After hoping everyone had a fantastic Easter holiday with friends and family, I feel that it is time to talk about some high horsepower American muscle. All fans of the Ford Mustang are already aware of this, but it should be stated that the classic American pony car turns 45 years old this year and what better way to commemorate this monumental achievement than to sell some cars at Barrett-Jackson for charity. As of the end of last week, two concepts and the first production Shelby GT500 were sold on the auction block by B-J. Read on for more details.

As I am a big muscle car and Barrett-Jackson fan, you can only imagine my delight when I heard what Ford was planning to do this last week. Not only did they sell the first production 2010 Shelby GT500, but they also sold the original Mustang GT Concept cars that debuted at the 2003 Detroit Auto Show. These concepts were pivotal in the age of the modern muscle car and there is nobody that will argue against the fact that Ford effectively resurrected the muscle car with the throwback design of the Mustang back in 03. There are some that may be a little surprised at the idea that Ford would sell the original concepts that helped revitalize an industry however in these dire economic times for the auto makers the move makes great sense from a PR standpoint. Well, they did it alright and I was anxious to see the results of the sale.

Both the silver coupe and red convertible Mustang GT Concepts sold for a balmy $175,000 apiece and the 2010 Shelby GT500 was hammered down at $150,000, all being well-bought purchases. The proceeds from the sale of the concepts went to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the 150K from the big snake went to the Carroll Shelby Children’s Foundation. Stay tuned for the newest installment of Muscle Car of the Week.