The original Shelby GT350 proved such a success that in September 1965 Shelby made a deal with Hertz to offer his hopped-up Mustang as part of the rental car company’s new Sports Car Club, cleverly promoting the new Shelby through what amounted to paid test drives by potential buyers. For $17 a day and 17 cents per mile, anyone could walk up to their local Hertz counter and experience the exhilaration of driving one of these cars—a feeling enthusiasts still avidly pursue today.

Shelby supplied a total of 1,000 GT350 H to Hertz in 1966; approximately 915 of which were equipped with a C4 automatic transmission.

Chassis no. SFM 6S715 is confirmed by the 1966 Shelby American Automobile Club Registry to have been born as an automatic-equipped car. The original color was not recorded in surviving documents, but the SAAC Registry believes it to have been finished in the iconic Hertz livery of black and gold, which it wears today. Accompanying documentation clearly indicates that 6S715 was invoiced to Hertz on 6 February 1966 and fitted with a radio, brake booster, and “Hertz special wheels.” The car was subsequently shipped to Jack Loftus Ford in Hinsdale, Illinois for final delivery to a Chicago-area Hertz dealer.

By 18 September 1967, this GT350 H had been dispersed from Hertz’s rental fleet and was retailed by Courtesy Motors of Littleton, Colorado. It was subsequently acquired by Al Barker of Colorado, who later listed it for sale in 1974. Phillip Wesley of Palisade, Colorado acquired the car in 1976 and would retain it for 22 years, before selling it to noted Shelby enthusiast David Drotts of Arvada, Colorado in 1998. Mr. Drotts would return the car to the proper Hertz livery it currently wears and installed chrome Magnum 500 wheels.

Notably, the Hi-Po 289-cubic-inch V-8 engine’s stamping exactly matches the original Ford confidential VIN, as confirmed by the ’65 and ’66 Shelby Registrar Howard Pardee of the SAAC Shelby Registry. A compendium of 2013 invoices totaling nearly $6,000 illustrate that this car’s numbers-matching Hi-Po 289-cubic-inch V-8 engine was entirely rebuilt by Greeley Automotive Machine, Inc. of Greeley, Colorado. Under current ownership, a correct-type C4 automatic transmission was sourced, rebuilt, and installed by R&A Motorsports of Lees Summit, Missouri.

As presented today, this exciting GT350 H remains particularly well preserved and correctly detailed throughout. It even retains its original red oxide floors and features correct Koni shocks and override traction bars—the latter being holdovers from the 1965 model year. The car’s hood is a correct-for-1966 all-steel unit, which is among the notable pieces distinctly fitted to mid-series cars of the 1966 model year (serial numbers 500 through 900).

This tremendous attention to detail extends further to the stellar set of Hertz-specific, 14-inch chrome Magnum 500 wheels shod in Goodyear Blue Streak tires. Furthermore, the original factory-applied “DSO” marking on the nine-inch rear differential is still evident, while the black vinyl interior is further complemented by a nicely patinaed dash pad, auxiliary tachometer, Shelby steering wheel, and correct-type Ray Brown three-inch competition-style belts.

A fine surviving “rent-a-racer,” this GT350 H is being offered for the first time ever at auction and would be the ideal mount for any number of vintage rallies and Shelby club events.