66 GT 350 Drag Package

[Vernon Estes]

465 and 466s, all carryovers were the factory, Shelby sanctioned cars. There was another 65 that was bought directly from high-performance motors and taken by the new owner to Les Richie. In my book not a factory drag car.

Extremely slight correction...the one "non factory" yet Perf Associates built drag unit was bought at Mel Burns and taken straight to PA by the first owner on the same day as he purchased the car.

Also, maybe the red car the original poster is remembering has to do with 6S021 which has not been in the public eye for a long time but, as I understand it, was at one time painted red and possibly still is?

[J_Speegle]

Also, maybe the red car the original poster is remembering has to do with 6S021 which has not been in the public eye for a long time but, as I understand it, was at one time painted red and possibly still is?

The question that would come up (maybe there is an explanation) if there had been a reason or records for 6S021 to be approx 300 drive miles away from the dealership it was delivered to and sold from Mayfield Heights OH during the first 14 months of the cars life and repainted during that first year. From there it, according to the registry was sold to an owner four states away.

Just an observation for the discussion. Apparently no period pictures have appeared yet

[98SVT - was 06GT]

The question that would come up (maybe there is an explanation) if there had been a reason or records for 6S021 to be approx 300 drive miles away from the dealership it was delivered to and sold from Mayfield Heights OH

Local availability near the buyer? Don't forget SA was always behind on production vs demand. A call to SA? "I want a red drag car", There is one in Mayfield Hgts OH. It's white but you could paint it. I doubt the reason is very complicated.

[J_Speegle]

Local availability near the buyer? Don't forget SA was always behind on production vs demand. A call to SA? "I want a red drag car", There is one in Mayfield Hgts OH. It's white but you could paint it. I doubt the reason is very complicated.

Not to drag on since we don't know what happened but just exploring the possibilities. The car was delivered to Mayfield Heights and sold from that dealership. Just trying to explore how it would have gotten to Cincinnati and why.  Nothing in the records indicate the car was raced during that first year by the dealership and not really a car that would have been special built without a potential buyer on the hook since these were not what the vast majority of 65 Shelby buyers were looking for. Not sure how many dealers "loaned out" cars in their inventory during those days and if it had been raced and had the Mayfield Heights name on it how that helped the Cincinnati dealer if loaded or left there for some reason on a possible return from a weekend racing somewhere in the area which I guess many of us saw examples of in the 60's and 70's.

Another point is that if the car had been repainted red during the first year SA would not likely be aware of that detail back in LA

Just a thought 

[TLea]

465 and 466s, all carryovers were the factory, Shelby sanctioned cars. There was another 65 that was bought directly from high-performance motors and taken by the new owner to Les Richie. In my book not a factory drag car.

Extremely slight correction...the one "non factory" yet Perf Associates built drag unit was bought at Mel Burns and taken straight to PA by the first owner on the same day as he purchased the car.

Yes, exactly. Not a factory drag car. Factory 65 Shelby with owner, instigated modifications

[shelbydoug]

The question that would come up (maybe there is an explanation) if there had been a reason or records for 6S021 to be approx 300 drive miles away from the dealership it was delivered to and sold from Mayfield Heights OH

Local availability near the buyer? Don't forget SA was always behind on production vs demand. A call to SA? "I want a red drag car", There is one in Mayfield Hgts OH. It's white but you could paint it. I doubt the reason is very complicated.

Your experience with racers as with Randy Gillis' was different from mine. I guess I always looked like I was going to steal something from the team so I always got chased away.

There were a lot of insults thrown liberally back then at strangers, not just at me specifically, like "get away fagot". That seemed to be common no matter where it came from? I maintain I got my bad mouth from absorbing by osmosis from the LA street crowd?



I would always hear grumblings from the owner/mechanic's around the cars and one thing was the complaints about all the cars (GT350's) being white.

It is interesting to me now but I was too busy then worrying about ducking wrenches thrown at me and keeping the grease off of my new Converse Allstars and white Levi's.



I bought 3074 off of Rich Leuchner in Ledyard, Ct. While I was there he had just bought a '65 GT350 "drag car" that was painted, of all things, Chevy white. He and Pardee were trying to either move the car onto or off of the trailer, I forget now which, but when the previous owner said you had to 'rev it', he wasn't kidding. How about 7 or 8,000 rpm to move it?

Those were the days I suppose? It is no surprise to me that people like my wife say I am delusional and these things never happened but I wonder myself sometimes why I at times seem so brain damaged? Video. I want to video everything now. Then maybe someone would believe me but then someome would probably yell it was Photoshoped? "You" just can't win these arguments. 

[98SVT - was 06GT]

........I guess I always looked like I was going to steal something from the team so I always got chased away.

When the showroom stock thing was getting factory money the Camaros would always run longer on their first stint. Saleen went to SCCA but they basically said unless you have something specific we just tech that the cars are safe and drove off in their donated Chevy pickup. Saleen hired a guy from their team and found out they had taken 2 dash panels and created an almost 6 gallon tank between them. Looked stock on top and bottom but you needed a tape measure to figure it out. Of course Steve fired him a week later before he could discover and sell their cheats. Steve always did complain about the cost of making Konis look like off the shelf Monroes.

[shelbydoug]

........I guess I always looked like I was going to steal something from the team so I always got chased away.

When the showroom stock thing was getting factory money the Camaros would always run longer on their first stint. Saleen went to SCCA but they basically said unless you have something specific we just tech that the cars are safe and drove off in their donated Chevy pickup. Saleen hired a guy from their team and found out they had taken 2 dash panels and created an almost 6 gallon tank between them. Looked stock on top and bottom but you needed a tape measure to figure it out. Of course Steve fired him a week later before he could discover and sell their cheats. Steve always did complain about the cost of making Konis look like off the shelf Monroes.

Huh? I guess I never thought anything about the 44 Magnum and shoulder holster I was known to wear? I must have looked like a cop?

[98SVT - was 06GT]

Huh? I guess I never thought anything about the 44 Magnum and shoulder holster I was known to wear? I must have looked like a cop?

In my neighborhood you were more likely chased off because they didn't want you stealing their speed secrets not the tools. Kinda like F1 today - did you notice how several teams got faster after they bought photos of the crashed Red Bull hanging from the crane in Monaco? What the bottom of the Red Bull looks like was a closely guarded secret for the past couple years.  https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/red-bull-f1-car-floor-exposed-williams/10482803/

[shelbydoug]

Huh? I guess I never thought anything about the 44 Magnum and shoulder holster I was known to wear? I must have looked like a cop?

In my neighborhood you were more likely chased off because they didn't want you stealing their speed secrets not the tools. Kinda like F1 today - did you notice how several teams got faster after they bought photos of the crashed Red Bull hanging from the crane in Monaco? What the bottom of the Red Bull looks like was a closely guarded secret for the past couple years.  https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/red-bull-f1-car-floor-exposed-williams/10482803/

One will never know. At one point in college people thought I was an undercover cop. I was never suspected of being a Narc' to my knowledge though, although how would I know?

I can't envision the mechanics in Shelby's shop at the airport being comfortable with a stranger casually wondering through the shop "observing" here and there.


Another thought though is that here on the East Coast, at drag race events, sometimes "State Police" often would go through the race cars in attendance looking for cars stolen off of the streets that turned into race cars in someone else's possession.

I can't prove it but heard stories at how sometimes they were successful.