WOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOO Shelby Maverick

My question is: Seeing how Carroll did not actually build the cars themself, he must have ordered them. Somewhere, somehow there has to be info on that. If we can find that it will give us a basic vin number to base from.

 

Exactly! I've seen a lot of mavericks that could be Shelby ones, but without VIN numbers how could I be really sure that they are for real?

 

As I understood it, Shelby had nothing to do with the venture to produce automobiles in Mexico. He entered into a business arrangement with the guy in Mexico to sell his aftermarket parts down there. The guy called his company (Americanized) Shelby of Mexico because he imported Shelby aftermarket parts. He decided to import and modify cars and listed his company's name, Shelby of Mexico, as the manufacturer. Carrol Shelby (according to Carrol Shelby) had nothing to with the car production.

 

Ok, here is another angle. We know that they were for racing down south. So somwhere there has to be history of them racing. Especially if they won. That would give team names and owners and possably pictures! From that you would think that you would be able to follow where they were sold to ect. So I guess the first step is to find out what races they were in and under what team racenames.

 

How do we know that they were raced? Mavericks were popular for racing in Mexico because you could buy them right off the showroom with 289s and 4-speeds. But I've never seen any proof that "Shelby Mavericks" raced or won anything.

 

beutiful car except for some reason i dont like the front chin spoiler

 

Nice Maverick, but the hood and grill look like a Comet. I'm sure its been said. It would take a while for me to read every page. Anyways, I WANT THE BACK WINDOW LOUVERS!

 

They are few and far between. I sold my extra set about a year or so ago and that's the only set I've seen for sale in about 7 years. And that was the 1 set I bought. Oh, the ones I sold fetched $700.

 

If Mr Shelby himself said he had nothing to do with it then the car is not a Shelby anyhow. Just a Mexican company that built a car under its company name. Therefore as far as I am concerned the elusive Shelby Maverick never existed. Besides i remember Shelby Tourismos, Horizons and Daytonas to name a few. Is The Shelby name plate really that glorious? Questionable. Oops forgot that Shelby Dakota convertible. Real worthy of the Shelby name with that screamin 3.9 V6. Just marketing and dollar bills.

The Mav would just fall into the same category as these beauties.

 

I agree, shelby is a good brand but i think marketing plays a more important roll than actual performance, now a roush maverick would've been a classic! Or how about a saleen maverick? Heck, a maverick SVT anyone?

 

There were no production Shelby Dakota convertibles, just 1500 Shelby Dakotas. They certainly don't command prices like early Shelby Mustangs or Cobras, but they bring far and above the price of a regular production 1989 Dodge Dakota. It's not uncommon to see them sell for $7500 to $12,000 for nice, original, low mileage ones. Average condition ones bring $3500 to $5000-plus. You won't see a standard '89 Dakota go for those prices. If you think they aren't valuable or in demand, try to buy a front air dam or a cab faring for one! Or any of the special Shelby parts they had. I also believe they were the fastest production pickup that year.

Shelby's name was still attached to the Shelby Maverick, and they were still built with the same basic philosophy - (slightly) increased performance and custom parts for looks. We know only around 300 were produced so they are ultra rare, and no one that I'm aware of has ever truly came up with a documented one, so if one were found and documented, it would be the only one known to exist, and even with its weak ties to Shelby himself, it would still be highly desirable and way more valuable than a standard Maverick, Comet, Grabber, or GT in the same condition. Would it be worth Shelby Cobra or even Shelby Mustang money? Of course not. But a documented one restored to concours-level condition would likely be worth double or triple a regular production Maverick or Comet in similar condition. It's not uncommon to see really nice 71-72 Grabbers going for in the $12,000 range. A documented Shelby Maverick should EASILY be worth $25,000, and I could see some dedicated Shelby collector perhaps willing to pay $35,000 for it. That's still a lot less than a fully restored Shelby Mustang, and doesn't even scratch the surface of Shelby Cobra money, but way more than a comparable standard Maverick or Comet.

Let's just hope that one day someone finds a Shelby Maverick and can document its heritage. And as I've said before, it appears the only way to do that is to obtain a copy of the invoice from Ford to Shelby de Mexico, or from Shelby de Mexico to the selling dealer or customer with the car's serial number. From my understanding, this is the only way to prove the Maverick was a true Shelby de Mexico car. Without this proof, the car's value would be much less, as the parts to make the Shelby Maverick were available over-the-counter, so a replica is possible. Still, with all the right equipment, the car would still be desirable and valuable, but only documented Shelbys bring big bucks, and the same would hold true of a Maverick.

So if any of the neigh-sayers find one and don't want it because it's "not a 'real' Shelby," I'll be more than happy to take it off their hands for regular Maverick or Comet money!

 

I'll second that!!!

 

Did you see all the other cars in the 80s? they all have the same look.

I love the following quote my mister Carroll himself.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/special-report/5-questions-with-carroll-shelby

 

To add to this "Shelby Maverick" nausiem, I think that's the heart of the problem, there's little-or-no way to document one if it's ever found

As I understand it, all the "Shelby-ized" cars carried standard VIN numbers, and they didn't record the VINs of the cars that were modified.

Yes, Shelby Mavericks were real, Yes, they were Shelbys, but pretty much in name only, and not in the same league as the earlier "Shelby" cars like the Cobras and Mustangs, but yes, they'd still be very valuable if one was found and documented, but no, there's no real way to definately document one as an original Shelby Maverick, so no, don't hold your breath or post for eternity waiting for one to show up or be found. It's just as likely to happen as a Pteradactyle landing in your bird bath

They did exist, but are probably lost to all but their history

 

I can't believe I just wasted two hours of my life(that I will never get back) reading all 314 posts and we are no closer to finding the elusive "Shelby Comet". I like my '72 Grabber better anyway!!!