Barn Find Hunter: X-ray vision leads to a Shelby GT500 convertible barn find - Hagerty Media

Tom Cotter, Hagerty’s resident Barn Find Hunter, advocates investigating ever potential car, regardless of how boring you think it might be. You never know where it could lead, after all. Of course, the latest episode of BFH proves that Tom’s policy (along with a sixth sense, probably) can bear major fruit.

Tom stops in Florida after spotting a first-generation Mustang coupe on the side of a driveway. Although the car suffered some front-end damage, Tom suspects it would be worth his time to check it out since he spotted fog lights that are indicative of the GT option package.

Tom wanders behind a nearby garage and peeks through the glass door, only to spot the black hood stripes of a 1970 Shelby GT500 convertible. After getting the phone number of the owner and leaving a message, the wait begins for him to respond.

As luck would have it, he’s happy to share the car’s story, and Tom returns two days later to follow up. The owner, Rick Luckhart, tells about originally purchasing the then-two-year-old GT500 from a car dealer a friend worked for. The convertible was on the road until just a few years ago, and Rick believes it wouldn’t take much effort to return it to a roadworthy state.

When Tom mentions the car’s approximate value, Rick says, “I got a cover around here that I should probably put on.” Nevertheless, Rick has no intention of ever selling.

It goes to show that no old car is worth passing up. There may be an even greater find nearby, and if you’ve got that sixth sense, you just might catch the scent. As Tom says, “Happy hunting.”