Autoblog

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There's horsepower, and then there's dyno-tested, can't-lie-to-your-friends horsepower. If you want to know how much power a car really makes, you've got to strap it to a dyno and spin it to redline. The guys over at 5.0 Mustang & Super Fords are always eager to find the true horsepower of a car, and so when they took delivery of a GT500KR to review they headed straight to the dyno to see how much power the supercharged V8 is putting out. What they found was somewhat surprising -- the KR produced 509 horsepower and 467.7 lb.-ft. torque to the wheels. Adjusting for an estimated driveline loss of 15 percent, the actual output at the flywheel is 589.82 hp and 550.24 lb-ft torque -- nearly 50 more horsepower and 40 more lb-ft than Ford is claiming. Take that Z06!

Gallery: First Drive: 2008 Shelby GT500KR Part 2

When Ford announced the GT500KR's based price of $79,995, many of you thought that it was pretty steep for a Mustang. Even though it's a limited edition Shelby with 540 horsepower, $80,000 can buy a lot of really nice cars. What's even more insane is that we know people will not only buy the KR, but they will pay tens of thousands of dollars over MSRP just to have one. The only question was how much dealers would try and gouge. That question has been answered. Lone Star Ford in Houston, TX has put up a red GT500KR on eBay Motors with a "Buy It Now" price of...$154,991.00. That's nearly double the MSRP. Who knows if anyone will actually buy it at that price, but going off what happened with the standard GT500, then it's quite possible. While we enjoyed our first drive in the GT500KR (check out Part 1 and Part 2), we can think of quite a few cars we'd rather have for $150,000.

[Source: eBay Motors]

Our initial drive of the Shelby GT500KR on public roads revealed that Ford, SVT and Shelby had addressed many of the issues that we had with the standard GT500. The KR's revised suspension is better balanced and more capable of handling the excessive amounts of horsepower and torque that the blown 5.4L generates, and a new short-throw Hurst shifter makes changing gears a joy instead of a chore. To top it all off, a Ford Racing cold air intake, new exhaust system, and 3.73 gears give the KR an extra kick in the pants. The changes were so spot-on that we wondered why Ford didn't build the GT500 this way in the first place.

With a ride like the GT500KR, however, only so much of the car can be experienced on public roads. At 540 horsepower and 510 lb-ft torque, the KR quickly reaches posted speed limits and the car stays well under its limits around corners. Fortunately, Ford let us loose to run hot laps around Miller Motorsports Park. Follow the jump to see how the "King of the Road" fared at the track.

Gallery: First Drive: 2008 Shelby GT500KR Part 2

Click here to read First Drive: 2008 Shelby GT500KR, Part 1.

Click above for a high resolution gallery of the 2008 Shelby GT500KR

I have to admit, the Shelby GT500 was somewhat of a letdown. I have no complaints about the 500 horsepower or the muscular lines, but at nearly 4,000 pounds, it's got a serious weight problem. The iron block, 5.4-liter V8 and the addition of a supercharger puts much the weight in the worst possible place -- the front -- so the GT500 feels unmotivated around the corners compared to a regular Mustang GT. Other complaints include a suspension that doesn't seem up to snuff to handle the prodigious power, as well as a vague and rubbery shifter. Despite its shortcomings, the GT500 is one of the world's best performance bargains. Never before has such a powerful car been available for so little cash (although the Ford dealers did a pretty good job of ruining its value with markups). Still, one couldn't help but think that the GT500 could have been better.

Gallery: First Drive: 2008 Shelby GT500KR

Check out First Drive: 2008 Shelby GT500KR, Part 2 by clicking here.

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[We originally listed a final selling price of $605,000, accounting the 10% auction fees. Since this auction was for charity, there were no additional fees and the final selling price is actually $550,000]

What does it cost to be the King of the Road? Apparently $550,000. That's how much Ron Pratte, who seems to be buying just about every Shelby at Barrett-Jackson, paid for the right to own the very first 2008 Shelby GT500 KR Glass Roof. That will only last for a while, though, since at least 999 more KR's will be built and are currently being assembled at the Shelby plant in Las Vegas. Numero uno features a black-on-black paint scheme that looks stunning in person, as well as a glass roof option that won't be available for the rest of production. As usual, Carroll Shelby was on hand to send the car off, reminding buyers why they are paying this much money for a Mustang. All the proceeds from the sale went to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, so it's all for a good cause.

Gallery: Barrett-Jackson 2008: 2008 Shelby GT500 KR #0001