No catchy title to this post is needed. It’s the Ford Shelby GT500 and it will go on sale this summer as both a
coupe and convertible. The supercharged 5.4L V8 has been officially rated by Ford at 475 hp. While not the 500 hp for
which some were hoping (don’t want to get too close to the GT now, eh?), it’s still an impressive amount of
thrust and enough to make this car the most powerful Mustang ever.
The GT500 does get some hand-me-down
performance parts from the Ford GT, including aluminum, four-valve cylinder heads, piston rings and bearings. It also
received proven components from Ford’s racing Mustang FR500C, which absolutely dominated last season’s
Grand-Am Cup Series, including a heavy-duty six-speed manual. This Mustang’s stoppers are bigger than the Lazy
Susan on my mom’s kitchen table, with vented rotors measuring 14 inches up front and 11.8 inches in the rear, all
four of which are clamped by Brembo 4-piston calipers.
Read on for more info, pics and the official release
after the jump…
Shelby and SVT badging are liberally applied on the vehicle’s exterior and in the cabin, while Le Mans
stripes are added to the coupe’s wardrobe but left off of the convertible as a nod to the original Shelby Mustang
convertibles that were sans stripes.
Ford claims that “SVT is primed for growth with the GT500
serving as the foundation for other performance Mustang projects.” Uh, sweet. Almost as sweet as the dinner that
Chris and I were invited to tonight with Carroll Shelby and Hau Thai-Tang, the director of SVT. Yes, my job is sweet
and no, you can’t have it. We’ll recount the dinner date later tonight.
DETROIT, Jan. 8, 2006 – What happens when a legend from Texas reunites with a legend from Dearborn? The most
powerful Mustang ever.
After 40 years, racing legend Carroll Shelby and the Ford Mustang are back
together with the introduction of the 2007 Ford Shelby GT500.
The collaboration between Shelby and
Ford’s Special Vehicle Team (SVT) is yielding an instant collector’s Mustang that builds 475 horsepower in
its 5.4-liter supercharged V-8.
A modern interpretation of the Shelby Mustang of the 1960s, the Ford Shelby GT500
uses advanced engineering to attain the performance that made the original GT500 the king of the road.
True
to the original GT500, it will be available both as a coupe and as a convertible when it goes on sale in the summer of
2006.
“When Carroll was developing the original GT350 and GT500, he wanted to build the most powerful,
most capable Mustangs of his day,” says Hau Thai-Tang, director, Advanced Product Creation and Special Vehicle
Team. “Our goal was to build the most powerful, most capable Mustang ever.”
Serving as
touchstone and inspirational leader for both the concept and the production versions, Shelby was impressed by what the
team has accomplished.
“It’s one thing to put 450 horsepower in an exotic supercar,” says
Shelby. “It’s another to put that much power in something as affordable as a Mustang. The fact that they not
only met their goal but pushed on to 475 horsepower is a remarkable achievement.”
Shelby knows
something about creating modern supercars. He served as a senior adviser on the team that developed and built the
550-horsepower Ford GT.
Power
Play
As expected of anything with Shelby’s name on it, the heart of the car is what’s under the
hood. The Ford Shelby GT500’s supercharged 5.4-liter, 32-valve V-8 evolves from Ford’s experience with
tuning its modular, or MOD, engines. Output is a brawny 475 horsepower.
The engine is force-fed an
air-and-fuel mixture via a “Roots-type” supercharger providing 8.5 pounds per square inch of boost. The
GT500 uses a cast-iron engine block. It borrows from the Ford GT program aluminum, four-valve cylinder heads, piston
rings and bearings, adding a high level of performance durability to the drivetrain. “Powered by SVT”
camshaft covers add the finishing touch to the engine.
Helping put the power to the pavement is a 6-speed
manual gearbox. For the performance driver, its evenly spaced gears mean less “stirring” is needed to find
the “sweet spot.” This gives a rewarding experience throughout the engine’s broad torque curve. The
heavy-duty transmission has proven itself a willing companion to Mustangs in both road and track environments,
including recent road-going Mustang Cobras and the new race-winning Mustang FR500C.
Power Requires Control
The Ford Shelby GT500 continues a legacy of all-around
performance that made the original a world-class racer on tracks and road courses around the world.
The Ford Shelby GT500 starts with the solid Mustang underpinnings. The all-new Mustang was designed from the
beginning with performance derivatives in mind, providing an exceptionally rigid, well-engineered starting point for
GT500 chassis engineers.
SVT engineers retuned and upgraded key chassis components. Improvements such
as revised shocks, spring rates and upgraded stabilizer bars help the Ford Shelby GT500 stop and turn with the same
authority as it goes.
The Ford Shelby GT500 features a MacPherson strut independent front suspension with
Reverse L lower control arms, and a solid-axle, three-link rear suspension with coil springs and a Panhard rod for
precise control of the rear axle.
This rear suspension design has been validated on the track by Ford
Racing. The Ford Racing Mustang FR500C was purpose-built from the base 2005 Mustang body structure and suspension
geometry to run in the Grand-Am Cup series, a class of road racing for production-based cars.
Competing against
the best from Germany and Japan, a Mustang FR500C won its first race in the season opener at Daytona International
Speedway in February 2005. It went on to dominate the season and clinch the championship.
“SVT and
Ford Racing will be working closer than ever as we go forward on future projects, especially Mustangs,” says
Thai-Tang, a Ford Racing alumnus who served as the race engineer for the Newman-Haas Racing team in 1993.
To match this power and handling ability, engineers fitted some of the biggest brakes in the business to the Ford
Shelby GT500. Four-piston Brembo calipers are fitted to 14-inch Brembo vented rotors up front, and 11.8-inch vented
discs in the rear continue SVT’s legacy of great-braking Mustangs. Secure footing is provided by 255/45ZR
high-performance tires in front and 285/40ZR high-performance tires in back. Wheels are
18 inches by 9.5
inches.
The Snake is
Back
One glance shows this is not the typical Mustang Cobra. A sinister-looking front-end design includes wide
upper and lower fascia openings with a functional air splitter. The upper intake sports the famous Cobra logo
floating off-center in place of a centered galloping pony found on other Mustangs. On either side, slanting headlamp
openings add to the dramatic front appearance.
The bulging hood has heat extractors protruding near the
leading edge, combining to provide improved airflow and aerodynamics. As air passes over the hood, hot air from the
engine compartment is drawn out through ducts attached to the hood extractors.
“The restrained,
performance-oriented SVT design theme has become instantly recognizable to enthusiasts without brash styling
cues,” says Doug Gaffka, design director, Ford SVT vehicles. “The GT500 takes a huge leap forward by
combining the modern Mustang muscle car with the classic Shelby performance look.”
The 2005 Mustang
design team drew inspiration from classic 1968 Mustangs, the models that transformed the mild-mannered pony car into a
muscle car with attitude. Envisioning a high-performance model, the team tested GT500 design cues on the Mustang GT
coupe concept that was unveiled at the 2003 North American International Auto Show.
In 2004,
designers further developed the GT500 look on the Mustang GT-R, a race-bred concept with the dual purpose of
foreshadowing SVT’s Mustang design direction and Ford Racing’s plans to return Mustang to road racing. The
Ford Shelby GT500 Cobra concept coupe capped the design conceptualization effort.
The production Ford Shelby
GT500 Coupe now comes into full light, punctuated by the classic Le Mans-style white stripes that race along the
top from nose to tail. The stripes recall the Shelby Mustangs that marked another important 1960s Mustang transition
when Ford put it on the track to becoming a racing legend. The GT500 nomenclature is prominent in the lower bodyside
racing stripe, another cue from the classic Shelby Mustangs.
In a touch also borrowed from the
GT500’s past, no Le Mans stripes will be seen on the 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 Convertible. However, the convertible
will sport a cloth top similar to those fond on pricier convertibles.
“There were no Le Mans stripes on
Shelby’s original GT500 Convertible, so we decided to pay homage by not offering them on the 2007 Ford Shelby
GT500,” says Gaffka. “We also went with a cloth top material as another measure of substance and
authenticity. The fabric used is the same used on the 2002-03 SVT Mustang Cobra, the Thunderbird, Jaguar and
Ford’s other high-end convertibles.”
The unique rear fascia features lower strakes inspired by
the Ford GT’s integrated rear airflow diffuser, and a rear spoiler reminiscent of a classic GT500. To mark the
collaboration of two Mustang performance icons, the GT500 features Shelby and SVT badging.
The fenders each
feature an updated design of the Cobra. The front grille features an off-center snake in place of the standard running
horse. “GT500” is emblazoned inside the side rocker stripes, and the name SHELBY is prominently written
across the rear deck. The SVT logo can be seen on the wheel center caps, a signature SVT location, as well as on the
doorsill plates. To top it off, the medallion between the taillights reads “Shelby GT500” centered on the
Cobra image.
Cockpit
Upgrades
Inside, too, upgraded levels of flair and function abound. The locations of the speedometer and the
tachometer are swapped to provide performance-oriented drivers with a better view of shift points while changing gears.
Front seats have received additional lateral support to help keep the driver optimally positioned during cornering. The
interior is offered in a choice of two colors, Charcoal Black or Charcoal Black and Crimson Red. The charcoal/red
offering features Crimson Red seating surfaces and door panel inserts. Seating surfaces are leather with both interior
treatments. Snake logos embossed in the seat backs finish the package.
The Shelby GT500 script and Cobra
image are repeated on the steering wheel cap. Behind the wheel, the gauges wear light faces in keeping with SVT
tradition. The chromed accessories inside the cabin have been replaced with a satin aluminum finish, including the
aluminum shift lever knob that is nicely positioned for quick, positive shifts.
SVT and Shelby: The Legends Grow
With the look and legend one would expect from Shelby and the kind
of power and performance enthusiasts have come to expect from SVT, the GT500 points to a brand-new era in Ford’s
performance future.
Shelby first put his name on a Mustang back in 1964 when he was asked to inject some
high performance into the brand-new pony car. The result was the GT-350R, a lightweight, handling-focused race car that
earned Mustang its first performance credentials. Subsequent Shelby Mustangs included a street version of the race car,
the GT-350, and what was known as the “rent-a-racer” Mustang, the GT-350H, a joint project with the Hertz
rental car corporation.
The ultimate Shelby Mustang of the era was the GT-500KR, or “King of the
Road.” Powered by a big block 428-cubic-inch “Cobra Jet” V-8, the GT-500 was one of the most
powerful, and memorable, muscle cars of that period. Shelby Mustang production ceased in 1970 with a total volume of
14,559 units.
The Ford Special Vehicle Team brought high performance back to Mustang in 1993. After 12
years, with nearly 80,000 high-performance Mustangs on the streets and total SVT vehicle production nearing 145,000,
SVT is primed for growth with the GT500 serving as the foundation for other performance Mustang projects.
By
bringing together Shelby and Ford SVT, the company’s commitment to performance becomes as powerful as at any time
in its history – including the famed “Total Performance” days of the 1960s. From the Ford GT
supercar, the GT500, to a rejuvenated Ford Racing Performance Parts program, performance and racing can drive
innovation and add luster to Ford’s proud brand heritage.
“SVT will remain the leader in
performance vehicle engineering,” says Thai-Tang. “It will continue to build new, innovative products using
advanced processes that will not only provide great enjoyment to the dedicated driving enthusiast, but that also will
provide great benefit to other Ford products and Ford Motor Company itself.”
The Ford Shelby GT500
will be built at the Ford-Mazda joint venture, AutoAlliance International, in Flat Rock, Mich.