The guys over at Hot Rod Magazine posted an awe-inspiring story this week we could all only dream about. Rich Barnes was towing home a nice rare 1968 Ford Mustang Shelby GT. 350 find home after finding it chained to a carport in Compton. Only to have the car on the trailer attract attention for all the right reasons.

After delivering a Ford Bronco to a customer Rich thought it would be a fun idea to go on a bit of a road trip in the hopes of tracking down a Mustang he saw in an obscure advertisement. He had spoken with the owner once before. He was reluctant to part with the rare car though Rich took a chance and went on the drive anyway. Rich didn’t realise the nature of Compton and it’s surrounding areas “I didn’t think anything of it until I started driving into the area and saw how depressed and trashed it was.” This would explain why the car was found chained to the car port.

Upon talking to the owner he found out the fastback had the original 302 J-code small-block under the hood, backed by a four-speed and a 9-inch rearend. Somebody had flared the fenders too. They also dropped the suspension and beefed up the stock brakes. It was one of 223 Hertz rental cars. The Wimbledon White Shelby had a little race history. The body was California rust-free. A deal was done and Rich parted with $8,200 and drove off with a nice 1968 Shelby GT350.

Now here’s were it gets interesting. While filling up with GAS somewhere outside Reno a bearded gentleman in his 70’s commented that he had one just like it but “it’s a GT500!”. The guy seemed genuine though was reluctant to take Rich to see it despite wanting to sell it.

Once Rich returned home he was straight on the phone and organised to go straight over as soon as possible. Upon inspecting the gentleman’s property Rich, to his amazement, did found the red Shelby GT500 in a shipping container. “We rolled it out and cleared things off, and it really looked like hell,” Rich remembers. “But underneath, the body was in really good shape with little or no rust. He showed me extra blocks, cranks, heads, trannys, and all these other parts that went with the car.”

I’m afraid that’s where the story ends with no mention from Rich if he was able to walk away with yet another rare find.

To read the full story head on over to Hot Rod Magazine. Highly recommended!

Photos and story courtesy of Muscle Car Review

Finding a Mustang hidden in a barn is something we can all dream about. But finding a genuine Shelby GT500 convertible is another story. As is this case. But before you go reaching for your wallet take a close look. This Shelby has seen better days.

The photos tell the story. Unfortunately this car is full of rust and would be a long road to bring it back to its former glory. The floors appear to have been rusted right through and just about everything else on the car needs attention. This would make quite an expensive and lengthy restoration for the lucky person who manages to purchase it.

The vehicle is a documented 428 Cobra Jet engine with a 4-speed manual transmission and is 1 of 408 convertibles, 1of 153 engine with manual trans and 1 of 197 with lime gold paint according the the Marti Report.

At the time of writing it is currently going for $50,100 with a little over 4 days remaining. Head on over to Ebay to have a look. Good luck to the lucky bidder!

[eBay]