Car enthusiasts across the country were certainly psyched to hear that fresh off the special50th edition of the Ford Mustang, other manufacturers would offer their special edition takes on classic cars for 2015.
Recently, one of them was spotted on the road. Chris Nelson, road test editor for Automobile magazine, spotted the beast of a vehicle – the Mustang Shelby GT350 – in Palm Springs, Calif., in early December. The results were quite impressive.
The Shelby GT350: Looks, Features and Mechanics
Looks. For starters, the Shelby GT350 is a sexy beast. The one in Palm Springs was painted a robust red, with two silver racing stripes down the middle.
Shelby American gave the Mustang a complete facelift. The two-door sports car boasts tons of new design features, such as new side skirts, a completely new front fascia, a new diffuser, new wheels, larger exhaust tips and a hood power bulge, among many others.
Features. For the most part, the inside of the Mustang Shelby GT350 is virtually identical to that of the standard Mustang.
With a clean, leather interior, in addition to the performance of the six-speed vehicle, the GT350 is also as comfortable as you can imagine. Offering great lines of vision and easy access to all interior gadgets and switches, drivers are certain to feel completely in control of this bad boy.
Mechanics. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait awhile to find out exactly what’s under the hood of the Shelby GT350. It’s probably safe to assume that the Mustang’s 5.0-liter, V-8 engine has had at least a little bit of power added to it. After all, Shelby spruced up its similar offerings in the past.
Just how fast will this car be able to travel, and how powerful will it be?
There’s been rumors that the GT350 could boast as much as 600 horsepower. However, a number that high is probably unlikely, so a more conservative guess would place that number somewhere in the 500 horsepower range, which is still plenty powerful.
It’s also quite likely that Shelby upgraded the vehicle’s braking system and a whole lot more, too. We’ll have to wait and see what tricks the car has up its sleeves until it’s officially unveiled.
Fifty Years of Mustangs – and a Whole Lot of Tributes
It’s important to keep in mind that, while the Shelby GT350 is undoubtedly an attractive and powerful car, it carries quite the price tag. For example, the car manufacturer offered upgrades ranging from $14,995 to $27,995 on Mustangs made between 2011 and 2014.
So, to get one of these machines, you’d not only have to shell out that kind of cash – you’d have to shell it out on top of the price of a straight-up Mustang.
If money’s not an object, it’s certainly a pretty safe bet to say that this car would be fun as hell to drive and totally worth the price tag.
It’s also worth keeping in mind the fact that Shelby isn’t making the only tribute Mustang. Other cars on the market include the 2015 Roush Mustangs, the 2015 Saleen S302 Mustang and the 2015 HPE700 supercharged Ford Mustang from Hennesey.
In any event, it’ll be exciting to see the Shelby GT350 – and its brothers and sisters – in action. I know I can’t wait.