and reminds you of just how original it is. You can tell the car has always been used as it should be, however, has always also been well looked after.
As far as underside, the car still retains its original 9-65 dated Konis on all four corners which is extremely rare. In the 70s-80s, when shocks went bad, it was cheaper to merely buy a new set as opposed to having old shocks rebuilt. Because of that, it is unusual to see such nice, original shocks on a car! Being a CA car, 6S825 also retains its original red oxide floors with factory overspray which have never been restored or messed with! I would be happy to provide pictures of the beautiful unrestored underside of 6S825 to anyone who would like to see them.
Finally, the paint on the car presents itself extremely well. The respray on the car was done, I believe, in the early 80s but shows like a paint job with much less age on it than that! In fact, I just sent the car to the very best paint correction professional in Kansas City, Scott Meyers of Scott Meyers Auto Detailing. He did a wonderful job and, upon inspection, you would very guess the paint was as old as that.
6S825 is not for the guy that needs an absolutely cosmetically perfect car, but it is for the guy who wants a car which has never been screwed with, wrecked, abused, cut up, restored, or even taken a part. 6S825 presents itself extremely well and it has great integrity. The car displays the best bones you can get in one of these old Shelbys and it has served me well over the entire period of my ownership! It is a totally documented car which was in storage for 35 years with its second owner, completely unknown to the club. Hence the reason why the registry entry is pretty much blank. The Shelby VIN tag has never been off it and still has its original black rivets attaching it. All VINS were confirmed with SAAC registrar Howard Pardee by looking under the apron instead of removing the tag. All Ford VINs are present in the locations where they should be.
Again, my thanks for taking a look at 6S825 and please let me know if I can answer any additional questions or provide any additional pictures. For the price, you will be hard pressed to find another car which retains 100% of its original sheet metal and its original drivetrain. The opportunity to purchase a solid and extremely original car like 6S825 is not one which comes around often!
