One of the most interesting examples in the history of car movies is the Ford Mustang that features in The Tempo of a Thief. Eleanor. Its appeal is also enhanced by the doubt and mystery surrounding its authenticity. There are many replicas that look exactly like the piece in the film, and after the great success of the film, several workshops began producing copies of Eleanor.
This is also the case with the Mustang shown in the photos, which was modified by Unique Performance in the mid-2000s. It was originally based on a red 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback, which was repainted in the gray color known from the film, with a full two-stripe, and received all the accessories that distinguished the Shelby GT500E Super Snake.
So there's the distinctive fuel filler, the twin auxiliary headlights in the middle, the exhaust system porting out in front of the rear wheel, the raised hood and 17-inch Halibrand wheels with Mickey Thompson tires.
Inside, seats with “Super Snake” lettering, Shelby GT500E lettering, and the Carrol Shelby name remind us of the replica we're sitting in. And in the trunk of the car is the protagonist: next to the fuses and battery, there is a nitro bottle for the performance-enhancing nitric oxide system.
Up front, a seven-liter V8 works with a Vortech V-2 compressor and a Holley electronic fuel injection system, complemented by a SpinTech exhaust system and a Tremec TKO five-speed manual transmission. There's no information about performance, but it's certainly enough to experience the cinematic atmosphere and make the rear tires smoke.
The most interesting thing in the car's history is that the seller refused to part with it, although he recently offered $165,000 (60 million Hungarian forints) for it in an auction on the Bring a Trailer website. There are plenty of more modern, faster cars for that kind of money, but it's true that even if it's a copy, when a 7-liter V8 is snoring in the nose of a Mustang like this, it's worth every penny. Click and listen!
