Shelby GT500 Ultimate Test: Complete three-part review

DESIGN
The Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 - first shown to the public at the 2003 New York International Auto Show in near production form - became the first Mustang to officially wear the Shelby name in more than 35 years. A collaboration between Ford's Special Vehicle Team and Carroll Shelby, the GT500 sat atop the Mustang performance ladder from its introduction just over two years ago until earlier this year when the Shelby GT500KR arrived on the scene to take over the top spot.

Based on the highly successful Ford Mustang GT, the Shelby GT500 shares nearly all of its sheetmetal with its more pedestrian stable mates. The only unique body panel is the vented hood, which is raised on its leading edge by one inch forming the top of the taller and wider grille opening. The shape of the grille is much more aggressive than that of the base performance Mustangs and is inspired by the late '60s Shelby Mustangs.

The fully functional vents in the hood have a dual purpose: 1. They extract hot air from the engine bay, and 2. They help alleviate under-hood pressure buildup - a lesson learned through Ford's Grand Am racing efforts and proof positive that racing does in fact improve the breed.

So the Shelby GT500 borrows some functional details from the current Ford Racing Mustangs, as well as some design cues from the Shelby's of the past. It also borrows a few bits from the futuristic Ford Mustang GT-R Concept of 2005, such as the front splitter and the rear diffuser.

Both are part of the blacked-out lower body, which is intended to reduce visual weight making the GT500 seem lighter on its Goodyears. The effect works to an extent, but unfortunately, the blacked-out lower sections also make the car seem higher up off the ground - a look that is reinforced by the massive gap between the top of the rear tire and the fender. At least it's something that a quick trip through Ford Racing's performance catalog can fix with a set of lowering springs.

The wheels on the GT500 are great looking and similar in design to those on the Ford GT supercar. It is a little disappointing that the New York Auto Show car had 19-inch versions, while the production car makes due with 18s, but again, there's always the aftermarket.

Moving around to the back of the car, we find a nice, clean looking rear deck spoiler that is fully functional. It's nice to see some restraint here, as a big wing would have looked completely out of place. At the bottom, we find the diffuser previously mentioned, framed by a large, 3-inch exhaust pipe at each side.

While the newer retro muscle cars on the scene seem to be stealing all of the attention from the Mustang lately, this Shelby GT500 does a great job keeping the Mustang flame alive by refining the already great looks of the car with a dose of bad-ass attitude - racing stripes and all.

INTERIOR & USER EXPERIENCE
Based on the more mainstream Ford Mustang GT, the Mustang Shelby GT500 ups the ante in both performance and price. With 500 horsepower just a stretch of your right foot away, there's not much to complain about regarding performance. But did the added cost of this limited edition Mustang go toward anything besides that raunchy supercharger? And more to the point, does the car feel like it's worth $40,000?

As is often the case with these higher performance variants, most of the additional coin buys precisely what we all want: more speed. But most of us aren't satisfied with only having our cake, we want to eat it too. We want extras on top of the performance gains. So what's inside the cabin of the Shelby GT500 that helps justify the added cost?

In the Shelby GT500, we find a slightly revised interior. There is a new font for the gauges, which now include a boost gauge for the supercharger. The steering wheel has leather covering the spokes as well as the rim. And the dash has a leather covering as well, which definitely helps to bring the interior up-market a bit.

There's also an impressive Shaker 500 audio system with eight speakers and a navigation system. And for getting the mood just right at night, the gauges and the interior lighting offer several color options including a red, white and blue mode for the speedometer, secondary gauges and tachometer. It may be a bit Scion-like and gimmicky for such a serious performance machine, but it's still fun sorting through the various colors and picking your favorite.

The seats are a throw-back to the original Shelby Mustang's design, and while they're quite comfortable, they should probably have a bit more bolstering to help hold you in place given the GT500s cornering ability.

These improvements, however, can't cover-up the fact that the Shelby GT500 shares much of its interior - too much of its interior - with a base car costing half as much. There's just too much hard plastic on the doors and the center console. Still, the more you live with this car, the less you notice these things - such is the charm of Ford's Mustang... especially this one with a big blower strapped to its engine!

Now, you may have read some reviews that complained about the noise from the supercharger... well, forget that. The supercharger sounds awesome -completely in character with this car. Let's face it, this car isn't about sophistication and precision. This is raw American power delivered with all the subtlety of a brick through a window. You want a car with no supercharger whine? Buy a Taurus.

I know some of you might find it difficult to forgive this car its various less-than-stellar elements. There are a lot of high-quality $40,000 cars available with luxurious, up-scale interiors and impeccable manners. But there's only one $40,000 car with the luxury of 500 hp and that's the Shelby GT500. I would advise you to get behind the wheel of one and introduce the throttle pedal to the carpet a few times before making your choice.

PERFORMANCE
The Shelby GT500s of the late 1960s were among the most iconic muscle-cars of the era. Their performance is the stuff of legend. So how does today's version of the Shelby GT500 stack up? Although the original is still one of the all time great muscle cars, it can't come close to matching the numbers put up by the 2008 GT500 it inspired.

When considering the performance of the latest Shelby GT500, there are two numbers you need to know: 500 and 42. Those are its horsepower (500) and its cost in thousands of dollars. It's this combination that makes the Shelby GT500 such a compelling car, and quite possibly the king of the bang-for-the-buck category.

Think about it: where else can you find that kind of power for so little money? The answer is nowhere. This car has an honest-to-goodness 500 supercharged ponies driving the rear wheels as the gods of the automotive world intended, for less than $50k... optioned up! Are you kidding me?

Any gripes you may have about the interior or the noise levels or what have you, are answered by this: FIVE HUNDRED HORSEPOWER!

Now, let's put that in perspective: How many cars on the market offer at least 500 hp for less than $100,000? And for simplicity, we'll limit the field to two-doors. Let's see, there's the Dodge Viper SRT10 - absolute animal. Then you have the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 - incredible car. The BMW M6 comes in at just over $100,000. Then there's the GT500KR, which is essentially a GT500 with a few extra bits thrown in. It's a pretty impressive list.

The 5.4L DOHC 32 valve V8 is this car. Forget about everything else like the nav system or the throwback design of the seats or what-have-you. It's all about that V8 and its supercharger. Whenever you need power, it's there. Torque? There is torque EVERWHERE. Under the hood: torque. At the rear wheels: torque. In the glove box: yep, more torque! The truth is, this car answers every call you make to the accelerator pedal instantly.

The torque number may feel like a million, but it's actually a healthy 480 lb.ft. It's distributed through the super-short-throws of the Tremec six-speed manual and accompanied by a mean-sounding supercharger whine that fits the character of the car perfectly. The big Brembo brakes supply ample stopping power once you've started to run out of nerve - or road, and as with the torque there's always plenty there with zero fade.

Unfortunately, the transformation from civilian Mustang to special ops Shelby duty requires some major mods - mainly a heavy-duty iron block and the massive supercharger and its associated plumbing. That stuff adds weight exactly where you don't want it: at the front of the car.

Already slightly nose-heavy, the additional 150 plus pounds at the front end of the GT500 don't do it any favors in the dynamics department. Still, the Shelby handles itself admirably considering it's just shy of 3900 lbs. And the more you drive it, the less you notice its weight. Five-hundred horsepower just has a way of making any car seem relatively light.

Ride and handling balance leans toward performance as you might imagine, but there's still much more ride comfort than you'd expect given the handling. The suspension has a lot of travel and is relatively softly sprung. The car dives under braking and rolls on turn-in, but once it takes a set, it goes through corners really well, with excellent, predictable manners.

Yes, the live rear axle is unyielding over bumps, making the car side-step a little, and the supercharger whine is pretty loud and might get tiresome on a day-to-day basis, but these things are perfectly in keeping with the personality of this car. In my opinion, these characteristics just add to the Shelby GT500's entertaining nature at speed. It may not be for everyone, but personally... I love it!

Watch the video

Ford Mustang Shelby GT500

Performance
- Acceleration: Tire-shredding torque accompanied by awesome supercharger whine results in serious quickness
- Handling: More body roll than expected, but tons of grip once it takes a set - throttle steer always an option
- Braking: Big Brembos do what they're supposed to - lots of dive though

Design
- Exterior: Surprisingly restrained and true to its heritage - still a great looking car... once it's lowered a bit
- Interior: Too much hard plastic and cheap looking materials - more leather than other Mustangs helps though

Utility
- Comfort: Surprisingly comfortable ride given its handling capabilities
- Space: Lots of room in the front - decent sized trunk, but really, who cares?

Safety
- Dynamics: A little bit of understeer built in to keep you out of trouble
- Technology: Four airbags, but 500 horsepower and no stability control... yikes!

Value
- Price: Lots of money for one Mustang... but nothin' for 500 horses
- Mileage: Seriously? If you have to ask, put it in 6th gear and just try to stay out of it. Good luck.

Emotional Appeal
- Heart thumpin' factor: Grows on you with every push of the accelerator
- Fun to spank: An absolute kick-ass car to drive - makes you laugh like a little kid

SPECIFICATIONS

Layout: Front engine / Rear wheel drive
Engine: 5.4 liter, Supercharged V8
Power (SAE): 500 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque: 480 lbs-ft @ 4500 rpm
Redline: 6250 rpm
Gearbox: 6 speed manual
Curb Weight: 3920 lbs.
0-60 mph: 4.5 sec.
1/4 mile: 12.8 sec. @ 115 mph
Top Speed: 155 mph (electronically limited)
Mileage: 14 city / 20 highway
Base Price: $42,685
Competitors: Dodge Challenger SRT-8, Chevrolet Corvette, upcoming Chevrolet Camaro SS