Ford-Hertz Rent-a-Racer Program Turns 50
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In 1965, Shelby American turned the Ford Mustang into a formidable track car known as the GT350. However, sales were relatively low at first because the tuner was far better at building powerful engines than at telling enthusiasts about them. Peyton Cramer, Shelby’s general manager, teamed up with Hertz in late 1965 to launch an innovative promotional campaign called Rent-a-Racer designed to put the hot-rodded GT350 in the hands of everyday customers.
The original Shelby GT350H wore gold stripes that ran from the tip of the hood all the way back to the trunk lid, stripes above the rocker panels, and “G.T. 350 H” logos behind the front wheels.
The Rent-a-Racer program turns 50 this year. Ford, Shelby, and Hertz again joined forces to build a commemorative Mustang GT-based dubbed GT-H that’s painted in black with gold stripes. It’s more exclusive than ever, with only 140 examples headed to select Hertz agencies in the continental United States in time for Memorial Day weekend.
Production of the 2016 Shelby Mustang GT-H will be capped at just 140 examples.
How It Got Started
At the inception of the Rent-a-Racer program, Shelby developed a special GT350 specifically for Hertz’s rental fleet—with Ford’s blessing. Called GT350H, the pony car was powered by a Cobra 289 V8 engine tuned to send 306 horsepower and 329 pound-feet of torque to the rear wheels. A handful of early cars came with a four-speed manual transmission. (Mustang 360 magazine reported - opens in new window or tab. that Shelby later switched to an automatic unit when a Hertz agency in San Francisco complained that renters, presumably those unfamiliar with the concept of a hill start, were returning GT350Hs with burned-out clutches.)
The 1966 GT350H
Shelby built precisely 1,001 example of the 1966 GT350H, though two of them were prototypes that never set their tires on a Hertz lot. A vast majority of the production run was painted in black with gold stripes, a livery inspired by the cars manufactured by Hertz - opens in new window or tab. during the 1920s. However, a few cars were finished in other colors including red, blue, white, and ivy, all accented with gold stripes.
The GT350Hs were built in Los Angeles, Calif., and shipped to Hertz agencies across the United States. In 1966, renting one cost $17 a day and 17 cents a mile. The catch was that drivers needed to be a member of Hertz’s Sports Car Club, and at least 25-years old. The cars were sold off after serving their time in Hertz’s fleet.
The 2016 GT-H uses a stock, Mustang GT-sourced 5.0-liter V8 engine that makes 435 horsepower and 390 pound-feet of torque.
The 1966 Shelby GT350H is highly sought-after among collectors today, and it’s worth markedly more than a stock GT350 (like this perfectly-restored 1967 example, which listed at $129,000 on eBay). The few examples that come up for sale often trade hands for sums that lie in the vicinity of $150,000.
The Rent-a-Racer program was short-lived, but it helped turn Shelby into a household name.
Ford, Shelby, and Hertz celebrated the Rent-a-Racer program’s 40th
birthday in 2006 by introducing a limited-edition variant of the Mustang GT that was painted in a heritage-laced black and gold two-tone paint job. There was a well-preserved, low-mileage example recently listed on eBay with a Buy it Now price of $35,000. That sum indicates it’s following the path blazed by its predecessor, and we’re willing to bet it’ll be worth a whole lot more in 10 years’ time. After all, only 500 examples were built.
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