Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 "Snake on a plane"

Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 "Snake on a plane"

STORY:

Because the cars from Shelby American have always been desirable rides, their biographies are as varied as their original owners. Shelby Mustangs and two-seat Cobras corralled buyers from all walks of life, from the blue-collar middle class to the affluent. However, Dave Steine's '65 Shelby GT350 isn't your typical rural Wisconsin Slippery's Tavern big fish story. Shelby American scheduled this GT350 for delivery via air freight to Romy Hammes Ford in South Bend, Indiana. Based on what we know about Trans World Airlines in 1965, Dave's GT350 was loaded onto a Boeing 707-331F freighter at the Los Angeles International Airport and jetted across the continent. That's quite a distinction when you consider how many Mustangs were shipped via rail and truck. After this GT350 was delivered to the dealership, the buyer backed out of the deal. The TWA pilot who flew the car from Los Angeles to Indiana got word of this turn of events and decided to buy the car from Hi-Performance Motors, Shelby's own dealership in Southern California. So the car was air freighted back to Los Angeles for delivery to the pilot.

Where most Shelby Mustangs were thrashed and trashed on road courses and isolated stretches of highway, this one enjoyed 20 years of meticulous care until it was sold to Jim Bridges in--ironically--Shelby, North Carolina. It was there this car sat in a climate-controlled environment for another 22 years. Dave Steine eventually bought the GT350 from another highly respected Ford collector, Jacky Jones.