Willoughby resident Tom Holden always dreamed about owning a Shelby Cobra Mustang.

鈥淲hen I was a kid in the 鈥�60鈥檚, I always wanted a Shelby,鈥� Holden told the 91原创 Advance Times.

Holden was standing next to his sleek black Mustang convertible with the famous Shelby Cobra logo, surrounded by Mustangs of all ages and configurations in the parking lot of the George Preston Rec Centre.

Holden鈥檚 car was one of about 200 that turned out on Sunday (Aug. 25) for the annual Mustang Roundup, put on by the Greater Vancouver Mustang Association to celebrate the legendary car.

The now-retired mechanic recounted how he went all-in when he acquired his car, taking it to Las Vegas, directly to the Shelby factory for a series of upgrades that included a lowered suspension, beefed-up brakes and carbon fibre body panels.

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The late . a racer-turned high-performance car tuner, made a career of stuffing powerful engines into smaller cars, beginning with his own AC Cobra, powered by a Ford engine, then moving on to the source by upgrading Mustangs.

At 605 horsepower, Holden鈥檚 Cobra was one of the fastest Mustangs parked in the George Preston Parking lot, and possibly the rarest as well.

Holden said only 28 were built, and he believes his is the only one in Canada.

It has about 15K on the od0meter, as Holden uses a Ford F150 pickup as his daily driver.

鈥淭his is my baby,鈥� he said.

鈥淪trictly for show and pleasure only.鈥�

This year, the Mustang is turning 55.

Originally built on the platform of the pedestrian Ford Falcon compact car, the Mustang was introduced on April 17, 1964, several months ahead of the usual time new car models were announced back then.

It was Ford鈥檚 most successful launch since the Model A.

More photos of the 91原创 Ford Roundup can be viewed .

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Email: dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com

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