Shelby GT Conversion Rate

Shelby is on a roll. Motorists on 1-15 glancing at Shelby Auto­mobiles' Las Vegas assembly plant parking lot see between 1,800 and 2,000 Mustangs and Shelby Mustangs on any given day. When we stopped by in July, the yard was populated by stock Mustang GTs awaiting conver­sion, as well as finished Shelby GTs and GT-H convertibles awaiting transport. Black and white are obviously popular col­ors, although the odd orange coupe can be seen. Seemingly quiet at first, the huge lot was actually buzzing with cars coming and going from the assembly shop and being loaded into enclosed trucks for dealer delivery.

Inside the adjacent Shelby building, the place was humming with two-man teams assembling GT-H convertibles and scores of Shelby GTs. We stopped to watch master Shelby techs Jake Hill and Justin Quinville put together the majority of GT-H convert­ible number 07H278 in the four-lift Hertz build area. There are many, many more lifts throughout the plant to accommodate simultaneous Hertz, GT, and custom production.To say the least, Jake and Justin were busting their chops. With thousands of cars to convert, every team is building several cars each day. Clearly Shelby has tooled up to build large numbers of Mustangs using basic bolt-ons, graphics, and the magic Shelby name.

We were also shown a customized Shelby GT/SC with a Paxton Novi 1200 supercharger; Shelby/Baer four-piston brakes; boost, fuel, and oil pressure instruments in Shelby's center-dash gauge pod; and a seri­ous $58,000 MSRR It represents Shelby's custom work, where customers can order significantly upgraded Mustangs on an a la carte basis.

With so many cars zooming through the facility, Shelby seems as hot as the Las Vegas summer weather. It was I 10 degrees when these photos were taken, and 121 degrees five days earlier when we passed through, outbound to the SAAC/SVTOA convention. Shelby works Monday through Thursday in10-hour shifts, giving everyone a three-day break as a result. The schedule also allows an extra work day should demand require it. With this kind of volume, working Fridays just might become the norm.