2013 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible kicks out 650 hp, limits top speed

Damon Lavrinc — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:01:00 EST

Filed under: Chicago Auto Show, Convertible, Performance, Ford

Twenty years ago, Ford debuted the 1993 SVT Mustang Cobra at the Chicago Auto Show and introduced the world to its high-performance skunkworks department, known as SVT or Special Vehicle Team.

Today, Ford celebrates SVT's platinum anniversary the only way it knows how: with another Mustang variant. And as suspected, it comes in the form of a topless Shelby GT500.

Just as a refresher, at the 1992 show in Chicago the SVT Cobra put out 235 horsepower from its Vanilla Ice-approved 5.0-liter V8. Twenty years later, displacement has grown by less than a liter, but thanks to some 21st century tech and a massive supercharger, the 5.8-liter V8 in the 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible makes the same 650 hp (and 600 pound-feet of torque) as its coupe counterpart, laying claim to the most powerful production V8 in the world.

In addition to the carbon fiber driveshaft, upgraded clutch, transmission and axle, SVT fitted its own specially developed Bilstein electronic adjustable dampers, along with six-piston Brembo calipers squeezing massive discs up front.

Like the coupe, the Bilstein setup is part of the Performance Package (why it's not included as standard is beyond us) and Ford will also offer a Track Pack that includes an external oil cooler, differential cooler and transmission cooler to keep temps in check when flogging the drop top around the tarmac.

And before you ask: No, the GT500 coupe's 200 mph top speed doesn't carry over to the Convertible. In a rare moment of sanity, Ford's engineers saw fit to limit the GT500 'vert to 155 mph - like the rest of the roofless Mustangs. Hit the jump for the full details.

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Review: 2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible

Steven J. Ewing — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Ford, New Car Reviews

A Motor City Summer Romance

2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible - Click above for high-res image gallery

When you grow up in Detroit, the Ford Mustang is so much more than just another performance car. It's arguably the most iconic automobile born within these city limits, and anyone who's called the area home can't help but feel an overwhelming sense of pride while driving the Blue Oval's pony through the Motor City. It's like eating a hot dog at the ballpark - you can't explain why, but it just tastes better.

At the tippy top of the Mustang hierarchy sits the Shelby GT500 with its supercharged 5.4-liter V8, 550 horsepower and an exhaust note that will wake the neighbors. Our love for the GT500 has run deep since its debut in 2006, though most of that affection was never given to the convertible. The droptop Ford suffers from substantially more handling and rigidity issues than the coupe, and when you consider the added price that Ford charges to lob off the roof ($5,000, in this case), it can seem like a puzzling proposition.

For 2011, Ford has tweaked the GT500's core, not to mention stiffening individual components of both the front and rear suspension setups. That, combined with a new electric power assist steering system, means this should be the most driver-focused GT500 yet. Thus, we put the top back and basked in the warm Michigan sun to rekindle our love with Detroit's most powerful pony car. This, friends, is our kind of end-of-summer lovin'.

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Gallery: 2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible: Review

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Review: 2011 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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