I pride myself in knowing at least a few things about every car I see on the road, but the other day I was walking in Los Angeles and came across a black Ford Mustang Mach-E with gold racing stripes that I had never seen before. I frantically Googled everything I could about it, and found no information on Shelby Mustang Mach-Es that are rentable through Hertz, so I knew I had to dig deeper.
Hertz has a storied history with offering special edition black and gold Shelby Mustangs. In 1966, Hertz founded the “Rent-A-Racer” program, which allowed renters to try out a special high-performance Ford Mustang built just for the rental company, the Shelby Mustang GT350-H. Hertz discontinued the program citing repair expenses that were too high, profit margins that were too low, and reckless customers that would take their rented GT350-H’s to race tracks and abuse them. Imagine someone taking a rented performance car that was offered under a program titled Rent-A-Racer to a race track; who could have foreseen such tragic events? Snark aside, surviving Mustang GT350-H’s are hugely sought after by collectors, as there were only 1,000 units produced.
Moving into the 21st century, history repeated itself in 2006 when Shelby, Ford, and Hertz teamed up for a 40th anniversary Shelby GT-H Mustang that was more subdued than the original GT350-H’s. Then, for the 50th anniversary, Ford produced 140 Mustang GT-H’s that were rented out of 17 airport locations across the United States. Now, the three companies have come together once again, but this time with a more electrifying result.
Enter the electric Shelby Hertz Mustang Mach-E, of which there are only 100 units. Unfortunately, these black and gold special edition cars do not receive any power boost over the stock Mustang Mach-E GT, but it certainly looks and sounds more special. Shelby added a vented hood, front splitter and rocker trim made out of carbon fiber; matte gold stripes on the sides and dual stripes running on top of the car from nose to tail; Shelby and Hertz emblems; and Shelby wheels with GT-H center caps. There are a few interior emblems, too.
Aside from the aggressive appearance, it’s also fitted with Borla’s Active Performance Exhaust Sound System that projects a simulated exhaust note. Though the original GT350-H had a K-Code 289 V8 under the hood, the Hertz Shelby Mach-E has more power, all-wheel drive, and nearly cuts the original GT350-H’s 0-to-60-mph time in half.
The Mach-E is also ten times more rare than the original GT350-H, with just 100 produced. It might not carry the same cool factor as the original, but it’s a good looking and fast modern take on the classic rent-a-racer. Anyone can rent one of these special Mach-E’s, as long as you are 25 years old or older, have a valid U.S. or foreign driver’s license, and proof of auto insurance.