Kendall Custom fetches $450,000 for charity

A years-long effort by Kendall^® Motor Oil to build a one-of-a-kind 1967 Mustang GT500 culminated with a stunning car — and $450,000 for charity.  

The Kendall Custom, as it is known, was auctioned off on Jan. 15 at the Mecum Auction Kissimmee, the world’s largest car auction, to promote awareness for the Phillips 66 Lubricants brand and support a worthy cause. And it excelled on both fronts.  

Every dollar from the $450,000 vehicle auction benefited Curing Kids Cancer, a nonprofit that raises money to fund research and find cures for pediatric cancers.  

“When this project started, it was a chance for us to show what Kendall was all about,” said Julie Wright, Director of Brand Management at Phillips 66 Lubricants. “And we did. We gave the audience a really great car, while also giving a big lift to an organization that’s making a difference in many lives.”  

More than 20 automotive industry leaders came together to build the car’s state-of-the-art custom exterior and interior with high-quality parts and modernized technology. The metal masterpiece includes a twin turbocharged Ford Coyote engine that runs on Kendall GT-1^® Max oil.  

The Kendall Custom was documented on Kendall Motor Oil’s TitaniumGarage.com, Facebook and Instagram.  

Mecum showed the car to hundreds of thousands of potential bidders in a nationwide tour over the past year before the auction in Kissimmee, Fla. The winning bidder at the Mecum auction, auto enthusiast Jim Walker, said the charity gave the purchase special meaning.  

“Some of these families are stricken with a terrible situation, and they are financially strapped. Their focus should be on taking care of their families and not on worrying about the financial side of it,” said Walker, who owns a collection of about 80 cars.  

Walker plans to proudly display The Kendall Custom in his automobile collection. “It is a car we will preserve because it deserves to be preserved,” he said.