A significant piece of American motorsports history is being offered at the upcoming Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Collector Car Auction: a 1966 Shelby Group II Mustang built for Shelby American driver Ken Miles. It is #12 of 16 Shelby Group II Mustangs produced in 1966 and was developed under 1965 R-model specifications to compete in the SCCA and Trans-Am A/Sedan class. Tragically, Miles passed away from injuries sustained during an accident on August 17, 1966, while testing a J-car at Riverside and never drove the Group II Shelby.
Miles’ racing career began in 1949, and he gained notoriety for his racing prowess after joining Shelby for development of the Cobra in the 1960s. Aside of the Cobra, his work was critical in developing the Ford GT-40, its Mk. II successor and the Mustang GT350. Despite viewing himself as a mechanic, Miles’ ability on the track garnered him numerous trips to victory lane, including the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring. Miles was portrayed by Christian Bale in the 2019 movie, “Ford v Ferrari.”
After Miles’ death, the Group II Shelby was invoiced on August 24, 1966, to Turner Ford of Hutchinson, Kansas, and purchased by John McComb. It was raced extensively in SCCA, Trans-Am and ARRC racing series before being sold to Keith Thomas in 1967 and raced until 1969. The car then traded hands several more times until it was purchased in 1984 by Gary Spraggins, who owned the vehicle for the next 28 years and had it restored. Spraggins purchased the engine and transmission from Shelby American lead mechanic Terry Doty. It then was purchased in 2012 by Rick Davis and sold to Chris Turner of Dockery Ford in 2013, who commissioned a show-quality concours restoration by Legendary Motorcar.
This Shelby Cobra is powered by an era-correct Shelby American Racing 289 Hi-Po V8 with an engine casting date of #C5AE-6015-E and build date of October 14, 1964. The engine features the correct Hi-Po heads, aluminum high-rise intake manifold #S2MS-9424-A and Holley 715 CFM carburetor #S2MS-3510-A. The engine is paired to an era-correct BorgWarner T10 close-ratio four-speed manual transmission with a July 27, 1965 build date.
The car’s pedigree has been verified by 1965-66 Shelby Registrar Howard Pardee and Shelby Trans Am Registrar Gary Underwood. Included with the sale are restoration photos, Shelby documentation, an interview transcript with John McComb, miscellaneous articles and copies of various photos.
This historically significant 1966 Shelby Group II Mustang is available with no reserve at the 2023 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction. The auction runs from January 21-29 at Westworld of Scottsdale.
