The ’67 Mustang takes on a new lease of life after a 14-month build process.
This car almost looked a whole lot different. Jason Engel, owner and founder of Oklahoma-based Classic Recreations, had sent several purple color swatches to the car’s buyer, but none had satisfied the client. Engel then mixed two colors together to find a solution, only to have the buyer change his mind and pick the first option: CR Blurple, a wild color that Engel says almost looks blue in certain light.
We’re happy the buyer, a Sheikh from the Middle East who wants to remain anonymous, picked this color, because the result looks incredible. The car is one of the latest completed builds from Classic Recreations, which took an abandoned Mustang and transformed it with modern-day parts, turning it into what the company calls the GT500CR 900S.
The shell is a 1967 Mustang that was in pretty rough shape. “As far as condition is concerned, it was in our boneyard,” Engel says, though he admits that “I would prefer that I work with the worst car possible,” so that he can rebuild every part to better-than-new condition.
For this car, that build began with a 7.0-liter Ford Performance V8 supercharged to the tune of 770 horsepower, with a carbon-fiber driveshaft sending power to a nine-inch rear end. Wildwood six-piston brakes slow things back down, while custom suspension with QA1 coilovers in front and Varishock units in rear keeps things in check. The 18-inch wheels are shod in BFGoodrich Rival tires.
It’s in the interior that Classic Recreations made several unique customizations for this customer. The seats have extra lowering bolstering to cater to the buyer’s body (Engel received exacting measurements of the client), and are mounted 1.5 inches lower than normal to provide extra headroom. The armrests also have the Sheikh’s family crest embroidered into them. A new sound system includes a JVC headunit and Kicker speakers, while new gauges come from the Carroll Shelby Signature range.
The entire process, from first order to delivery, took 14 months, which is roughly average for the company’s vehicles. Engel says Classic Recreations builds 25-28 cars per year, with more than 60 percent of customers coming from overseas – assuming exchange rates stay in the company’s favor, that is.
“You watch the dollar and then you watch my sales move,” he says. “Australia went to zero [sales] when the dollar dropped… Now China has exploded, we’re seeing more business from there.”
The GT500CR 900S package starts at $219,000 before any custom work. All-in, Engel says this particular car was around $234,000.
Unless a customer says otherwise – Lewis Hamilton, for instance, was happy to publicize his purchase – Classic Recreations keeps its customers’ identities private. While Engel admitted he’s had customers from places as diverse as Sri Lanka, Monaco, and across the Middle East, he won’t say anything more specific: “My clients’ privacy is more important to me than my business.”
Though he’s very involved with the projects, Engel says he couldn’t build these cars without the help of the rest of the Classic Recreations team. Fourteen other builders, comprising metalworkers, body technicians, and assembly mechanics, work in concert on each of the vehicles.
The bottom line is that Classic Recreations has built a fantastic Shelby with a wild paint job. We’re just jealous that the one-of-a-kind creation is headed to the Middle East, where we’ll likely never get a chance to see (or hear) it in person.
Keyword: This "Blurple" Classic Recreations Shelby GT500CR is fit for a Sheikh