Compared to vinyl stripes, painted stripes are a lot better from a visual standpoint and in terms of durability. Ford decided to paint these stripes beneath the clear coat, requiring a special process that amounts to a $10,000 option for your Shelby GT500. Wait, what?
You’ve heard that right! The car also happens to be shipped to Penske for painting, and the process eliminates the gaps associated with the much cheaper vinyl stripes. In the order guide, the lesser of the two options adds $1,000 to the retail price of the 760-horsepower land missile. As for torque, make that 625 pound-feet from 5.2 liters of displacement.
The Predator V8 is connected from the get-go to a dual-clutch transmission instead of a torque-converter automatic or a good ol’ manual, a shocking departure from the previous GT500 models. A well-equipped example of the breed can be specified to $100,000 if you’re OK with paying that kind of money for a road-going ‘Stang, the most powerful ever.
Top speed is limited to 180 miles per hour and Ford is much obliged to announce a sub-11-second pass for the quarter-mile run. Even though it’s not a no-nonsense drag racer such as the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon, the Shelby GT500 handles a lot better in the twisties thanks to the performance know-how the Blue Oval has to offer at this price point.
Including destination charge and the gas guzzler tax, the most affordable Shelby GT500 for the 2020 model year is $73,995 in the United States. There’s no denying U.S. dealerships will profit from all of the hype through market adjustments, ramping up the price to ludicrous sums. The same happened with the Toyota GR Supra, which as opposed to the Ford, it’s a bit of a disappointment that doesn’t hold a candle to the previous gen.
Both the Shelby and GT500 nameplates are registered trademarks of the Carroll Hall Shelby Trust. Speaking of the American racing driver and automotive designer, Shelby would’ve been proud to see the GT500 evolving into the muscly brute we have today.
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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