- Had a heart transplant in 1990. After seeing two children die because they didn't get needed organs, he formed the Carroll Shelby Children's Foundation, which helps get needed organs for children.
- He had homes in the Bel Air hills of Los Angeles, CA; in Las Vegas, NV; and owned a ranch in Pittsburg, TX, where he raised miniature horses and African cattle while designing cars in his later years. He owned small vintage planes and numerous cars including his original Cobra.
- He marketed a chili mix in 1969 and spent time in Africa in the 1970s hunting big game and organizing expeditions.
- The Shelby-American team's Ford GT40 won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966 and 1967. They broke Ferrari's winning streak. He teamed with Roy Salvadori of Britain to win in their Aston-Martin.
- Son of Warren Shelby, a rural mail carrier, and car enthusiast. He made his rounds in a 1928 Whippet. He served as a flight instructor in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. He then worked in the Texas oil fields and became a chicken farmer.
- Inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1992.
- In 2003 he teamed with Ford in a partnership that included a new Mustang design. In 2005 he built the first Shelby Mustang Concept CSM:00001, with this car, he proved to Ford he can still build great cars. Then in 2007, he went to the New York Auto Show at the Jacob Javits Center to introduce the Ford GT500KR. Since 2005 there has been a whole line of Shelby cars til present day(2016).
- Racecar driver on the Grand Prix circuit.
- In 1959 he was the second American-born driver to win the 24 hours of Le Mans in France. A heart ailment forced him to quit driving professionally in 1962. He founded Shelby American in 1962 to build his Cobra cars.
- He is survived by his wife, Cleo; his children, Patrick Shelby, Michael Shelby, and Sharon Shelby; and a sister Anne Shelby Ellison.
- He founded a wheel company and an automobile club. He returned to sports car design in 1982. When Lee Iacocca was Chairman of Chrysler, he hired Shelby and they designed special-edition performance models of the Dodge Charger and other cars.
- He drove for the Aston-Martin team in 1954 at the race in Sebring, Florida. In November 1957 he won the 100-mile race at Riverside, California, in a one-seat Maserati.
- He entered his first auto race in 1952, driving in a quarter-mile drag meet, then won road races in the Southwest. He wore striped bib coveralls because he didn't have time to change. It became his signature outfit.
- Developer of the Ford Mustang Shelby and Cobra.
- He partnered with Lee Iacocca of Ford in 1964 to create a high-performance Mustang version for racing. In January 1965 the first Shelby Mustang made its debut.
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