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Ford, Shelby tighten knot, may collaborate on new car
Ford, Shelby tighten knot, may collaborate on new car
Ford and Carroll Shelby are taking the next step in a relationship that began with Shelby serving as an adviser on the Ford GT. The former partner-turned-adversary, who developed race cars for Ford in the 1960s, is back in the fold as part of a program to build a Ford/Shelby concept car in time for the 2004 Detroit auto show in January.
Shelby will also offer his expertise in partnership with the Ford Performance Group in the development of specialty niche performance products.
The performance products, like the Shelby Fords from more than 40 years ago, will offer performance-minded consumers more of everything – increased power, better handling and unique design, Ford says.
"It would be an understatement to say that Shelby Fords from the 1960s are coveted classic automobiles," says Chris Theodore, Ford vice president, Advanced Product Creation. "Our new partnership with Carroll and his team will create modern-day, world-class performance products that are as potent and coveted as the Shelby Fords from 40 years ago."
No one is talking about the concept or whether it might lead to a production car, but we hear rumors a Ford-backed Daytona Coupe offspring might be in the cards.
That, in turn, might explain why Shelby has been back in the news recently (AW, Aug. 4), fighting the importation of the Brock Coupe, a Superformance replica of Shelby’s Daytona of old.
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