I won't beat around the bush – the adjacent video was filmed with a smartphone by a lady that doesn't know how to windscreen the microphone from the wind noise. Still, we are thankful to her for recording an R-ified 2016 Shelby GT350 Mustang out in the wild, acceleration and idle sounds included.
According to the uploader of the video in question, this GT350R was casually driving in chilly Arizona. Minus the missing rear carbon fiber wing, the camouflaged Mustang is definitely an R thanks to a couple of tell-tale signs. First of all, it's equipped with the 19x11.5-inch rear and 19x11-inch front carbon fiber wheels (this set of wheels is standard kit for the GT350R Mustang).
Secondly, only the 2016 Shelby GT350R Mustang comes with Brembo-sourced red painted brake calipers from the get-go, while the normal GT350 comes as standard with black calipers. If our eyes aren't playing tricks on us, it seems like Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires are featured and the rear seats have been deleted, two more tell-tale signs according to which we're dealing with the more extreme Shelby GT350R Mustang.
The "Shelby GT350R is more than 130 pounds (59 kg) lighter than the Shelby GT350 Track Pack model"
Other than the options list for the all-new muscle car, not much else is known about the 2016 Shelby GT350 Mustang except for its 5.2-liter Voodoo V8 with over 500 HP and a flat-plane crankshaft. All things considered, we'll be dealing with more grunt than what the Camaro Z/28 offers, probably 530 HP.
Regarding the noise, at the beginning of the video you can momentarily hear how neat it rumbles. Then again, the GT350R doesn't have exhaust resonators. Thanks to this detail, you can also hear at the 33-second mark how sonorous is the idle noise of the Voodoo V8 in real life conditions. On an ending note, what's your guesstimate on price for the most basic of the 2016 Shelby GT350 Mustang breed? We're betting on a sticker price of $54,995 plus roughly $6,000 for the Track and Technology packages.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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