Shelby Mustang: Racer for the Street

When Ford wanted to add some spice to its new Mustang pony car in the mid-1960s, it turned to talented, colorful, and opinionated Texan Carroll Shelby, who was then building high-performance racing sports cars (Cobras) using a British body and a Ford engine. The resulting Shelby Mustangs proved to be the definitive performance Mustangs of the muscle car era. Ford has recently released a new Mustang, the first truly all-new Mustang since 1979, returning the model to the spotlight. The most-talked-about and anticipated version of the new Mustang is the Shelby Cobra GT500, which Ford will bring to market in 2006. Shelby himself was involved in the development of what will be the most powerful factory-produced Mustang ever. This rich new history from award-winning authors Randy Leffingwell and David Newhardt traces the Shelby Mustang story from the early Shelby America cars built in a converted airplane hangar in Southern California to the 2006 version of the new Mustang.