1969 Shelby De Mexico

Douglas Miller had no idea what a Shelby de Mexico was until he found and bought one by chance at his local Ford dealer 16 years ago.

- Jerry Heasley

How did Douglas J. Miller, a car enthusiast from Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, find and buy a rare and historic Shelby de Mexico once owned by none other than Eduardo Velazquez? “The car was in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, at a local Ford dealership, the town where I live, on consignment. The year was about 2000,” Douglas says.

We met Douglas at the Ford Nationals in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where he was showing off his silver 1969 Shelby, a G.T. 350, but nothing resembling an American­made Shelby of 1969. This Shelby looked more like a regular Mustang with a confusing array of Shelby, Mustang GT, and Mach 1 badges.

“My wife and I had been talking about maybe getting an old car. When we drove past the dealership she said, ‘There’s one for you!’” Douglas looked at the car as they drove, but he didn’t know what it was, exactly. Was this a 1969 Mustang hardtop? A Shelby? A GT? A Mach 1? Later, at home, his wife challenged him about the car. “You won’t ever go look at it,” she says. Douglas proved her wrong, though. He drove back to the dealership to check out the old Mustang. “What the heck is this?!” Douglas remembers thinking.