Autoblog

We described the scene to you earlier, and now you can see everything unfold as it happened. We are, of course, talking about the big reveal of the new Shelby GT-H Convertible down at Barrett-Jackson Palm Beach, along with the immediate sale of the rights to car #001. It's all here, from the covered car being driven onstage, to the extra salesmanship by Ford's Mark Fields, to the final gavel $250,000 later as the car went to collector Ron Pratte of Chandler, AZ. If you missed the original telecast and forgot to set your DVR, no worries -- you can watch it all go down after the jump.

[Source: SPEED TV]

An anonymous tipper has just informed us that Hertz will be auctioning off a large batch of its very exclusive rental car, the Shelby Mustang GT-H, to Ford dealers from Thursday, December 7th through December 21st. If we understand our source correctly, six auctions will occur around the country beginning in Manheim, PA, then moving to Hayward, CA; Denver, Colorado; Atlanta, Georgia; Fontanca, CA; and finally back to Manheim, PA. 113 models of the Shelby GT-H, all used as rental cars, will be auctioned off in total, with each auction getting 15 - 20 units to sell.

Dealers who score a GT-H have their choice of driving around in a very rare modern collectible, using the car as showroom eye candy at their dealerships, or even potentially selling the car at a price that will certainly be unreasonable. If you're a Mustang fan, however, and really want a GT-H, petition your local Ford dealer to attend one of these auctions and get you one at all costs.

You know the slogan and the TV commercials: "you can get 'it' on eBay." Well, damned if it isn't true, because a Newark, NJ car dealer has an '06 Shelby GT-H with just 4,000-odd miles on it listed at the online auction house. According to the item description, the car (VIN 1ZVFT82H365226495 / CSM No. O6H0037) was driven by a Hertz exec until Deluxe Auto Sales purchased the car at auction on November 16. When you consider that the GT-Hs are supposed to stay in service until they've got mileage in the teens on the odo, this sounds like a nice opportunity for some collector. It's even better if the car really was an executive machine as is claimed, because with the fleet cars, it's beyond likely that they will not have been treated with a whole lot of TLC.

As I write this (it's Friday night), there are 9 bids on the car, and it's up to $55,600. The reserve has not yet been met. It'll be interesting to see what it ultimately sells for (if it sells at all), given that the first car brought $250K. That was for a zero-mileage car that was never going to be touched by a Hertz customer, however. We're guessing that the final selling price of this particular GT-H will be a more accurate indicator of what the other cars will ultimately trade hands for. The auction expires at month's end, so we'll see soon enough. If you want to get in on the action, you can bid on the car here.

Thanks to Matt at MustangBlog for the heads-up!

[Source: eBay via MustangBlog.com]

Shelby Automobiles was on hand at SEMA to show off a suite of new appearance and performance add-ons that they'll be making available to Mustang owners in early 2007. Shelby is headquartered in Vegas, so their cars simply had to make a quick local run over to the show, where they appeared as part of American Racing's display (American Racing offers a line of Shelby wheels).

Sporting the instantly recognizable black & gold of Hertz Mustangs old and new, the GT-H convertible received all the performance and styling mods seen on the limited-edition coupe, plus a 14" brake upgrade, 20" American Racing "Shelby Razor" wheels, duct kits for the front and rear brakes, a billet insert for the lower fascia (which also fits the Mustang GT/CS), driving lights,sequential tail lights (cool!), a dash-mounted supplemental gauge cluster and a few more accessories that'll be sold through Shelby Autos and certified dealers starting next year.

We already loved the mean-looking GT-H coupe, and this is just as good. The Shelby Razor Wheels are particularly attractive, and are more distinctive than the now-common Bullits the limited-edition GT-H is shod with. It's also good for Shelby GT/GT-H owners in that they can further modify their cars and still keep the Shelby mystique intact, as these are all genuine Shelby parts and accessories.

Finally, the use of a convertible to do a GT-H concept has us wondering if that's exactly what's in store for the Hertz "Fun Collection" once the original 499 (remember the first one was auctioned) GT-H coupes are cycled out of rental outlets (and into collectors' garages). We wouldn't be surprised to see this happen, followed by the release of a Shelby GT convertible for the rest of us (something Ford dealers would probably like very much). Time will tell.

(Press release, additional photos after the jump)

[Source: Shelby Automobiles]

Monday's contribution to Autoblog from the online treasure trove that is Streetfire.net comes in the form of a civilian demonstration of the Shelby GT-H's burnout abilities. The 325-horse rental-only 'Stang certainly gets the job done, laying down an appropriately thick wall of smoke as the driver put on a show for his neighbors.

We know rental cars are subject to a fairly high level of abuse, and in the case of the GT-H, the car practically begs for it. It's likely that the people renting them are more than happy to oblige -- much to the chagrin of the cars' rear tires.

Of course, this video also illustrates why ordering a retail Shelby GT might be a better play than waiting to buy a former Hertz car -- collectability be damned. With a GT-H, you'll never know just how many people abused the car before you took possession of it. With a Shelby GT, at least you'll know that the only yahoo strapping in behind the wheel is the one looking back at you in the mirror.

[Source: Streetfire.net]

click image for high resolution version

Now you don't have to go to a Hertz car rental just to pilot the best Mustang on the planet -- you can actually buy it. Observe the 2007 Ford Mustang Shelby GT, the car that, until now, was only available as the Ford Mustang Shelby GT-H, the black and gold pony exclusively rented out at your local Hertz Rent-a-Car.

On a tip from our buddies at Winding Road, Ford's grand poo-bah of the Americas, Mark Fields, unveiled the second-wildest steed in the Ford stable for the 2007 model year Aug. 9. For those uninterested in picking up same, the 325 hp beast with automatic transmission (available only as such where the GT-H is concerned), the Shelby GT will come with available manual transmission, as well as in different color schemes: black or white with silver stripes.

Ford's Flat Rock, Mich. plant will churn out 10,000 at most, according to the Associated Press.

[Source: Ford, Winding Road]

Automotive News has revealed that the third Shelby Mustang in Ford's pony car corral will be a retail version of the Hertz Shelby GT-H rent-a-racer called the Shelby GT. The car will be a 2007 model and production will be at least a few thousand. No word if the Shelby GT will differ from the rental car in any way, either visually or mechanically.

The news was revealed to Ford dealers at a dealer meeting in Las Vegas last week, where it was also revealed that dealers should be preparing for production versions of the Ford Fairlane concept, which we already knew, and the Lincoln MKS concept, which was on an obvious track for production. The Lincoln MKS will arrive early in 2008 and the Fairlane sometime after that and maybe with a different name.

[Source: Automotive News – sub required]

Well, it looks like the market's been set for the Shelby GT-H.

FoMoCo , Shelby and Hertz donated one of the 500 Hertz Mustangs to the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) to be auctioned at their Gathering of Eagles fundraiser earlier this week. Given the rarity of the car and the bloodlines that stretch back to Shelby's 60s-era Rent-A-Racers, it was expected to pull in big dollars -- and it did: $250,000 to be exact.

The remaining 499 cars will see duty at selected Hertz outlets as part of the the company's Fun Collection, after which they'll trickle into the hands of Ford dealers and likely cross the block at some high-profile auctions. Who wants to bet that the first GT-H to show up at the cash tornado otherwise known as Barrett-Jackson eclipses that $250,000 figure?

[Source: EAA via Winding Road]