Carroll Shelby Signals Slowdown In Car Building
 

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In a recent interview with the Dallas Morning News, Carroll Shelby told that the 2011 Mustang GT 350 – might be the last car he builds. Shelby, now 87 is one of the world’s longest-living heart transplant recipients and has become an icon to the Mustang and Ford world building some of the most well known go-fast cars in the universe.

In the interview he said he can’t make much money building cars anymore, and he now wants to make a move toward building his Shelby parts business. “I want to build fewer cars and sell more parts,” Shelby said. “It’s hard to make any money on a car. But our parts business is growing 15 to 20 percent a year.”

Shelby says his company will take the next few years to fulfill orders for the new GT-350, building about 500 of them per year. Additionally, the company will continue to offer Super Snake post-title packages for the GT 500.

This is already a significant wind down from just a few years ago. The company build about 6,000 copies of the 2007-08 Mustang Shelby GT which was a joint venture with Ford. “We don’t build 5,000 or 6,000 of anything anymore,” he said. Shelby American’s production facility in Las Vegas has cut its employee base some 30 to 40 percent since the beginning of this year. The company is now down to about 75 employees according new the new president of Shelby American, John Luft. “For the production of the vehicles we have, this is the right level,” he said.

While Shelby seems to be signaling that he wants to slow down, many of those working for him will believe it when they see it. Shelby American is toying around with a twin-turbocharged 5.4-liter V-8 for the GT-500 Super Snake that produces 1,000 horsepower.

“That’s one of my values to Ford, I guess,” said Shelby. “No one needs 1,000 horsepower. But we’re in a battle with Camaro – a real battle. And big numbers get you on the covers of magazines.”

Whatever happens in the coming years, the company is smaller than a few years ago and fast moving into parts. Shelby American has nothing in the wings to succeed the GT 350, Luft admitted.

Source: Dallas Morning News

Would be kinda sad if Shelby stopped producing Mustangs .... the end of an era.

At 87 he needs to retire and go fishing, at least I would lol.