The FE gods have smiled down upon me.

[turbohunter]

What if it’s upside down?
Yeah it would be nice to have it readable.
I’ll try to find one on the block.

[WConley]

What if it’s upside down?
Yeah it would be nice to have it readable.
I’ll try to find one on the block.

Bingo!  If you read it upside down it looks like "8T" with a six-digit number after it.  Could be "201813".

[turbohunter]

Rear driver side block pad.

[WConley]

I'm guessing assembly date code 8E6 - First shift

[Gregwill16]

I agree looks like 8T201018 and the 8E6 is a May 6th assembly date.

[turbohunter]

My wife just looked at it upside down and said “what’s so hard, 8T201813

[WConley]

... while giving you a look like she's talking to a fourth grader.

Welcome to my world!

[turbohunter]

I’m LOLing with you.

[jayb]

WOW!  From the 1997 Shelby American Auto Club World Registry, that serial number (8T02R201813) is from a 1968 GT-500 KR fastback, Shelby #2497!

Codes out as follows:

E= Acapulco Blue exterior
B= Black Interior
A=Automatic Transmission
H=15" Steel Wheels with hubcaps
N=No A/C
Y=Tilt Steering Column
E= Present color (Acapulco Blue)
5= Present condition, undergoing restoration

Notes in the back also say the following: 

2497, GT-500KR.  Shipped to Pletcher Ford, Inc. (Jenkintown, PA) 6/10/68.  Present owners Gary& Nancy Bowman (Somas, CA) purchased the car circa 1980, from an individual who could have
been the original owner (name unknown).  They sold it within a few weeks and were able to buy it back a couple years later with it's restoration already begun.

I will look at a later registry and see if there is further information on the car...

Edit:  deleted the picture due to copyright concerns.

[turbohunter]

OMG
Somas is close to me.

[WConley]

I like a good detective story.  This is very cool!

[jayb]

The 2014 SAAC Registry for 68-70 Shelby Mustangs says that the present owner and whereabouts of the car is unknown.  The registry says the same thing about my car, though, so the previous owners may still have it.  Marc, you might want to try to get in touch with the old owners, if they are still around, and see what may have happened to the car...

[475fetoploader]

This is so fun to watch unfold!

[thatdarncat]

The 2020 edition Shelby American 1968 registry that just came out this summer shows the same information, but it does note the date of last info about the car to the registrar as 12/2019, so I’d assume the current owners dropped a note saying they still had it when requests went out last year. You might want to send away for the mid-level Deluxe Marti Report at least as some fun documentation.

[Gregwill16]

Great news! Hopefully you can track them down and make their day.