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The SHELBY AMERICAN
Winter 2016 5
J-5 was shipped to England for
the 45th anniversary of its LeMans
victory. It was displayed at the 2012
Goodwood Festival of Speed, and a
couple of months later at the Good-
wood Revival. Details remain sketchy,
but at some point the container the car
was shipped in was dropped, causing
extensive damage to the car.
The damage had to be repaired,
but the question was, how far to take
it? A complete restoration was never
considered due to the car’s historical
value. Instead, it would be repaired.
the rocker panels using florist’s foam
and sheet aluminum, to improve aero-
dynamics.
Now back at The Henry Ford, the
final stages of the conservation have
begun. Cracks not present when the
car left for England will be filled with
carefully mixed and color-matched
paint. Rivets replaced by AAR will also
be painted, along with the left rocker
panel.
Should the windshield, cracked
during the 1967 LeMans event and
now extensively spidered after almost
fifty years, be replaced? It was decided
no, but a replacement was ordered for
possible future use.
Just when J-5 will be returned to
the floor of The Henry Ford isn’t
known, but when it is, visitors who see
it will know that absolutely every-
thing that can be done to maintain the
car’s as-raced-in-1967-condition has
been. A fitting tribute to the only
American car raced by an American
team to win the 24-Hours of LeMans.
Mary Fahey, chief conservator at
The Henry Ford, chose to send the car
to All American Racers where original
driver Dan Gurney could oversee the
project. It was a shame that Phil Rem-
ington was no longer alive to be part
of the project, since he had so much to
do with just about every aspect of this
car. He had said that, of all the cars he
was involved with throughout his life,
this was his all-time favorite.
The goal was to bring the car back
to it’s as-raced-in-1967 condition, re-
taining the original materials while
preserving evidence of original wear
and tear. A full restoration would have
eliminated that history. AAR would do
only the work that The Henry Ford
could not do in house. The car’s frame
and motor mounts had to be straight-
ened after the accident. The left side
sill had also been damaged and had to
be replaced. During disassembly, it
was found that last-minute revisions
had been made to the car at Shelby
American, straightening and lowering
A 306 HP ALTERNATIVE TO THE LEAF BLOWER
SAAC members Chuck and Lynne
Olenyk of Rockford, Michigan put to-
gether a cute little two-and-a-half
minute YouTube video featuring
6S098 as an alternative to the 1 hp
leaf blower. Catch it at:
https://youtu.be/tQtqUP2y4x0
This video has been making the
rounds of the underground matrix of
1966 GT350 “Carryover” owners, a
close-knit and secretive clique of en-
thusiasts of 1966 GT350s with serial
numbers below 6S253. The first 252
‘66 GT350s were built using 1965
Mustangs because 1966 models were
not yet available.