An astonishing clone of the EXP 500

1968 “Shelby Mustang” recreation

An astonishing clone of the EXP 500

Here is your chance to get hold of a piece of American automotive history (well almost) If you want to stand out from the crowd at car shows here's your chance. I have for auction the most incredible recreation of the most important Mustang ever. I'm sure if your reading this you will have heard of the legendary “Green Hornet” a 1968 notchback that was worked on by Carroll Shelby and his team as an experimental vehicle for Ford in the late 60's. not once but twice!!.

Here's a brief history.

“When Ford began to get more involved in Shelby America's affairs in 1966. it at least picked the right man to send to Shelby as that company's new chief engineer. Fred Goodell. A hot rodder at heart. Goodell built many a souped-up Mustang for the Shelby works. including the fuel-injected and independent rear suspension-equipped one-off Green Hornet. which Barrett-Jackson recently announced will cross the block at its Scottsdale auction.

Officially known as the EXP 500. the Green Hornet's genesis began with another Goodell-built car. a 1967 Mustang hardtop that he called Li'l Red. Fitted with Shelby decor and a Paxton-supercharged 428. Li'l Red eventually served as the template for the Mustang GT/California Special and very nearly became the template for a similar national version of the California Special. Ford in fact built two prototypes for a national version. including a Lime Gold 1968 Mustang hardtop with Deluxe interior and a 390/C6 drive train (VIN 8F01S104288). before round-filing the idea.

That Lime Gold hardtop then made its way to Shelby's facility – at the time located in Ionia. Michigan – after Ford cancelled its program. Goodell likely had a hand in the transfer. and once it arrived in Shelby's shops. he tore into it. He replaced the 390 with a 428 Cobra Jet V-8 topped with a Conelec electronic fuel-injection system – Ford was already testing the systems to see how they would meet upcoming emissions regulations. so it was little trouble for Goodell to secure a system – and replaced the stock C6 with a C6 built to F350 specifications. He then swapped out the live rear axle for an independent rear suspension based around a Ford 9-inch center section and a cradle that bolted into the rear leaf spring mounts. Rear disc brakes and a full Shelby front suspension rounded out Goodell's mechanical modifications. while darker gold-flecked green paint and a black vinyl top gave it some visual pop.

Goodell's modifications reportedly endowed the Green Hornet with a 5. 7-second 0-60 time and 157 MPH top speed. but yet again the ideas embodied in the prototype didn't reach production. Unlike most prototype and experimental cars. however. the Green Hornet survived the scrapper: A Ford employee named Robert Zdanowski bought the Green Hornet minus its EFI and IRS – but sold it six months later to Don Darrow. a Ford dealer in Cheboygan. Michigan. Darrow and his son Randy would later confirm the Green Hornet's identity with Fred Goodell and restore it using a scratch-built IRS built to Goodell's specifications along with a Holley ProJection EFI system (Goodell rounded up some components of another Conelec EFI system for the Darrows). It then passed through the hands of Steve Davis. president of Barrett-Jackson. before it made its way into the collection of Craig Jackson. who owned it at the time Jeff Koch photographed it for an article that appeared in Hemmings Muscle Machines magazine in September 2006. ”

 So what do I have for auction. it started its life (1968) in the States as a 2. 5ltr straight six it was shipped to the UK in 1974 by an American airman who was stationed at an airbase in the UK (so no problem registering it back to the US as it was originally a US vehicle. it should still be on DMV database) The gentleman that built the car. a Mustang specialist in the UK got the car with only 12405 miles on the clock. so it was in pretty good shape. he then started an almost three year project turning this humble 2. 5ltr coupe into this amazing car you see now. it was totally stripped back to bare metal and a whole new front end put on the car with the correct suspension turrets to take a full Shelby suspension and the extra load of the 7ltr 428 big block. the engine has been totally rebuild with all new parts from Real Steel in the UK. It is fitted with the Holley Pro-Jection EFI system. an amazing bit of kit you can control the fuel mixture from inside the car.

The rear end is particularly impressive; this is what really makes this car stand out from the rest. the back axle has been painstakingly re fabricated in the same way Fred Goodall did back in the day to transform it into this work of art. giving the Mustang IRS and outboard disc brakes. you also have the benefits of a LSD. it really doesn't get much better than this!!

The automatic transmission is the correct C6 built to F350 specification

The interior is an almost carbon copy of the original with no detail overlooked even the SW gauges in the centre console (these are like hens teeth to find) everything is as it should be and in excellent condition. Externally the car is immaculate. with lightweight hood and trunk lid (GRP) every panel is pin sharp with flawless paint and beautiful chrome all-round. again no detail has been over looked. even down to the electric aerial that operates when you turn the radio on (another first in 1968) every light. decal. and badge is as the original in fact if you put the two cars together you would struggle to tell them apart. The main difference being. the original has a price tag of $2. 5 million. and mine is a tiny fraction of that. but imagine how you would feel. and the looks you would get when you drive to a show in this and you KNOW that you will never see another one like it. unless Craig Jackson decides to take his to the same show!!

Just to put the icing on the cake the car has covered 3. 5 miles. that's correct three and a half miles since it was completed in 2009. as it has been in a private collection. It was MOT'd a couple of months ago. and the inspector couldn't believe his eyes he thought it was a new car! Needless to say it passed with flying colours.

This car should really be back in the US where it can be appreciated for what it is. a true American icon. and because of that I am prepared to pay the shipping costs back to the States for the winning bidder if it meets its reserve.

Please don't think this is some half hearted attempt at a recreation cobbled together in somebody's garage. this is an amazing piece workmanship that really has to be seen to be believed carried out by one of the UK's leading Mustang specialists.  

If you have any questions and I'm sure many of you do. please contact me through ebay and I will get back to you ASAP. I am in contact with the gentleman that built this wonderful car so I'm sure between us we can answer most of your questions.

 Thank you for reading my rather lengthy description and good luck if you're going to have a bid.     

On Oct-30-14 at 08:38:32 PDT. seller added the following information:

 I have been asked by a number of people how does the car drive? and how do all the modifications effect the cars ride/handling? well as I've never driven the car I can't say. (it was delivered to me on a transporter) so what I'm going to do is drive it!!! This will obviously put more miles on the car but it's the only way to find out how it drives. I'm only talking about a few miles) if anybody that has already bid is not happy with this I fully understand if you retract your bids.

Thank you

Also published at eBay.com

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