One of two notchback coupe Mustangs that both Ford Motor Company and Shelby American used as prototypes, the other being Little Red. Craig Jackson of Barrett-Jackson unveiled the newly restored Green Hornet at SEMA with Shell and Pennzoil. A one-of-two Shelby EXP500 prototype has made its just-off-a-restoration debut at SEMA 2019.The vehicle started life as a Lime Gold-painted testbed for Fords Mustang California Special, and featured a few distinct features that set it apart from the regular notchback coupe.Marchal fog lights were fitted to the grille; spin-and-click hood pins were installed on the vented hood; the rear tail panel had a larger spoiler; and the taillights were replaced with units from a 1965 Thunderbird.Once Ford had gotten its use out of the Mustang, they sent it over to Carroll Shelby to tinker with. Shelby immediately painted the vehicle in a wild metal-flake green paint and replaced the 390-cubic-inch V8 with a 428-c.i. unit with Conelec fuel injection. An in-house designed six-speed automatic and independent rear suspension was fitted to top it all off. All the changes meant the vehicle saw a zero-to-96-km/h time of just 5.7 seconds and a top speed of 252 km/h (157 miles per hour).Shelby American only built two notchback coupe versions of the GT500, and this green example is the twin to “Little Red,” a hardtop lost for years and just recently found.The cars name, incidentally, came from Bill Cosby the Billy Cosby. Cosby had been a long-time friend of Shelby, and when he first took a look at the Mustangs wild green colour, he dubbed it The Green Hornet, taking inspiration from the favourite superhero of the animated characters in Fat Albert.The vehicle was presented at SEMA 2019 by its owner, Craig Jackson, CEO of Barrett-Jackson auctions, and
Origin: Prototype Shelby ‘Green Hornet’ Mustang restored, unveiled at SEMA