Mustang Monthly – September 2019

QWhen the current owner purchased this Shelby, the original 428 SCJ was missing.

In its place was a 427ci side oiler, bought over the parts counter and built up with the

accessories from the original engine, along with an Edelbrock 427 intake. The ’69 Shelby’s

Air Grabber hood was one of the largest parts ever serviced by Ford. Due to its length and

front overlap, it was damaged easily and could lose its shape from mishandling. The NACA

ducts helped feed cold air directly into the hungry 427ci mill.

QJohn Lazzaro’s ’69 Shelby never strayed far from Manhattan’s Gotham Ford, the dealership where it was sold new by none other than famed Ford racer Bill Kolb Jr.

46 MUSTANGMONTHLY.COM

STRAIGHT OUTTA GOTHAM

months of hunting online

auction sites, he was

getting nothing more than

tired eyes. “I also really

wanted to get a good look

at it in person before I

bought it, which makes

the online process more

difficult,” says John. That

one-on-one inspection

would be a priority in any

serious collector’s list.

“Then finally last year I

saw an ad on Craigslist

Shelby Pride
At the forefront of
Mustang models were the
Shelby-badged cars that
were now built solely by
Ford. In 1969, you could
either get a G.T. 350 backed
with a stout 351ci engine
or the top-of-the-line
G.T. 500, now endowed
with brutal 428ci Cobra Jet
power. Both cars carried on
the legacy and the outward
badging with pride, along
with about 4 extra inches
in total length. Like all
Shelby cars, they sold and
performed well, keeping
up the brand’s killer
reputation on the streets.
John Lazzaro of
Lindenhurst, New York,
is a local Mustang expert
and current employee of
Ford as a senior master
technician. He’s a Mustang
man through and through
and is certainly not wet
behind the ears when it
comes to Ford’s ponycar.
“I’ve been doing classic
Mustangs for 35 years...it’s
a family thing; I build them,
and my daughter drives
them,” John says.
John is always on the
lookout for interesting
Mustangs, and he has a

sweet, highly optioned

’65 GT in the garage

already. But like with most

obsessed car aficionados,

there’s always room in the

garage for one more—if the

opportunity arises. And

interestingly enough, it

recently did.

Shelby Search

John had been on the

lookout for a ’69 Shelby

to make his own. After

for a supposedly solid G.T.

500. It was just a few hours
     away, so I took a ride,” John
     continues.
     Lo and behold, it was
     the right car with the right
     history to go along with it.
     “Everything was in place on
     the body and chassis—even
     had the original windshield
     with it. It also came with
     a replacement engine
     installed that didn’t run,
     but it didn’t matter to me,”
     says John. Just the fact that
     it was intact was enough
     for him, so he made a deal
     on the spot and took the
     Shelby home.
     What John bought was
     certainly an interesting
     ride. The Shelby was sold
     new at nearby Gotham
     Ford, the world-renowned
     dealership located at
     the corner of 1st Ave. and
     61 st St. in New York City. At
     the time it was the largest
     selling Shelby dealership
     in the country, eclipsing
     Larsen Ford, which was
     based in nearby White
     Plains, New York.
     The original salesman
     was none other than Bill
     Kolb Jr., the famous Ford
     employee and race car
     driver who was transferred