awsure

Test Drive: New Shelby GT sure to turn heads with cobra image
By Matt Nauman
Mercury News

General Motors stole some of the nostalgic-mojo momentum from Ford's Mustang by first showing a Chevy Camaro concept in Detroit earlier this year, and then saying it will build the car. Dodge is doing the same with its Challenger.

But that new Challenger won't go on sale until 2008, and the new Camaro won't arrive until early 2009, and Ford knows it'll sell a couple of hundred thousand more Mustangs between now and then.

To make sure that the Mustang, revised and substantially improved in 2005, stays hot, Ford Motor has started making special versions for enthusiasts and collectors.

We've seen all this before, of course, when that original '64 1/2 Mustang spawned all manner of GT, Boss, Mach1, Shelby and Cobra models over the next several years.

So, if everything old is new again as we enter a second muscle-car era -- even if this one is fueled by nostalgia and not cheap gas -- then No. 1 on the charts is the 2007 Shelby GT500, just now reaching dealerships.

Coming next year is a Shelby GT (non-500) version of the Mustang. You also can rent a Shelby Mustang GT-H at Hertz locations in 25 cities, including San Jose. There's even a rumor that Ford will produce a new Mustang Boss in 2007.

After a few days holding the keys to a bright red Shelby GT500 convertible, I can testify that this car draws a crowd.

A pair of delivery drivers outside my favorite Chinese restaurant made me pop the hood. They peppered me with questions after I ate peppered shrimp. (OK, it was orange chicken, but I couldn't resist that parallel construction.) Two moms at our swim club coyly said they wanted to see the car, borrowed the keys and took a ride without asking permission.

That's the enduring appeal of the Mustang -- first spawned at the World's Fair in New York in 1964 -- and its many incarnations. Typical of that zeal is what Patrick Covert writes in ``Ultimate Mustang:' ``like fireworks on the Fourth of July, the Ford Mustang phenomenon celebrates who we are.'

Who we are, circa model-year 2007, is the continued strange mingling of horse and snake. The Mustang is a wild horse. The car is named for a fighter jet, but the galloping horse has grazed on its grille for decades. Yet, on Cobra versions of the Mustang over the years, a ready-to-strike snake replaces the horse. I suppose Carroll Shelby deserves blame or credit for this.

He created a Cobra in 1962 by putting a Ford V-8 under the bonnet of a British roadster. He then allowed both his name and the word Cobra to become associated with Mustang.

This new one was created by Ford's Special Vehicle Team, which has created fast versions of the Mustang, Focus and F-150 over the years. So, besides Mustang, Cobra and Shelby, this new car has some SVT labeling, too, such as on its door sills.

Ford, by the way, just calls this car the Shelby GT500, although you could easily identify it as the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 SVT Cobra.

And while I do love the American beauty and be-true-to-your-school personality of the new Mustang, I remain at least a little unconvinced about the wisdom of the Shelby GT500.

Here's why: The Mustang GT, with its loud-and-proud 300-horsepower V-8 is all about affordable fun. Priced from $26,000 to $32,000, depending on whether you opt for deluxe or premium trim, and hardtop or convertible versions, the Mustang GT is a performance-car bargain. That's why publications such as Consumers Digest name the Mustang as a best buy.

The Shelby GT500, at $43,000 for the coupe and $48,000 for the convertible, is something altogether different. And despite its big boost in horsepower, it's certainly no bargain. Car-shopping sites, such as Kelley Blue Book's www.kbb.com, show that buyers are paying $65,000 and up for the '07 Shelby GT500.

Thanks to a Roots-type supercharger, Ford says the 5.4-liter, 32-valve V-8 in th

RLSH700

I agree with alot of what this writer is saying. This car could have been and should have been a lot more. It should be a lot faster than it is. Thank you for contributing this awsure.

awsure

You think Ford will sell 200,000 more Mustang's until the Challenger and Camaro are released? It would be great if DCX could get to market a bit quicker. I'll bet they could convert a bunch of those.

Jeremiah 29:11

I was reading that the Shelby GT will have 325HP, will have hood pins, side scoops, and will be white or silver, with stripes on top but I can't remember the
color and will cost around $35,000.

RLSH700

325hp for $35,000. What a rip off. Yes for the sake of a collectors item, it would be nice but just a rip off like the Bullit GT was just a couple of years ago.

RLSH700

Probably a little less but they will lose a lot of sales when the Challenger and Camaro are released. I don't think they have to worry about losing out too much. The sales will still be there.

purnrg

If I really wanted this car I think I would wait till Hertz gets rid of their rentals and buy one of those, it may even have some potential as a collectors piece since the old Hertz Shelby's can still be seen at shows.
I saw my first GT500 Coupe here in Toronto on the weekend, I have to admit it does look preety good a little quiet though, the owner (an SVT dealer in town) took me for a ride and it does go pretty good as well.

RLSH700

They do look nice none the less. The only thing that might hurt the chances of it being a collector's car is the fact that it was a rental fleet vehicle.

I wouldn't doubt that it could go well. I just think it could have been more is all. I had higher expectations.

awsure

Hopefully they take better care of the higher end rentals than when I worked in that industry. Can't speak for Hertz specifically but when I worked for Alamo (we called in Lame-O for short) we had "release numbers" that we would type in to let the car go out and skip a maintanence window. I had that 20-25 number sequence memorized to the point that I could punch 'em in blindfolded. I had seen cars with 6 months of road time with over $50,000 miles on them (scary)...

Just my experience but I do not think I would ever buy a rental car. That said I would think a specialty car like that would get better treatment...

ED1971PA

I was really surprised by the lousy interior of the new Shelbys, I know it's not the reason why u would buy a car like that but the original Shelbys had really cool interiors and they stood apart from regular Mustangs and it was a whole cool package deal, they really could have done a better job on the new ones, I think the convertibles even have different stripes which makes no sense to me at all either lol. I don't think they are bringing back the roll bar either which really surprised me as well. I guess none of this really matters anyway because once the Challenger comes out again they will reclaim their place at the top of the food chain.