When can a true piece of American automotive history – potentially worth hundreds of thousands of dollars – ever be considered a “rat rod?” Well, we found the answer to that question last week at the PRI Show in Orlando, Florida. On display in the Ford Racing booth, behind all the wild ’12 BOSS 302 Mustangs on display was a faded spinach-green ’67 Fastback that was, well…deceiving.
The flat black and gloss-free look – normally – has become the latest fad. All it took was attending this year’s SEMA to learn that. So when we saw this ’67 GT350, we were a bit skeptical. But, upon closer inspection we learned that not only was this a real Shelby car, but it’s faded skin was due to age, not ample sanding after paint.
Don’t let its patina’ed exterior fool you, this real-deal ’67 GT350 (number 1781) is anything but a rotted and worn-out machine. Found in an honest-to-goodness barn in Terlingua, Texas by the crew at Classic Motorsports Magazine, this neglected and somewhat forgotten Shelby underwent a three-month resto-modification that restored the chassis to Mustang Club of American-grade concours-winning condition.
The wear and tear is a artfully masterful combination of real patina and scuffed and aged decals and hand painting.
New springs, Koni shocks, large diameter (1/516-inch) Shelby roll bars, Borgeson power sterring, brake lines, pads, and a new 3.25:1 rear limited slip differential help the Custom Wheels Market wheels and Kumho all-season rubber ride like a true performer. Beneath the hood is not the same old small block once offered by Ford either.
A new Ford Racing 500-horsepower 365cu. BOSS crate motor fit in between the shock towers, ignited by a Crane HI-6 digital CD ignition, a Pro Curve billet distributor. Topping the BOSS plant is an Edelbrock Air-Gap aluminum intake capped with a Holley HP 750cfm. carb. An Edelbrock water pump, Ford-made custom headers, with Magnaflow piping concludes the exhaust system.
Additional goodies include a Griffin aluminum radiator, a Ford Racing flywheel, Centerforce clutch spun by the original Ford top-loader 4-speed gearbox rowed by with a Hurst shifter. The interior, much like the chassis, was restored back to original including the original AM 8-track radio (although an iPod-capable port was added to a AM/FM radio upgrade).
Since this is no wallflower, the team at Classic Motorsports Magazine will be racing this amazing machine in the Texas 1000 Event, where its sure to turn heads as much as it’ll pass by competitors.