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1965 Shelby Mustang GT350: Is It The Best Mustang Of All Time?

The Audrain Museum in Newport, Rhode Island, was founded in 2014 with a mission of "Preserving, Celebrating and Sharing Automotive History." With recent times making it difficult for people to actually go over and see the more than 350 cars and motorcycles on display, the people at the museum have decided to go down the YouTube road and share some of their machines with us.
Shelby Mustang GT350 10 photos
Photo: Audrain Museum
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And their most recent review showcases the very first Shelby Mustang GT350, a car that was made available to the public back in 1965, about one year after the first Mustang was released by Ford. Bringing Carroll Shelby onboard marked Ford's intent of increasing the appeal of the Mustang, which was still associated with the Ford Falcon, leaving gearheads somewhat unimpressed.

Shelby had already been recognized as an American motorsports icon at the time, having competed both in Formula 1 and at Le Mans in the 1950s. Talking about Shelby's involvement in the development of these cars, the host of the show mentions:

"He drove Ferraris, Maseratis, he was a sports car guy and he knew about speed, power and control, so the cars he developed were all about that. And you can feel the spirit, energy and brain of this man and the team he put together every minute you drive this car"

All the 1965 Shelby GT350s were painted in Wimbledon White with Guardsman Blue rocker stripes, a fitting color for the first generation of a very iconic vehicle, which the reviewer calls "my favourite Mustang of all time". Looking up one of these on the auction sites, you might find some hovering around the $100,000 area, but don't be surprised if you'll see a few of them going for as much as $500,000 too.

The engine used in these cars was the Windsor 289-cubic inch (4.7-liter) V8, with some upgrades done to it. The mill produced 306 horsepower and 329 lb-ft (446 Nm) of torque, all sent to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual. With the car weighing in at 2,790 lbs (1,265 kg), you can imagine how driving one of these back in the '60s must have felt like!

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About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
Dragos Chitulescu profile photo

The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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