Owner: Knick Jimenez (Co-Owner of eGarage)
TP: So Knick, how did you come to build this GT500E?
KJ: It's a LONG story actually, it involved 2 years of madness, 3 states across the U.S., a bankrupt builder, and a dissatisfied Carroll Shelby. =)
TP: Wow. Sounds like you certainly earned the right to own this beautiful car. So how long have you worked on this particular project? What would you say your build philosophy has been?
KJ: The car was originally built by Unique Performance, the only company licensed by Shelby (#34 of under 200) in the "continuation series" of these GT500's. I have owned the car for almost 6 years now and while most people keep them as a collector's car, my philosophy from day one has been to "drive her until the wheels fall off..."
TP: Haha. That's great. The car looks amazing. So is it your daily driver?
KJ: It could be my DD if needed. The car is dialed up (fuel injected) and so it's easy to finesse around town!
TP: What was the first modification made to the car? Tell us about the build process and some of the major milestones.
KJ: Well, the entire car itself is one huge "modification" from the original GT500's of the late 60's. The rear wheels are fitted with 11 inch wide slabs of meat as well as disc brakes. It also features a F.A.S.T system coupled with a BeCool system and best of all, the Tremec T56 transmission which are used in Aston Martin Vanquishes, Corvette Z06's, and Dodge Vipers. Oh and although not really a performance mod, I installed two JL Audio W1712's behind each seat so I could at least feel a little bass when driving along the California coast (this car is that loud otherwise).
TP: Right on. So who would you say did most of the work on this car? Is there a specific person and/or performance shop(s) that you guys took it to?
KJ: For the most part the car was originally built over a 2+ year period in Farmers Branch, Texas at the Unique Performance facility. It arrived in California once it was completed but I wasn't satisfied with the street and track performance of the car, so it was then sent to a shop called Revved outside of Dallas. After it came back to California I had the car perfected by TT Competizioni, who's background is in muscle cars, vintage and modern Italians, Indy cars, Formula 1, and Ferrari Challenge.
TP: How did the car do on the dyno? What kind of horsepower and torque to the wheels are you putting down with your current setup? Do you plan on improving the performance and adding even more power down the road?
KJ: It dyno'd at one million and one horsepower. Hahaha. Just kidding. I can never keep up with the exact numbers man. I am a "driver." I have no ego nor do I ever feel like I need to be faster than anyone else. I want to say it started off around 450hp out the gate and now is somewhere over the 600hp range. The car is very light and pretty scary at high speeds. It's old school in that there are no air bags, only a full roll cage for safety. These GT500E's easily do 0-60 in under 4 seconds without a hiccup!
TP: Wow. That's really impressive. So do you plan on doing any sort of racing with this car?
KJ: This GT500E was built to be tracked! I like Thunderhill because there aren't any walls, and they have a nice straight where I can get the car up to about 120-130 mph. Which by the way is plenty for a car like this.
TP: Having driven there ourselves we would definitely agree. So what modification would you say is the most rare or unique to your car? What do you think makes your GT500E stand out compared to the very few others out there?
KJ: It would probably be that we added a whole bunch of awesome to this car, which ends up being a major factor because this car has an unmatched presence! Women, kids, and grown men cry over this car. They love it!
TP: Haha. And rightfully so. Tell us, what do you have planned next? Is this car going to see any more major cosmetic or performance changes?
KJ: I'm almost certain after more than five years of seeking perfection with this car that it's pretty much dialed in and done now. I just completed a nice looking LED tail light modification which was simply for aesthetics.
TP: That's awesome. Well Knick, we'd like to thank you for sitting down with us. Any last words before we wrap things up?
KJ: Yeah yeah yeah, I want to give like 100 shout outs but in the interest of fairness, I'd simply like to thank you guys for your time, the write up, and for everyone who is supporting the launch of eGarage.com
Much love to my family! Respect...
Car Year: 1968
Car Make: Shelby
Car Model: GT500E
Car Color: Pepper Grey with Black Racing Stripes
Modifications:
Engine & Performance:
410CI All Aluminum Stroker Engine
Suspension & Brakes:
Baer Disk Brakes
Custom TCP (Rack & Pinion) Steering
Wheels & Tires:
PSS Wheels
BF Goodrich G-Force 245/40/17 Front & 275/45/17 Rear
Exterior & Interior:
Exterior:
Custom Painted Pepper Grey with Black Racing Stripes
Interior:
Super Snake Embroidered Hi-Back Black Leather Bucket Seats
G Force 5 Point Quick Release Harness
Shelby Signature Gauges
LeCarra Wood Trim 15 inch Steering Wheel
Audio:
Alpine iDA X001 with 300W and 1000W JL Audio Amps
Two JL Audio W712 Subwoofers
Photo & Video credits belong to Official TunerPlayground Featured Car Photographers: Jeff Cabacungan and Staff from Photoshootmycar.com
Posted by TunedR8
on Mar 15, 2011 09:37:30 PM Reply
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Posted by JoelFortuna
on Mar 25, 2011 08:22:17 AM Reply
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