Two weeks on the American Road with America's top Stang .
04-18-09: Birmingham, AL: It wasn't all that long ago that a "super-car" had only 350 or 385hp. That was wow stuff a decade ago. There was the Corvette ZR-1 in 1989 with 375hp. That car was $60,000+ over 20 years ago. Then there was the 2000 Cobra R with 385hp, still a priceless commodity. There was the Ferrari F50, which set the world on its ear in the 1990's with 513hp at a cost of $500,000.
Today we have a pretty good selection of 400, 500 and 600hp premium cars on the market for those who want and can afford them. To that, these modern day super-cars are more affordable than they have ever been and no longer require you to know your mechanic by name. There are several on dealer lots across America from Audi, Mercedes, BMW, Cadillac and of course Ford.
With the all new 2010 Mustang arriving at dealerships across America this week will come the all new Ford Shelby GT-500 later this spring. The SVT engineered Snake has 540hp coming from the virtually the same 5.4 liter DOHC 32-valve supercharged V8 that powered last year's GT-500. The extra power comes by way of some of the tricks that the '08 GT-500KR model brought to the table. These are namely the open element "cold-air intake" and a more aggressive tune.
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The two week test drive for this article started in Phoenix and up to Las Vegas. The GT-500 played the role of pace car for the Mustangs Across America 45 th Anniversary Drive, giving this writer a chance to live and breathe the new Shelby for over 2500 miles of Grade A road trip. This entailed a five day trek from Las Vegas to Birmingham for the Mustang's 45 th Anniversary. What a better way to get to know every little detail of the car and what it is really like to live with one.
So what was it like to flog a new 2010 GT-500 from one end of the country to the other? Let it be magically intoxicating while sublimely entertaining. You see the car has barely been seen by anyone that doesn't live in car mags or automotive internet sites. People came out of their springs everywhere we went. Road construction crews asked us to spin the tires, traffic control officers standing by expecting us to give them a show. We even had three local police officers gather around us in a small New Mexico town who called two more highway patrolmen to come see the car.
Enough chatter about that, you want to know about the car. The first thing we noticed upon start up was the liquid soundtrack provided by a louder exhaust system with 4" chrome tips. It is purely the most tuned and programmed exhaust note you could ask for, exactly what you would want in every situation. It is as if it was generated in a sound lab, digitally mastered through THX and focus grouped to perfection. In fact that is probably not far from the reality of it. Trust us, it really sounds fantastic.
As the miles and days ticked off there wasn't a time when the sound of this car wasn't singing on cue. From the low burble at start up to the baritone bravado upon acceleration it is never too much, but not enough. It rap crackles on coast and roars on acceleration. Combined with the supercharger whine under the hood it is a sound that has become trademark SVT.
Handling is firmed up with increased spring rates and shock valving. The larger 19" ten-spoke wheels give the ride more staccato that takes some of the previous GT-500's soft persona away. In fact this new snake feels significantly more nimble and sharp edged on the road than its predecessor. Mind you, this thing is still a super tanker but one that is remarkably more fun to drive due to its increased responsiveness.
Refinement is the other major leap here. Between the polished driving experience and the new top drawer interior trimmings this new GT-500 can now credibly be compared to other cars in its price range in areas of cabin quality, design and feature content. While that 500hp mill under the hood often trumped the cheap plastic dash and interior confines of the 2007-2009 models, matching a $50,000 price tag to it was sometimes hard in light of the competition from Japan and Germany. It can be said here that this car is now up to snuff.
The 2010 Ford Shelby GT-500 coupe has a base price of $46,325 for the coupe and $51,225. Our tester weighed in at just under $50,000 being well optioned with the HID headlamps and electronics package. The latter included the Sync Navigation system with Sirrius Travel Link. Yeah, more gadgets blah blah. Seriously though if you play with this new NAV system with its satellite enabled features like local gas prices, Doppler weather radar maps, and real time road conditions - you start to wonder how you ever lived without it.
That interior is nicely trimmed with two-tone leather seating with color keyed stripes to match those on the outside. The new interior lighting package while gimmicky on the surface is actually a great way to personalize the look and feel of your cockpit at night. There's nothing like deep blue backlighting under your feet and red halo effects around your gauges to spice up your nightlife. Little details in this cabin like the patterned metal dash appliqué add an air of quality. The hood shaped vanity mirror covers on the visors tell you these people had some fun designing this car.
For those about to give up on this report as froo let us get to the gears and guts of it. The new six-speed short throw shifter flat out rocks. It is as precise as any shifter we have rowed and refused to hang up. The round cue ball shift handle felt just right in the palm and was a welcome place to hang your hand all day long. A quick downshift with anger or a relaxed push into sixth for cruising was consistently tight and smooth in action.
Braking was the only driving input that would load the suspension more than you expected, bringing on some moderate dive at times. Roll stiffness was adequate for a 540hp car however. The traction and stability control allowed enough freedom to give you a light thrill before stepping in on you in daily traffic. But if you want to go drifting like Vaught Gittin Jr. you will want to turn it off. Even then you only get so much of that.
Acceleration is of course what you would expect with 540. Brisk? Violent? Yes, violent works. At freeway speeds you can get from a rolling 75 up to 140mph with a heavy foot and just two snicks of the shifter before you know what happened. Zero to 60 comes in about 4.5 seconds - perhaps less or more depending on your skill. Know however that with its light footed twin disc clutch and aforementioned refinements it is without a doubt the easiest of 540hp car to drive.
In the final analysis, it can be said with a straight face that this is truly the best Mustang that Ford has ever built. Given the heart and soul of last year's GT-500KR for about $30,000 less in MSRP along with all the styling and refinements of the new 2010 body style, this car is hard to beat. Sure it has a live axle that tramps a bit on rough pavement. But that horse has been ridden and beaten dead. This car still scores at the top of the super-car class for a fraction of the super-car price.
That is what makes this thing magic. That is what makes this thing a Mustang. Or is it a snake?
