When we drove the Shelby GT500KR at Miller Motorsports Park last May, we were impressed with the steps that Ford and Shelby had taken to make its new King of the Road a special vehicle. Not only was the KR a huge improvement over the GT500 (which led to the development of the 2010 GT500), but the car featured trick items like a carbon fiber hood and lightweight wheels wrapped with R-compound tires. At that time, Shelby also proudly told us that none of the KR-specific parts would be available for sale separately to ensure that owners of lesser Mustangs could not make shadetree replicas that might compromise the KR's image. Of course, all of this exclusivity and performance came at a price: $79,995 to be exact.
$18,400 for a new hood, $3,392.50 for a front spoiler, and $632.50 for a set of hood pins Unfortunately, as one GT500KR owner has learned the hard way, replacement parts for this pony car can be surprisingly dear. After an unfortunate incident with a critter on the road resulted in a modestly damaged front end, the owner in question was shocked to learn about the high cost of his vehicle's replacement parts. And as is increasingly the way these days, he aired his displeasure on the web. That initial report has since touched off a firestorm in the online Shelby community, with the issue spreading to numerous forums and chat rooms.
So just why were these replacement parts such a contentious issue? In the main, it's a numbers thing. As in $18,400 for a new hood, $3,392.50 for a front spoiler, and even $632.50 for a set of hood pins, among other things. Further, the disgruntled owner informed a forum member that Shelby requires any damaged KR parts to be returned to their facility in Las Vegas before new replacements can be sent out.
Obviously, a bit of due diligence was needed to verify the claimed replacement pricing and parts return policy, so we got on the phone with Jim Owens, vice president of marketing and communications at Shelby to get the straight scoop.
We've covered the scandal involving Unique Performance from the very beginning, and it now looks as if this sordid tale finally might get a bookend. If the idea of scraping off 13 gallons of bondo doesn't scare you, maybe you'd be interested in bidding on one (or more) of the 44 leftover Mustang body shells that are available for viewing here. Mustang not your thing? Prefer the Camaro? How 'bout the Chevelle? Even if you're not interested in any of its cars, Unique Performance owned plenty of other stuff, too. Take a look at these automotive lifts, for instance. There is some good stuff here, and you'll be helping to pay off the company's assorted debts in the process.
If you find yourself interested in anything on the Unique Performance fire sale auction list, you can inspect the works on Tuesday, March 25 from 9AM to 4PM. Lets hope that these classics end up in better hands than they were in at this company.
