Photo: Craig Jackson
As promised, the CEO of Barrett-Jackson, Craig Jackson, revealed on Thursday the restored 1967 Shelby GT500 Little Re, one of the most important machines in American car history.
Unfortunately for those getting their taste of history online, we don’t have yet a wealth of images showing the car, but only two, showing Little Red both alone and alongside its slightly younger sibling, the 1968 Shelby GT500 Green Hornet.
Despite being a pillar of what was to become the Shelby legacy, Little Red has been considered lost and possibly even destroyed for well over 20 years. It took Jackson and his team a great deal of time and money to find it. When they did, it was rusting away abandoned on a field in Texas.
Jackson said in 2018, when he finally located the car, that it was the discovery of a lifetime.
“This Shelby prototype has been one of the most sought-after and elusive vehicles in postwar history. Countless enthusiasts and experts have searched for Little Red since it went missing in the 1960s,” he stated.
“Many believed it was destroyed when the car was no longer needed. I’m excited to announce that was not the case. We’ve found Little Red and we intend to meticulously restore this legendary car back to its original glory.”
Little Red, being a prototype, was both the first to set a trend, and at times even the only to use certain features.
For instance, it is the only multi-carbureted Mustang coupe ever built, the first Mustang coupe to be fitted with a 428 ci engine, and the only GT coupe to be built by Shelby.
We’re probably going to get more info on what the restoration meant, and possibly (hopefully) even more photos in the days ahead, and we’ll update this story accordingly.
In the meantime, you can have a look at the car in both pre- and post-restoration in the gallery above.
Despite being a pillar of what was to become the Shelby legacy, Little Red has been considered lost and possibly even destroyed for well over 20 years. It took Jackson and his team a great deal of time and money to find it. When they did, it was rusting away abandoned on a field in Texas.
Jackson said in 2018, when he finally located the car, that it was the discovery of a lifetime.
“This Shelby prototype has been one of the most sought-after and elusive vehicles in postwar history. Countless enthusiasts and experts have searched for Little Red since it went missing in the 1960s,” he stated.
“Many believed it was destroyed when the car was no longer needed. I’m excited to announce that was not the case. We’ve found Little Red and we intend to meticulously restore this legendary car back to its original glory.”
Little Red, being a prototype, was both the first to set a trend, and at times even the only to use certain features.
For instance, it is the only multi-carbureted Mustang coupe ever built, the first Mustang coupe to be fitted with a 428 ci engine, and the only GT coupe to be built by Shelby.
We’re probably going to get more info on what the restoration meant, and possibly (hopefully) even more photos in the days ahead, and we’ll update this story accordingly.
In the meantime, you can have a look at the car in both pre- and post-restoration in the gallery above.
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