The original Shelby Mustang didn’t last long, making landfall in 1965 as the highest-performing spin-off of the nameplate; five model years later, it was leaving the stage in a less than triumphant manner. With Carroll Shelby and Ford Motor Company not getting along anymore, the iconic machines quickly vanished. 1969 was the final year of production, although 789 units were granted 1970 VINs and sold accordingly.
The final Shelby Mustang didn’t even sport the ‘Cobra’ moniker in its name, but that’s just a marketing gimmick (albeit a very powerful one) that didn’t chip any of the car’s performance. The styling was different, however, clearly distinguishing between the regular Ford Mustangs and the Shelby-ized examples.
Underneath, however, the changes weren’t significant – at least as far as the GT500 model was concerned. The same 428 cubic-inch V8 (seven-liter) Cobra Jet Ram Air was responsible for the happiness of tire-making companies, either mated to a three-speed automatic or a four-speed manual transmission.
Out of the 1,537 GT500s built for its final year of production (and penultimate of sales), several made it overseas, some as far out as Japan and Australia. In early 1969 (late January, to be exact), a lot of nine Ford Shelby Mustangs equipped with the big-block V8 were assembled and then shipped to Japan. The details about this export batch are still waiting to be uncovered. Still, at least one (and quite possibly two) made it to Australia.
Car number 9F02R480533 spent some time in a Tokyo museum before being imported to Australia in 2004. But another example, with a close Warranty Number (9F02R480507), spent its last 25 years in a barn Down Under. It was recently pulled out of its hibernation and is now looking for a new owner. The trim tag indicates one repaint – as the current red livery is as far away from the original Calypso Coral D5 as Kogarah is from Dearborn.
If you don’t know what a Kogarah is, then note that it is located 11 miles south of Sydney (the largest city in Australia). That’s where this Shelby muscle is presently housed, with a price tag of 165,000 dollars. That would be Australian dollars, the equivalent of 111,318.90 of Uncle Sam’s dollars. As far as final-year first-gen Shelby GT500 goes for nowadays, it’s a fair price – before you want it shipped back to its homeland.
This particular example still sports the quarter-century patina in the engine bay, and the odometer reads 63,000 miles (101,388 kilometers). Unfortunately, the selling dealer doesn’t share/have any extra info regarding this car’s past other than stressing out the originality of the interior (the sound system notwithstanding).
However, a vital piece of data is the condition of the drivetrain. This Shelby GT500 is a runner ready to hit the road right off the showroom floor. While the engine is original, the four-speed transmission is most certainly not, as the trim tag holds the code for the Cruise-O-Matic three-speed.
A 3.50 nine-inch rear differential sits between the rear wheels, waiting for another shot at those 335 horsepower and 440 lb-ft (340 PS, 597 Nm). Don’t take Ford’s word for it, though – the power rating was outrageously underrated to stay below the insurers’ radar.