ort lattò COhscruvr
December 19. 2007
Portland OL s e r v e r
Page A9
Auto R e v ie w
2007 Ford Shelby
GT500 Coupe
Smokin’ Fast
by
K athleen C arr
The 2007 Ford Shelby G T500 is a
powerf ul pony ear for the 21 st ce n
tury. Carroll Shelby and the good
people at Shelby A utom otive have
partnered with the Ford Special
V ehicle T eam to create a high-tech
m uscle car with a stream lined race
track feel; this is the m ost powerful
factory-built M ustang ever offered.
It's fleeting because this car is
the fastest production M ustang
ever. The 5.4-1 iter V8 under the hixxJ
is supercharged and capable o f 500
horsepow er and 480 lb-ft o f torque
at 4500 rpm. T his translates into a 0
to 60 mph tim e o f approxim ately 4.5
seconds; the Shelby G T 500 is d efi
nitely not shy and retiring.
The new Shelby G T500 also will
be fleeting in its appearance at
dealerships because only 8,000 to
10,000 will be built. This is roughly
two cars per Ford dealership in the
U.S., assum ing all 4,400 Ford o ut
lets apply for "certification" to
handle and provide service for the
high-perform ance M ustang. The
car is in high dem and. How much
dem and? The Shelby G T 500 was
appreciating in value before its first
retail sale could be posted.
A ficionados know they are get
ting m ore than a retro-styled sports
car, offered as a four-person coupe
Specifications: 5.4-Liter, 500-hp@480 ib-ft. torque, V8, 32-Valve DOHC SMPI Engine; 6-speed
manual transmission; 0-60 mph: 4.5 seconds; 15-City 21-Highway MPG; $43,765. MSRP
and convertible. They're getting an
h o n e s t-to -g o o d n e s s A m e ric a n
m uscle carexperience with the spe
cial touches o f racing legend Carroll
Shelby.
The 2007 Shelby coupe has wide,
w hite Le M ans racing stripes from
front to rear, side striping and share
an alm ost snarling grille, as well as
aggressive front fascia with hood
scoops. Yes, these scoops are func
tional. They help relieve pressure
under the hood.
All Shelby GT500s wear large 18-
inch perform ance tires— something
that Shelby insisted upon the back
tires are slightly larger than those
on the front. T hey're needed to help
"harness all the torque,” At the
back are dual tailpipes, o f course, a
rear spoiler and a prom inent, round
badge as large as a person's hand,
with a cobra snake prominently dis
played on the trunk lid. A cobra
appears on the black grille, in the
m iddle o f the steering wheel and is
em bossed on each o f the seatbacks,
too.
Inside, the new Shelby G T 500 is
a throw back to earlier days, when
driving was the attraction, not a
sidelight as it seem s in some of
today's cars. Leather seat cushions
have the busy, multi-channel look
o f early Shelbys but with some
m uch-needed side bolster support
added. G auges are w hite-faced with
the speedom eter located on the left,
so drivers can more easily see the
rpm readings o f the tach.
There's no navigation system in
this speedster and no fancy TV -like
display screen by which to adjust
tem perature. C ontrols are much
more straightforw ard. T he audio is
a I (XX)-watt Shaker system with AM/
FM, a six-disc CD /M P3 player in
the dashboard and Sirius satellite
radio. There are 10 speakers in the
car.
But the real entertainm ent here is
driving and riding in the Shelby
G T500. A nd it's in watching on
lookers turn when they hear the
c a r's d eep , th u n d e ro u s en g in e
sounds, then stop and stare. S im
ply, th ere’s no slinking q uietly
through traffic in this car. A throaty
V8 growl em anates virtually all the
tim e, even at neighborhood speeds.
News and reviews on new motor vehicles
W ith one turn o f the ignition U nder full hum an co n tro l, we
key, all cabin shortcom ings o f the shaved 0 . 1 second from the 60-
2007 Shelby G T 500 are forgotten. m ph sprint, lo w erin g it to 4 .4 se c
The gutsy V-8 sneezes into life w ith onds. T he q u arte r-m ile req u ired
the unequivocal m essage that the only 12.9 seconds at 112 m ph, 150
main entertainm ent to be had in this m ph cam e in 30.3 seconds, and an
car will be via the gas pedal. With electronic teth er lim ited top speed
the short-throw shifter in one hand to 155 m ph.
The Shelby G T 500 is not only a
and the C obra-em bossed three-
frighteningly
potent car (the 500
spoke steering wheel in the other.
U nder the hood, you'll find a horsepow er from its supercharged
supercharged 5.4 liter, 32-valve V8 V-8 engine was enough to whiten
engine capable o f 500 horsepower. our knuckles even on legal roads),
The engine is based on the Triton, it also is a bookend to a generation
but sleeked dow n with alum inum o f m uscle cars starting w ith its
heads and unique cam shafts. The nam esake, the G T500 that m ade its
07 Ford Shelby G T 500 has other debut 4 0 years ago; with the Shelby
high-perform ance goodies, includ G T 500, the d riving ex p erien ce
ing a high-capacity cooling sys changes com pletely.
Safety features include standard
tem, air intake, and radiator.
TheG T 500's suspension is tuned front and side airbags for front-seat
for spirited driving, but this does passengers, anti-lock brakes and
not translate into the bone-shaking traction control. There are several
ride that com es with many stiffened anti-theft devices, too, including
suspension configurations. The an anti-tow sensor that detects the
folks on the Ford SVT have really car being put on an incline and
pulled out all the stops on this one. sounds an alarm , as well as a high-
The 2007 Shelby GT5(X) is of capacity battery that can sound an
fered with a single transm ission alarm for a longer period than a
option in the form o f a heavy-duty normal battery
The 2007 Ford Shelby G T500 is a
TR6060 six-speed manual gearbox.
M oreover, the Shelby has a pro pow erful pony car for the 21 st cen
gram m able shift light and audible tury. The 2007 Ford Shelby G T is a
chirp to free your eyes from m oni retro-styled rocket ship that will
toring the 6000-rpm redline on the appeal to driving purists. If cabin
com fort is more important than 500
tach.
The 2007 Ford Shelby G T 500 is horsepow er, look elsew here. If not,
a brash, b raw ny, barn burner. jo in the back o f the w ait list.
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