Car people know how collectible the 1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 is. Others are more accustomed to Eleanor from Gone In 60 Seconds for obvious reasons, but what if I told you that MAG Motors blends those two muscle cars with modern amenities to create a totally unique proposition?
Enter the GT500R, a.k.a. the "MAGStang." A built-to-order bad boy that’s not affiliated with Shelby American or the Ford Motor Company, the R in GT500R is “a reference to restored or reimagined vehicle."
Under the carbon-fiber body shell beautified by exposed carbon fiber, an example of the 2014 Shelby GT500 is hiding with quite a few go-faster upgrades. From the factory-rated output of 662 horsepower at the crankshaft, the 5.8-liter supercharged V8 now develops 655 RWHP thanks to “small tweaks” for the intake and exhaust systems, throttle body, and pulley.
Speaking to Autotopia L.A., Michael from MAG Motors suggests that a low-mileage GT500 can be picked up for $40,000 or thereabouts while the MAGStang costs $195,000 excluding the donor vehicle. In other words, you’re looking at $250,000 with a few options like the Italian distressed leather.
The enormous torque of the 5.8-liter Trinity is channeled to 305-section rubber shoes complemented by widebody fender flares and Brembo brake calipers that squeeze cross-drilled rotors. Forgeline wheels, a remote power trunk lid, Focal audio, Alpine infotainment, blue stitching, Alcantara, and 3D-printed stuff are also featured. As for the windows, the up/down switches are styled after those on the dashboard of the Ford GT from 2005 and 2006.
As opposed to most other restomods, the MAGStang features a few modern safety nannies as well. These include traction and stability control from the Shelby GT500 as well as the front crumple zones and plenty of airbags. Minimizing wheel spin off the line is the job of the launch control system that allows the driver to set the desired engine speed from 3,000 to 4,500 rpm.
Last, but certainly not least, care to guess the weight of this fellow here? The no-nonsense muscle car with quad tips and sequential turn signals is “just under 4,000 pounds” according to Michael, translating to 1,814 kilograms.
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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