Another Opportunity To Own The Most Expensive Mustang Shelby In The World

Mecum's Kissimmee 2022 auction will include a 1965 Shelby GT350R Prototype next month. In addition to being the first Shelby R-Model racing vehicle, this one also became Shelby's first race winner. And, according to its sale last year at the same auction house for a stunning $3.85 million + fees, we already know it as the world's most valued Mustang.

Shelby American's first factory engineering mule, serial number 5R002, served as a testbed for innovative concepts and ultimately customer models, of which 34 were constructed. It was based on the ordinary Ford Mustang and brought to the FIA in 1965 for homologation. Legends of the sport like Jerry Titus, Peter Brock, Chuck Cantwell, Bob Bondurant, and Ken Miles drove it.

It was used as a promotional vehicle at Riverside International Raceway in California, with journalists getting behind the wheel. Ronnie Bucknam, a race driver, put in some practice laps. After Ken Miles jumped it at Green Valley Raceway in Texas on his path to a checkered flag less than a month later, the vehicle was dubbed The Flying Mustang.

This Mustang Shelby traveled about, was sold as a test car for $4,000, and eventually ended up at Ford's Dearborn, Michigan headquarters. It moved to Texas, Mexico, and eventually Colorado, where it spent 14 years in "as-is" form at the Shelby American Museum. It was restored to its original racing condition in Oklahoma before making stops at Amelia Island and Pebble Beach in 2014 and 2015.

As a result, it's once again for sale. "Short term ownership for a car of this magnitude is very unusual," Mecum writes in the description, "however, the buyer's decision to resell the car now provides an extraordinary opportunity to acquire the most coveted Shelby Mustang of all time." This Mustang Shelby will be available for purchase next month.

Source: Mecum