Summary

One of only 16 Shelby Group II Mustangs built in 1966. Participant of over 30 documented races. Show-quality restoration. Tons of documentation included. Powered by an era-correct Shelby American racing 289 Hi-Po V8 engine and 4-speed manual transmission.

Details

This iconic 1966 Shelby Group II Mustang #12 is one of the rarest Shelby Mustangs ever built and is fully documented in the SAAC Shelby Registry, which includes its historic SCCA and Trans-Am racing pedigree. It was one of only 16 Shelby Group II Mustangs built in 1966. They were built to the 1965 R-model specifications to compete in the SCCA and Trans-Am A/Sedan class. As documented in the SAAC Shelby registry, it was originally built for the famous Shelby American driver Ken Miles, who was killed testing a J-Car at Riverside before he could drive it. After the tragic death of Ken Miles, it was offered to John McComb by automotive design engineer and GT350 project engineer Chuck Cantwell of Carroll Shelby's legendary racing shop. It was invoiced on August 24, 1966, to Turner Ford and purchased by John McComb, both of Hutchinson, KS. McComb and this Shelby Mustang helped Ford claim The Trans-American Sedan Championship for 1966. This Shelby Mustang participated in over 30 documented races, including SCCA, Trans-Am, ARRC and 24 Hours of Daytona. Some notable races in 1966 included First Place at Pan-American Trans-Am in Green Valley, TX, and First Place at Continental Divide SCCA National. It was featured on the cover and in Sports Car Graphic December 1966 magazine, which is included. It was also featured in Sports Car Graphic June 1967 magazine and Motor Trend World Automotive Yearbook for 1967, which are both included. It was purchased in 1967 by Keith Thomas. It won First Place at SCCA National in Wichita, KS, in 1968, where it set an A/Sedan lap record and tied A/Production Corvette of Don Yenko for the second-fastest lap ever run at Lake Afton. It was raced consistently in 1969. It was purchased by Melvin Hammontree in 1973, then purchased by Max Anderson in 1978 and by Gary Spraggins in 1984. Gary had the car restored early on during his 28 years of ownership. Gary purchased the engine and transmission from Shelby American lead mechanic Terry Doty. He had the car signed by Carroll Shelby, John McComb, Chuck Cantwell and Terry Doty. Gary provided concrete documentation, including letters from Shelby American, photos and the Special Collector's Edition of Mustang Monthly January 1995 magazine, where he and Carroll Shelby were interviewed about the car, confirming it was built for Ken Miles. It was purchased by Rick Davis in 2012 and then by Chris Turner of Dockery Ford in 2013. The car made its way to Shelby experts Legendary Motorcar, where it received a show-quality concours restoration. The car is powered by an era-correct Shelby American Racing 289 Hi-Po V8 engine that runs excellent. The engine casting date is #C5AE-6015-E with a build date of October 14, 1964. It's been outfitted with the correct Hi-Po heads, aluminum high-rise intake manifold #S2MS-9424-A, Holley 715 CFM carburetor #S2MS-3510-A and steel valve covers with specially fabricated breathers. It's equipped with a heavy-duty oil cooler with remote Cobra oil filter adaptor and the 18-quart Ford Galaxie radiator. The engine breathes through the Tri-Y headers. The engine is coupled to an era-correct BorgWarner T10 close-ratio 4-speed manual transmission. The transmission has a build date of July 27, 1965. The power is transferred to Ford 9-inch Detroit Locker rear end with 3.89 gears. This Shelby Mustang was verified by 1965-66 Shelby Registrar Howard Pardee and Shelby Trans Am Registrar Gary Underwood. John McComb and his wife Vici McComb were reunited with the car in June 2022. Many items will be included with the car, such as Shelby documentation, restoration photos, SAAC Shelby 1965-66-67 4th Edition book signed by John McComb, an interview transcript with John McComb, miscellaneous books signed by John McComb, miscellaneous articles and copies of various photos of the car and John McComb. This car was recently serviced and detailed, which is documented with an invoice that is included. From the MS CLASSIC CARS Collection.