The PUBG Mobile Shelby American collaboration drained my UC, but I still love my digital Shelby GT500 and 427 Cobra.

If you had told me in early 2025 that I’d be spending my hard-earned UC chasing the ghost of Carroll Shelby through a battle royale game, I would’ve laughed. Hard. Yet here I am in 2026, still nursing the financial hangover from the PUBG Mobile x Shelby American collaboration that ran from May 9th to July 6th, 2025. My garage now houses two digital muscle cars, a bunch of flashy spoilers I’ll never use, and a legendary outfit that makes my character look like a speed-obsessed librarian. Was it worth it? Let me take you on a burnout-laden trip down memory lane.

The Motor Cruise event brought two absolute icons into the game: the Shelby GT500 and the Shelby 427 Cobra. I’m not a huge car nut in real life — I can barely change a tyre — but something about seeing those pixelated curves under the Erangel sun made my inner petrolhead roar. The GT500 was all aggression and thunder, while the 427 Cobra looked like it wanted to eat other vehicles for breakfast. Both could be applied to the Coupe RB and Dacia, turning those humble commuter boxes into fire-breathing legends. I knew I had to have them.

Because I’m a responsible adult, I immediately began calculating the cost. Each car had two colourways: one you could buy with Lucky Tokens, and one locked behind a Lucky Medal, which basically meant you had to spin the Shelby Lucky Spin gacha machine. You know, the kind where hope goes to die. The Red and Black GT500 cost 720 Lucky Tokens, while the Retro Invader variant required a single Lucky Medal. The Blue and White 427 Cobra was another 720 Tokens, and its Vivid Inkstorm sibling again needed a medal. Simple, right? Wrong.

The spin prices were 60 UC for one pull, and 540 UC for ten. The first-time discounts were about as comforting as a level 1 backpack in the final circle. I told myself, “Just a few spins. I’ll stop when I get a medal.” Famous last words.

Week one saw me opening spin after spin. The anticipation was electric — would I get a Lucky Medal, or yet another parachute skin I’d never deploy because I normally just crash-land on rooftops? The answer, frustratingly, was mostly parachute skins. The game also teased me with Shelby-themed attachments. The 427 Cobra could get a spoiler attachment and quad exhaust, making it look like a race car that accidentally wandered into a war zone. The GT500, meanwhile, got rocket balloons and a flying saucer add-on. Yes, you read that right: a flying saucer. I’m still not sure if it’s meant to be an anti-gravity mod or just a bold fashion statement, but it certainly turns heads when you’re doing donuts around Pochinki.

After more spins than I care to admit, I finally secured a Lucky Medal and joyfully redeemed the Retro Invader GT500. Its striped livery screamed 1970s Le Mans, and for a brief moment, all was right in the world. Then I noticed the other medal car, the Vivid Inkstorm Cobra. It looked like a piece of modern art on wheels, and suddenly my Retro Invader felt like yesterday’s news. So I spun again. More parachute skins. More headgear. I even got the Legendary Streamline Scholar Set, which I now wear with the irony of someone who has not been scholarly at all about spending money. The Micro-UZI finish and backpack ornament were fine, but I wasn’t here for gun skins. I was here for the horses.

Looking back from 2026, I can honestly say those Shelby cars are still some of the most eye-catching skins in my PUBG Mobile inventory. I use them whenever I find a Coupe RB or Dacia — which is not as often as I’d like, because my squadmates keep blowing them up before I can show off. The collaboration is long gone, locked away in the game’s event history, but the memories (and the credit card statements) remain. I learned a valuable lesson: never underestimate the allure of a virtual V8 engine. And always assume you’ll need twice as many spins as you planned.

If you missed the Shelby event, I have bad news: it’s never coming back. Or maybe it will, because game collaborations are like movie reboots — they happen when you least expect them. But for now, I’ll just keep polishing my GT500 in the garage screen, dreaming of the days when my Coupe RB could outrun the blue zone in style. Was it pure luck? Skill? Nope. Just a lot of UC and a stubborn refusal to stop spinning. Worth it? Ask me again after my next bank statement.