1967 Shelby GT500
The 1967 Shelby GT500 "Eleanor" is a fictional car popularised by the 2000 movie Gone in 60 Seconds. While it's depicted as a Shelby GT500, the movie cars were actually heavily customized 1967 Ford Mustang fastbacks, designed to resemble a Shelby. Usually, when people discuss the Eleanor Mustang, they’re referring to the second Eleanor. Though the 1973 Mustang was attractive, it doesn’t hold the allure of the Shelby. The Gone in 60 Seconds remake’s budget allowed for more impressive cars.
The Original Eleanor Mustang
The first Gone in 60 Seconds came out in 1974. It has the distinction of being written, produced, and directed by the lead actor, H.B. Halicki. During filming, a total of 127 vehicles were destroyed. Thankfully, in addition to being a quadruple threat, Halicki also owned a junkyard. Many of these vehicles were junkyard finds, reducing the production costs significantly.
In the movie, Maindrian Pace (Halicki) is the owner of a chop shop. There, he’s approached by a drug lord who offers him $400,000 to steal a grand total of 48 vehicles. With a dedicated team of thieves, Pace sets out to steal the list of vehicles. The list is broad, with everything from rare vintage cars and exotics to semi-trailers. Each vehicle gets a woman’s name to use as a code name.
The Real Eleanor Mustangs
All four Eleanors were portrayed by two Mustangs. Though they’re described as “Medium Yellow Gold” the budget for the movie wasn’t very large, and Hadicki used cheaper “School Bus Yellow” paint. The Mustangs actually weren’t even 1973 models. Hadicki used 1971 Mustangs and then added 1973 Mustang grilles. The blackout treatment given to the Mustangs’ sides were Mach 1 inspired, but the hood treatment was wholly original.
As in most movies with cars, there was a designated “hero” Eleanor Mustang used for most of the exterior shots, and an actual “stunt” Eleanor used for driving scenes. To make the stunt Eleanor Mustang ready for production, it needed 250 hours of labor. During this time, many modifications were added.
Stunt Eleanor Mustang Modifications:
Chained transmission for safety
Camera mounted in backseat
Roll cage
Heavy-duty shoulder harness
Deadbolt door locks
Hood pins
First-aid kit
Electric kill switches
Individual locking rear brakes
Undercarriage plating
Despite some rather intense scenes during filming, the stunt Eleanor Mustang survives to this day. Unfortunately, the “hero” Eleanor, being an otherwise plain-Jane 1971 Mustang, was crushed at some point after the movie.
The Shelby Eleanor Mustang
In 2000, a remake of the classic car chase and heist film was made. This time, the lead was a character named Memphis Raines, played by Nicholas Cage.
The plot is different as well. Raines is a known car thief, with a younger brother also in the trade. It’s the younger brother, Kip Raines, who makes a deal to steal 50 cars. Once again, they give each of their intended targets a woman’s name as a codename, and just like before, the Eleanor name is reserved for the car that is destined to give them the most trouble.
The Gone in 60 Seconds remake was backed by Disney-dollars, which meant they could afford to get more exotic cars. While the part of Eleanor would still be a Mustang, in order to
make it as enticing a steal as the Ferraris and Lambos on the list, it would be a Shelby Mustang.
A Dupont Pepper Gray 1967 Shelby GT500 was produced. Or rather twelve were produced. Nine of these were shells, but three were fully functional vehicles.
