Where’s Steve McQueen when we need him? 1969 Shelby GT500 found under 40 years of dust

By Joe Mahan March 24, 2014

one rare super snake appears 40 years dust 1969 ford shelby mustang gt 500 428 cobra jet l — Image used with permission by copyright holder

From dust to dust, people and cars come and go, but sometimes the old is reborn … and out of the dust emerges something immaculate.

A 1969 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 428 Cobra Jet is a mouthful to say but it will drop any car enthusiasts jaw. This particular garage-find was owned and perfectly preserved by a now-deceased automotive connoisseur and set for auction — hot on the heels of the submersible Lotus Esprit used by James Bond in “Never Say Never Again” and a ’63 Ferrari GTO that became the most expensive car ever sold.

Larry never washed the car for fear of scratching the paintjob or cause even the slightest bit of rust. Yahoo News estimates that the only time the car was ever washed was before delivery. Accordingly, the car is in absolute showroom condition, except for a layer of dust.

This snake features a larger, 428-cubic-inch Cobra Jet engine mated to a four-speed manual transmission, which has run only 8,500 miles in total. The spark plugs, belts, fan, and hoses are all original. The only items that are not from 1968 are the tires.

Considering that this highly collectable GT500 has sat idle since 1973, it’s an extreme rarity. The Mustang was originally purchased for just $5,245 in 1969. Now, though, it should sell at auction for over $100,000.

The car will be auctioned off by Ron Gilligan Auctioneering on April 25.

It also looks like pack-rat owner also owned a 1971 Ford Ranchero with only 53,000 miles on it, and get this … a 1974 Ford Econoline Custom 100 van with only 554 original miles. Both vehicles are for sale along with a variety of other mint, perfectly maintained vehicles from the estate.

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Former Digital Trends Contributor

Joe Mahan is an intern at Digital Trends working in the Cars section. He is currently a Junior at the University of Portland…

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