Rent-A-Racer

The original Shelby GT350 proved such a success that Carroll Shelby made a deal with the Hertz rental car company to offer his hotted-up Mustang for hire to the general public. This was a master stroke by Shelby, cleverly promoting his new car through what amounted to paid test drives by potential buyers. A total of 1,000 GT350 H models, most of which were finished in black with gold Le Mans stripes, were supplied to Hertz in 1966. It was not uncommon for the cars to be returned after a weekend rental with signs of racing numbers still on the doors.

1966-Shelby-GT350-H-_17.jpg

Of the initial order of 150 cars, the most desirable GT350 Hs are the 85 examples that were originally delivered with a four-speed manual transmission. Hertz quickly notified Shelby that not everyone could drive a manual, and so the remaining 850 cars after the initial delivery batch all featured automatic transmissions. The car featured here is one of those original four-speed examples.

1966-Shelby-GT350-H-_16.jpg

RM Sotheby's will be offering this 1966 Shelby GT350 H at their upcoming Elkhart Collection auction held between the 23rd-24th October. For more information on this and other vehicles at the sale, click on the link below. Photos: Darin Schnabel © Courtesy of RM Sotheby's.

rmsothebys.com