Jim Morrisons of the Doors missing 67 Shelby GT500

[greekz]

Wouldn't it be something if a SAAC member owned it and just wasn't ready to discuss it or how he found it?

Bret

They would not have a moments peace if it was disclosed.

[crossboss]

I believe Brett at Cape Cod Mustang has an original Registration Card of Jim"s for the car.

If the car is ever found, it'll see for big bucks......... huge, huge money.

QSS

Yes.

It is believed that the car was "totaled", within the definition of that insurance term and if so, the insurance company would have paid off the claim and would own the title.

There have been no "witnesses" to have come forward to confirm anything.


Considering that at that time records would have been kept on paper, the likeliness those documents still exist is very unlikely. Even Ford cleans out their own paper records after a set period of time, which really is why SAAC has been able to obtain so many, on their way to the trash bin.

Only time will tell if the bones to this car still exist but if the initial story is accurate, then the cars remains likely were just parted out in a salvage yard since then it would have been just another, less then $100 LA salvage wreck.


Considering how many have been looking and how many in LA have "connections" within the circles a survivor would have traveled in that area, it most likely just slipped through everyone's fingers, insignificantly piece by piece.

So even if someone was able to recover the paper title from the original insurer, without the main part of the chassis to build on, it would just become what SAAC calls an "air car".


Considering the recent discussions of "Bullet", it is a completely new car built on the original serial number. Is that the "real original car"? Personally, I think not but honestly there is no telling what the power of fantasy is in dollars.

I suppose it all depends on how good of a salesman one is?

A buyer is just purchasing a paper "bill of goods".

Absolutely agree with the above statement. The car is long gone. It was a total. The insurance company (and the record company) do not want any liabilities. Scrapped and or crushed.

[FL SAAC]

Wouldn't it be something if a SAAC member owned it and just wasn't ready to discuss it or how he found it?

Bret

"Well, well, well, the plot thickens" .... it could happen

[98SVT - was 06GT]

Absolutely agree with the above statement. The car is long gone. It was a total. The insurance company (and the record company) do not want any liabilities. Scrapped and or crushed.

The last time the car was known there was no insurance or record company involvement. It was owned by Ray Wolff and part of his inventory. When and who he sold it to is the mystery.
Did the new owner take the car to AZ - as was rumored. Did the new owner total the car? - no evidence of that. Was the car scrapped? no evidence of that. What can be confirmed by the time CA switched their computer system the car was no longer registered in CA - or it would have been in the computer. That can mean 3 things. Car was intact and sitting unregistered but still titled to new owner in CA. Car had moved out of state - new state would have sent the surrendered CA title to CA for cancellation. Car had been junked in CA or elsewhere and title (in name of current owner - NOT Morrison) surrendered to DMV.
From the time Jim Morrison personally offered the car for sale (purchased by Ray Wolff?) and the last Ray Wolff ad it appears the car had been driven at least 10,000 miles. So totaled doesn't seem to fit.
Nothing lasts in LA - even the Morrison Hotel is gone. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-03/can-the-doors-rock-and-roll-fame-save-the-charred-morrison-hotel-the-world-is-watching
A plaque exists where there office was and a sign by the Laurel Canyon store his girlfriend lived near - Love Street "a store where the creatures meet" was a pretty fitting lyric for LA at the time.

[s2ms]

How early was JM's Shelby?  Did it have an S in the Ford VIN?  Did it have the scribed Z in the Shelby VIN? Who said the Car was actually "Totaled"?

Jimmies car probably did have the Z stamped on it

The Z stamped cars were generally built after April 27, 1967, and continued through the rest of the 1967 model year.

Probably a few exceptions with out the Z

But since this car has evaporated...we may never know

To be continued

Morrison's car was completed 3/20/67 but not originally shipped until 6/27/67.

[98SVT - was 06GT]

How early was JM's Shelby?  Did it have an S in the Ford VIN?  Did it have the scribed Z in the Shelby VIN? Who said the Car was actually "Totaled"?

Jimmies car probably did have the Z stamped on it

The Z stamped cars were generally built after April 27, 1967, and continued through the rest of the 1967 model year.

Probably a few exceptions with out the Z

But since this car has evaporated...we may never know

To be continued

Morrison's car was completed 3/20/67 but not originally shipped until 6/27/67.

I saw where it was shipped to a different dealer then to the selling dealer.

[crossboss]

Absolutely agree with the above statement. The car is long gone. It was a total. The insurance company (and the record company) do not want any liabilities. Scrapped and or crushed.

The last time the car was known there was no insurance or record company involvement. It was owned by Ray Wolff and part of his inventory. When and who he sold it to is the mystery.
Did the new owner take the car to AZ - as was rumored. Did the new owner total the car? - no evidence of that. Was the car scrapped? no evidence of that. What can be confirmed by the time CA switched their computer system the car was no longer registered in CA - or it would have been in the computer. That can mean 3 things. Car was intact and sitting unregistered but still titled to new owner in CA. Car had moved out of state - new state would have sent the surrendered CA title to CA for cancellation. Car had been junked in CA or elsewhere and title (in name of current owner - NOT Morrison) surrendered to DMV.
From the time Jim Morrison personally offered the car for sale (purchased by Ray Wolff?) and the last Ray Wolff ad it appears the car had been driven at least 10,000 miles. So totaled doesn't seem to fit.
Nothing lasts in LA - even the Morrison Hotel is gone. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-03/can-the-doors-rock-and-roll-fame-save-the-charred-morrison-hotel-the-world-is-watching
A plaque exists where there office was and a sign by the Laurel Canyon store his girlfriend lived near - Love Street "a store where the creatures meet" was a pretty fitting lyric for LA at the time.

Every thing you said is a 'What IF' scenario. The odds are the car is long gone. It was a totaled car in the 1960s. Probably worth $500-$750. No one cared about a wrecked Shelby back then. I will acknowledge I am wrong until proof shows otherwise.

[rhjanes]

The second Bullitt car was also "Scrapped". 

[98SVT - was 06GT]

It was a totaled car in the 1960s.

What PROOF do you have it was a totaled car in the 60s. Everything out there is based on conjecture. Left at the airport - the registered owner would have gotten a notice to pay the bill and pickup the car. Abandoned at a crash site - again notice would be sent to RO pick it up and pay the bill. If either of those had resulted in a lien sale by the tow company Morrison would not have been able to advertise the car for sale. The EVIDENCE is that it existed and was sold as a drivable car in "showroom" condition in 1971 with 10,000+ more miles on it than when Morrison placed the initial ad in 1969 to sell it. I agree it probably doesn't exist today but the loss was not due to Morrison's driving ability.

[shelbydoug]

[/quote]

  Occams Razor applies here, it takes mental gymnastics to come up with alternate explanations...
[/quote]


Occams Razor is a "principle that states the simplest explanation with the fewest assumptions should be preferred between competing hypotheses".

The simplest answer is that after 54 years, if the car has not emerged (in some recognizable form), it likely no longer exists.


In 1970, a used USEABLE '67 GT500 probably had a resale value of around $2,500. How much repair costs would it have had if it was "undriveable" after it hit a telephone pole?

PROBABLY much more then the 50% or better of it's value is a good assumption. That is an "insurance total".


Additionally, as the public revelation of the ownership of the car showed, Morrison didn't own it, he only drove it on occasion.

Would that have created a high desire for the car then?



The reference in classified ads published by Wolff may or may not indicate his actual possession of the car. There are now and there were then, too many "wheeler dealers". Not to disparage Wolff's reputation, but what exactly was his reputation? Was it a "reliable as bedrock" one? Was it what would be the reliability of the "typical" 'used car salesman'?




Insurance company procedure then would have "totaled" the car and paid a settlement to the "management company" that owned the title. It then would have gone through the standard auctioning procedure. As a Mustang previously owned by "some unknown Corporation".
Hardly anything to draw attention to it.



Occam's Razor "theory", then and now, would tend to indicate, if it still exists, show me. Everything else is just "Conspiracy Theory".

[427heaven]

It goes against most common reason, but unless one has been exposed to the TWILIGHT ZONE..... My car was stored in AZ for decades, in the furthest darkest corners of a storage bldg without ever seeing the light of day. That STRANGE WOMAN that has been linked to the car and has been mentioned on occasion crossed my path a few times she believed my car was the Morrison car... When the storage locker door was slowly opened it became an ulterior universe time machine moment back to 1971... when the car was taken off the road due to a mishap. They are out there still, lets hope it is just waiting its turn for a grand reappearance!!!

[tesgt350]

I took Auto Body and worked at a Auto Salvage Yard for 6 Years.  Hitting a Utility Pole is known as a Pole Shot.  Most Pole Shots usually only damage what is called a Three Quarter Front End and only damages the Inner Panels in front and on one side in front of the Shock Tower  and the Hood, Front Face and usually just one Fender and some times no Fender.  I believe back then, the Minimum Wage was under $1 so I think the repair Bill for a Pole Shot would be under $1,000.  I think it could still be out there.

[98SVT - was 06GT]

In 1970, a used USEABLE '67 GT500 probably had a resale value of around $2,500. How much repair costs would it have had if it was "undriveable" after it hit a telephone pole?

Additionally, as the public revelation of the ownership of the car showed, Morrison didn't own it, he only drove it on occasion.

Would that have created a high desire for the car then?

The reference in classified ads published by Wolff may or may not indicate his actual possession of the car. There are now and there were then, too many "wheeler dealers". Not to disparage Wolff's reputation, but what exactly was his reputation? Was it a "reliable as bedrock" one? Was it what would be the reliability of the "typical" 'used car salesman'?

Insurance company procedure then would have "totaled" the car and paid a settlement to the "management company" that owned the title. It then would have gone through the standard auctioning procedure. As a Mustang previously owned by "some unknown Corporation".
Hardly anything to draw attention to it.

Last price was $2,350. That it hit a phone pole is one of those urban legend stories. I'm certain if he hit a phone pole on Sunset in the 60s some teeny bopper or tourist would have a photo.

Morrison was the owner C/O meant that the management company was used as the address of ownership. There was no lien holder so Morrison owned it outright.

Rock star or even big actor owned didn't add much if anything to a cars value at that time. McQueen tried to buy back "his" Mustang (actually he never owned it) if it was cheap. His letter to the owner also dispels the rumors the car was lost.

Ray was a straight shooter. The car may have ended up in his hands due to his HiPerf Motors connection. When it was originally sold a secretary probably called SA. SA would have Ray Wolff handle it. He found the car they wanted and had it shipped to Stockton Quincy. When Morrison had no luck selling the car the management company secretary called Ray Wolff and he bought the car to resell. Or he saw the ad and they actually picked up the phone. The "office" was their rehearsal space so not really a place of business with regular hours.

The car "totaled" and sold through an auction would have the title and plates surrendered to DMV. The car was not a rebuilt total since it had the same plates.

[roddster]

Geesh.  Whats to see??  There are other midnight blue, white interiored 67 GT 500's out there.  Who cares if Morrison's ass spent time in the seat.  My 67 GT 350 has a photo of Carroll sitting in the passenger seat, does that make it anymore valuable?
  Come on baby, light my fire!!

[98SVT - was 06GT]

My 67 GT 350 has a photo of Carroll sitting in the passenger seat, does that make it anymore valuable?

Only if he was signing the glovebox.........
I've always gotten a kick out of the guy who sells "Carroll's personal car". CS probably never even saw most of them. They were registered in CS's name solely as a marketing tool.
At least Morrison didn't want a Lime Gold Lady.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYK0WgaQhGI
Morrison's best-known but seldom seen cinematic endeavor is HWY: An American Pastoral, a project he started in 1969. Morrison financed the venture and formed his own production company in order to maintain complete control of the project. Paul Ferrara, Frank Lisciandro, and Babe Hill assisted with the project. Morrison played the main character, a hitchhiker turned killer/car thief. Morrison asked his friend composer/pianist Fred Myrow to select the soundtrack for the film.