DEARBORN, Mich. - As the Archivist at Ford Motor Company, I get to see so many cool documents which tell amazing stories about our cars. People all know about our regular vehicles that we have been manufacturing for almost 120 years. We have now produced more than 400,000,000 vehicles over that time, but there has also been work on special vehicles along the way – and that story is a fun one to tell.

Recently, I came across these lists of some makes and models that we shipped to Shelby American, Inc., for experimentation and customization. I read the documents and saw an amazing array of cars that would each become distinct within the special vehicles universe. Yes, there are a number of GT350s and GT500s, but you will also see Thunderbirds and Cougars, as well.

Ford truly understands the Mustang enthusiast. That’s why, throughout the car’s history, we have made specialty models that not only enhance the brand’s appeal, but also their collectability. Shelbys have been a part of that specialty brand effort since the beginning, and it’s a tradition the company has kept going ever since – from  SVO to SVT (whose 30th Anniversary is this year) to Ford Racing and now Ford Performance. From the Cal Special and the Mach 1 to the Cobra, Boss, Bullitt and even to today’s Dark Horse – developing, building, and keeping track of high-interest Fords helps us to polish the Blue Oval’s legacy!

I hope you enjoy reading these lists and envisioning the beautiful experimental vehicles that resulted from our collaboration with Shelby.