Barrett-Jackson is currently celebrating their 50th anniversary at the WestWorld of Scottsdale, which is scheduled to run from January 22-30. As part of that celebration, the company will be auctioning off a variety of 69 collectible vehicles with No Reserve from the Mile-High Collection. Highlights of the collection include two 1970 “ARI” Cobra Jet Ford Mustangs which only five have been built, two second-generation Ford GTs, and the real 1976 AMC Pacer from the 90s cult classic “Wayne’s World.”
The Mile-High Collection have an impressive number of Ford vehicles like the two 1970 “ARI” Ford Mustang 428 Cobra Jet Convertible Pace Cars (Lot #1336.1 and Lot #1336.2). Both cars were created for pace car duties at all of the five American Raceways International tracks. Only five cars were made, and all were specified with R-code (Ram Air) 428ci Cobra Jet engines and C6 automatic transmissions. They were also given specially painted hoods, custom stripes, and ARI rear fender logos that shows the company’s Atlanta International Speedway, Texas International Speedway, Eastern Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, and Riverside Raceway properties. The Grabber Blue (Lot #1336.1) was designated for Atlanta International Speedway while the Grabber Green (Lot #1336.2) was for the Michigan track.
Another interesting lot in the collection is the 1970 Ford Mustang Mach 1 Twister Special (Lot #1336). As part of a deal between Ford and ARI, and to help subsidize the project, Ford Special Promotions pre-sold 96 Mustang fastbacks to the Kansas City District Sales Office. Lot #1336 is one of the 96. The group became collectively known as “Twister Specials” and they were part of the central attraction at Ford’s Total Performance Day at Kansas City Raceway bank in November 1969. Out of the 96 Mustangs, only 48 were equipped with the R-Code 428 SCJ engine, and out of the 48, only 24 was matched with a 4-speed manual transmission; and the example has both.
Other lots to keep an eye on are the 2005 Ford GT (Lot #1355) and a practically unused 2006 Ford GT Heritage Editions (Lot #1390). Only 2,027 Ford GTs were produced for that year, and the stripe delete 2005 Ford GT model (Lot #1355) was one of them. The 2005 GT has a Silver finish matched with black interior. The 2006 Ford GT Heritage Editions is one of only 343 produced, is practically unused, and is showing only 24 miles on the odometer.
The Mile-High Collection also has a few other American muscle car examples like the 1969 Pontiac Trans Am Ram Air IV (Lot #1438.2) which is one out of 607 made, and a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 RS (Lot #1121.1). Other highly-anticipated lots are the two 1968 Shelby GT500KR cars (Lot #1437 and Lot #1438.3). There is also the 1956 Volkswagen 23-Window Microbus (Lot 1438.1).
Relics of American pop culture can also be seen in the collection like the original 1976 AMC Pacer (Lot #515) which was the car used in the iconic 1992 cult classic movie “Wayne’s World.” The film production did some modifications on the car like the Baby Blue paint on the original yellow exterior, tow hooks welded to the front subframe, quarter-inch steel plates welded to the rocker panels to provide camera support, and modified rear wheelhouses to accommodate speaker boxes. They also drilled a hole in the roof for the famous licorice dispenser, flame decals that were seen on the sides, and some components were removed from the inner dash to give space for a cup dispenser. An extensive restoration was done on the vehicle and all efforts were exhausted to ensure that it is brought back to its movie condition and that all the props in the vehicle are original.
Those who are interested to bid for the 2022 Scottsdale Auction and be part of the 50th anniversary of Barrett-Jackson can register here. Tickets to the event and VIP packages are also available.
