Shelby Charger owners

[Ghoste]

I know there aren't many on here but of the handful that are, have any of you tried to take your car to Shleby specific events?  Are the Chargers, well all the Shelby Chrysler products really, accepted in any way at those shows or are you pretty much forbidden there?

[71charger_fan]

I went to the Shelby Dodge Automobile Club national meet back in '92. I felt, at the time, as if my car wasn't really welcome because it wasn't a "numbered" car with a Shelby VIN. It seemed as if those of us that had mere Dodges weren't truly welcome and I never went to another. I think the scarcity of these cars now has probably changed the paradigm and, if I was in the country and there was another meet in the region, I'd probably go.

I don't imagine Chargers/Lancers/Omnis/Shadows would exactly be welcomed with open arms at a Shelby American meet catering to the Cobra/Mustang crowd.

[Ghoste]

That was more along the lines of what I was thinking.  I hadn't even considered the Shelby Dodge crowd snobbing at the regular Mopars.

[moparstuart]

 If you goto a Shelby Dodge Club event you are of course accepted , but if you goto a Shelby America event and are not a ford product you are looked down apon . Shelby himself didnt look down on you he liked the little cars and had an extensive collection of them .  

[41husk]

My first new car was a 1983 Omni/Charger.  It had Charger badges and I think the 1.4 L 4sp.  Not very fast but I loved that car.  Couldn't afford the 2.2 Shelby.  I would love to have another or even the Rampage.  I wanted one of those but it just wasn't practicle   I could have bought a rampage for $1500 a few months back.

[Mytur Binsdirti]

Shelby cars were cool in the day, but that day has come and gone. I've owned a '87 Shelby Lancer, '87 GLHS Omni & a '92 Shelby CSX. The trouble with them is that they always were and always will be red headed bastard baby step children Shelby. Even today, a good gondition "numbered" Shelby car is virtually worthless.

[moparstuart]

Shelby cars were cool in the day, but that day has come and gone. I've owned a '87 Shelby Lancer, '87 GLHS Omni & a '92 Shelby CSX. The trouble with them is that they always were and always will be red headed bastard baby step children Shelby. Even today, a good gondition "numbered" Shelby car is virtually worthless.

beg to differ I sold my 41 k miles  87 GLHS charger for 8k two years ago and now that carol has passed on they have only gone up in value   

[Mytur Binsdirti]

Out of them all, the '87 Omni & Charger are problably worth the most and you lucked out having found the one guy looking for a Shelby who had some money.     

[Ghoste]

So its safe to say they aren't welcome in any way shape or fashion at Shelby shows in general?

[Mytur Binsdirti]

So its safe to say they aren't welcome in any way shape or fashion at Shelby shows in general?

[41husk]

To me it has nothing to do with financial value or future value and everything to do with sentimental value and personal likes

[GordonGriggs]

My mother bought a 1984 shelby charger new in 1984. She bought a shelby clone in 1995 and parked the original one. She still has both of them. The original has not been started since 1995. The clone still runs but is not drivable because it cuts off without warning.

[JB400]

Die hard Shelby enthusiasts probably welcome them,  but I doubt the average Joe shelby owner likes having them there.  I think it ranks right up there with the mustang 2.  They're cool in my book.

[hatersaurusrex]

The average Joe Shelby owner most likely spent a buttload of money on their car, and likely have enough of said money that more than a few of them have had lots of practice looking down on others.   

[thedodgeboys]

Its kinda like the AMC guys showing up at all MOPAR event there not turned away but there not really loved on.   

[Ghoste]

Other than buying and closing them though, Mopar didn't have anything to do with the AMC cars.  At least Shelby had something to do with the Shelby Charger.

[Cooter]

Shelby Charger/omni/etc....Proof that even Carol Shelby makes a few mistakes.

[41husk]

That's your    Iaccoca, and the K car saved Chrysler.  The Shelby option gave the guys looking for that sporty car (the K car was not) an option in the gas rationing market.  The 2.2 was fast for cars coming out in that era.  As far as being accepted by Shelby guys, why would they?  They are not even accepted by many Charger guys

[moparstuart]

That's your    Iaccoca, and the K car saved Chrysler.  The Shelby option gave the guys looking for that sporty car (the K car was not) an option in the gas rationing market.  The 2.2 was fast for cars coming out in that era.  As far as being accepted by Shelby guys, why would they?  They are not even accepted by many Charger guys

 I loved mine owned it from 1989 to 2010 and will own another one when times are better .
My turbo II intercooled 2.2 motor was one Goes Like Hell Shelby

[DC_1]

Did someone say Dodge Shellby Charger.........

[Ghoste]

That actually looks better than some of the stripe schemes Dodge came up with for that car.

[hatersaurusrex]

Other than buying and closing them though, Mopar didn't have anything to do with the AMC cars.  At least Shelby had something to do with the Shelby Charger.

Interesting related side note, the Jeep Wrangler is commonly credited to Chrysler, even though the design was completely done by AMC just before the takeover.   There were a handful of 86 1/2 Wranglers that were built and badged as AMC/Jeep just like the CJ's, and the next year they got the new 'AMC-Less' Jeep logo still used today.    I doubt they'll have any collector value long term but an interesting piece of almost-Mopar history and I've only seen one, ever.

[Ghoste]

Is that something the Jeep fans discuss much?

[hatersaurusrex]

Is that something the Jeep fans discuss much?

I don't know that it's something the Jeep fans are even aware of.   When I was in high school I was into building 4 wheel drives, and I read every mag and publication I could get my hands on.   There was a book in the Public Library (wow, remember those?) that detailed the entire history of the US truck industry from the 1800's up to about 1988 when the book was published.  It had REO's, Marmon-Harringtons, Internationals, you name it.   I wish I had stolen it now, it was full of TONS of great information on every make and model ever sold.    Anyway, that book had the blurb on the AMC Wrangler, and said that only a handful were ever made, and if I remember right they sold very few and the rest got a rebadge after the takeover.   So I highly doubt there's a survivor out there.   Desirability would be low since the Wranglers sucked compared to the CJ's (they went with puny Dana 35 axles up front to cut costs) but it's kind of an oddball artifact if there is one anywhere out there.

[hatersaurusrex]

And a quick search proves me semi-wrong.  There's a thread on Jeeps Unlimited where some guys still have AMC decals all over their YJ's under the hood but none of the guys appears to have one of the elusive 87 (technically an 86 1/2) models that were actually an AMC model.

http://www.jeepsunlimited.com/forums/showthread.php?t=504288

IIRC, they also had Torqueflites, so they're kind of like a Mopar ugly step cousin... kind of like my old Scout Traveller.  Had an IH 304, a Saginaw steering box, and a 727 underneath it.  I still miss it