I’ll spare you the suspense: yes, this car is 1 of the 400 made with a five-speed manual transmission! The other 400 out of 800 total Shelby Lancers in 1987 received a three-speed automatic transmission. This is a rare car and it looks like a rock-solid example. The seller has this 1987 Shelby Lancer listed here on eBay in Portage, Michigan. There is a $500 suggested opening bid price to get the auction rolling but nobody has clicked on it yet.
Actually, this car is #125 of 400 made with a five-speed manual, as this dash plaque shows. The Shelby Lancer (not “Dodge” Shelby Lancer) was made in 1987 as a specialty car built by Dodge and then shipped to Shelby in Whittier, California for them to work their magic. The Dodge Lancer by itself was an interesting car at a time of boxy and often uninteresting and uninspiring cars.
The Shelby Lancer was only offered in Graphic Red in 1987. Dodge dealers offered a similar car, the Lancer Shelby, in 1988 and 1989. You can see that this car has led a tough life, unfortunately. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Ferrari or a Yugo, a rare model should be taken care of better than this. There are dents and dings and the paint, and/or clearcoat, is beyond saving.
The interior, on the other hand, looks great. A telltale sign of a five-speed car would be these cloth seats. Buyers of the 400 automatic cars received leather seating. The carpets may need some help and I’d strip the seats out and either clean the original carpet or replace it, after adding some Dynamat material to the floors. These cars were fancy, with full power accessories.
Look at those beautiful back seats! There’s an issue with the passenger seat headrest and it may be hard to find this exact fabric, but maybe a junkyard would have something. The seller has provided a few detailed photos showing the bottoms of the doors, and they’re beautiful. Also, various areas where rust usually creeps in look solid and almost new.
The engine looks pretty clean, and it’s Chrysler’s 2.2-liter SOHC turbocharged inline-four with a whopping 175 horsepower. That doesn’t seem like a lot now, but in 1987 it was. Sadly, this is probably why there are no bids yet, this engine isn’t running. The seller says that this engine had a knock when this car was parked, but they don’t say how long ago that was. Still, for such a solid and rare car with a five-speed, I have to believe that this car is worth restoring. How about you?
These were one of the most underappreciated cars of their time. They were quite quick and a sedan that handles has a manual transmission what’s not to like? Well maybe the torque steer but all else these were cool rides. Today the engine can be modified to make more power safely as long as the transaxle is abused. Nice find!
I always liked the Lancer and Lebaron GTS it’s twin.
The Shelby magic with Dodge in my opinion is so much more than what he did with Ford.
Taking Mustang and making it more of a performer is one thing but taking a family car and doing what he did is the ultimate sleeper.
As much as the Shelby Ford people like to deny it, these SHELBY Dodges are just as automotively historical as a Shelby Ford.
A few years ago a Concourse D’elegance had a Shelby display with some old Shelby Mustangs and a real 1960’s GT40 behind ropes. I asked the table people where the Shelby Dodges were displayed and they scowled and didn’t even reply.
I have yet to see one in person. Dealer in Milbank, SD had one for years, asking $20k as I recall. Thinking the Pioneer Audio Unit came with a remote control too.
We owned a well equipped 1985 LeBaron GTS (non Turbo) during the same time frame. Decent, memorable car, consistently horrible dealer network. Current car is a Chrysler 300S V8. The one attempt with a local dealer for repairs/warranty work (selling dealer is 500 miles away) was a complete bust – independent shop repaired the car – deja vu.
Love the Turbo cars from the 80s. This one is ideal looking. What a fun car as a daily driver.
“Rare” doesn’t always mean that people want it.
Has it been resting long enough for the engine knock to go away?
Here is the ’86 GLH-T that I owned new back in the day. I wish it was a GLH-S but could not afford one. I still have a lot of respect for these Shelby specials and feel that they are one of the bargains in the muscle car world. That’s because so many people love to hate on them. That’s okay, keeps the price down enough so that there is still a possibility of owning one someday.
I was intrigued by this find, the eighties were a time when Euro sedans ruled. Four doors and a stick. But not being a Mopar guy I did some research and a nineties vintage DodgeTurbo III 2.2 liter engine made 224 hp? Shelby’s edition was weak sauce in comparison.
The Turbo III engine didn’t come out until a few years later. This was a progression from the original Turbo I with 146hp. This Turbo II gained an intercooler and was 175hp. The Turbo III evolved to a 16 valve cylinder head and distributorless ignition. These cars (Shelby Lancer) were actually advertised to run with and outperform the BMW 535i. Saying they were “weak sauce” is being pretty harsh.
Auction update: this one sold for $1,525.
A give away price from the condition as it was related to us. The right person will have a field day bringing this car back to at least #3 condition, if not higher.