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Carroll Shelby's 1986 Dodge Omni GLHS Can Be Yours for $75,000

One of many L-body Chrysler cars, the Omni perfectly defines the Malaise Era of American automotive history. Dodge kept building it until 1990, and the pint-sized hatchback even received a hot version called GLH.
Carroll Shelby's 1986 Dodge Omni GLHS 22 photos
Photo: Mecum Auctions
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Believe it or not, Carroll Shelby chose Goes Like Hell over the original proposal of Coyote, a nameplate we now associate with the DOHC engine in the Ford F-150 and Mustang GT. Adding to the already convoluted nomenclature, Dodge rolled out the Omni GLH-T for the 1985 model year with a turbocharger for the 2.2-liter engine, translating to 146 horsepower.

But wait, there’s more! 500 examples of the breed, all of them painted in black, were sold to Shelby. These cars became the GLHS, which stands for Goes Like Hell Some more, and the one in the photo gallery is chassis number 086 according to Mecum Auctions. Personally owned by Carroll, chassis number 1B3BZ18E9GD251155 looks like it was produced yesterday because the odometer shows just 8,176 miles (13,158 kilometers).

The exterior paintwork and plastic, logo stickers, and interior are all original, along with the five-speed manual transmission and Garrett turbocharger that runs at 12 pounds per square inch of boost instead of 7.2 PSI for the Omni GLH-T. In this application, the 2,213-cc four-banger develops around 175 horsepower and 175 pound-feet (237 Nm) of torque.

Estimated to fetch between as much as $75,000, the car is titled in the Carroll Hall Shelby Trust’s name and backed up by an extensive reference file. Featured on My Classic Car in 2017, Mecum Auctions highlights that GLHS number 086 out of 500 “stands as an important part of Shelby’s rich legacy.”

Although it doesn’t hold a candle to the Cobra and Mustang GT350, I can’t deny this car has that certain something about it because of its first owner. Other than that, Europe offered more engaging hatchbacks in the latter part of the 1980s. The Renault 5 GT Turbo comes to mind, which is 659 pounds (299 kilograms) lighter on its feet than the Shelby Omni.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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