1965 Shelby Mustang GT350

Carroll Shelby was a formidable driver who later became a car builder, having a talent for extracting the most performance from a car. With the expertise and experience gained on the track, Shelby cemented his legacy with the Ford Motor Company.

When the Ford Mustang was introduced in mid-year 1964, it was a sports car built for the masses, resting on the existing Falcon platform, and borrowing many of the mechanical components from existing vehicles. As the popularity of the muscle car scene continued to rise, Ford needed a package that could transform the Mustang into a proper sports car, capable of competing at the track against the Chevrolet Corvette and other rivals.

Ford was initially rebuffed by the Sports Car Club of America as the Mustang was viewed as a 2+2 design and thus not a true sports car. Ford executive Lee Iacocca asked then asked Shelby to help resolve this issue, in Shelby's words, to 'turn a mule into a racehorse.' Shelby organized a meeting with the SCCA's Executive Director, John Bishop, and asked him what was needed to be done to transform the Mustang into a production 'sports car.' The result of the meeting was the 1965 Shelby GT350, a vehicle built to homologate the Ford Mustang for SCCA racing.

Shelby took the standard production Ford Mustang GT built at the San Jose plant and transformed it into a racecar for the street at the Shelby American facility in Venice, California. They were given numerous performance modifications, and subtle styling updates to prepare it for competition. The Shelby GT350 quickly proved its worth, securing three straight SCCA B-Production championships for Shelby and Ford from 1965 through 1967.

Powering the Shelby GT350 was a 289 'Hi-Po' V8 fitted with a Holley four-barrel carburetor, aluminum high-rise intake manifold, 'Tri-Y' exhaust headers, a high-performance cam, and dual exhaust. The front suspension was lowered, fitted with a larger stabilizer bar, and the structure was strengthened with an 'export brace' and 'Monte Carlo' bar. In the back were traction bars, Koni shocks, and Detroit Locker rear-end. Ford engineer Klaus Arning, who had created the computer-designed suspension for the GT40 program, Shelby's 427 Cobras, and the Daytona coupes, was tasked with designing the suspension modifications for the GT350. The work included relocated front upper control arm mounting points, Koni adjustable racing shocks, traction bars, and a one-inch diameter front sway bar. The stock Mustang rear axle assembly was replaced with a 9-inch unit from the full-sized Galaxie and equipped with a limited-slip differential, with a choice of 3.70, 3.89, 4.10, and 4.33 ratios. Disc brakes were installed in the front with drums at the rear. Exterior changes included the iconic twin LeMans stripes from nose to tail (on most of the GT350 cars), a fiberglass hood with hood scoop and hold-down pins, and exhaust outlets just ahead of the rear wheels. The interior was given a woodgrain steering wheel, a tachometer, competition seat belts, and a fiberglass shelf in place of the rear seat. Some of the production cars were delivered with the Shelby-Cragar five-spoke mag wheels, while others had hubcap-less steel wheels. Goodyear supplied 7.75-15 Blue Dot high-performance tires were mounted on the wheels. Most of the cars had manual transmissions and naturally aspired, 306-horsepower, 289-cubic inch V-8. Two 1965 prototypes were factory-equipped with a Paxton-supercharged V8, which brought horsepower into the 450 horsepower neighborhood.

On January 1st of 1965, one hundred Shelby-modified Mustang Fastbacks, many of them built at the San Jose assembly plant and awaiting completion by Shelby's crew, were lined up outside his Venice facility to be inspected by SCCA officials for homologation. Each wore Wimbledon White paint, a pinned fiberglass hood with an intake scoop, a single Mustang emblem on the Blacked-out mesh grille, and Blue 'GT350' sill stripes. Inside was a black interior with the fiberglass shelf and covered spare tire in place of the rear seat. They had a center dash pod with an 8,000 RPM tachometer and oil pressure gauge, competition seat belts, a floor-mounted shifter, and a wood-rimmed aluminum racing steering wheel. The modified engine was given a larger radiator for improved cooling and a 6.5-quart aluminum Cobra oil pan with internal baffles installed for improved lubrication under hard cornering.

562 examples of the street-going GT350 plus 34 competition-only R-models were built in 1965 to homologate the Shelby GT350 for SCCA racing.

by Daniel Vaughan | Dec 2019