This Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Is a Supercar Fighter Without Fear
The 1,300-hp S197 Shelby GT500 proves that relying on old-tech doesn’t necessarily make it obsolete
by Dim Angelov, onIt’s no secret that, performance-wise, cars are evolving at an alarming rate. What was fast 10 or even five years ago, doesn’t cut the bill anymore. As a result, we have become spoiled for power. With that said, there are a few platforms out there that possess incredible potential when it comes to building power. This S197 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 featured on That Racing Channel is a perfect example as it lays down some impressive figures, at least according to the owner – an ex-Ford technician – who built the car for the standing mile.
Old-school tech taken to the extreme
This particular build is based on a Phase III S197 Mustang Shelby GT500. This means that, under the hood, there’s a 5.8-liter, DOHC, “Trinity” V-8 with a supercharger. In stock form, the car makes 662 horsepower (487 kilowatts) and 631 pound-feet (855 Nm), although the torque figure was found to be underrated. Unlike the 5.4-liter version of the Shelby GT500, which was cast-iron, this one is all aluminum. The transmission is a Tremec T56, six-speed manual.
One aspect where there isn’t much you can do to improve the S197 Mustang is the chassis. Even the range-topping Shelby GT500 relies on a live rear axle and the engine is known to overpower the chassis quite easily, even at stock power levels. You can take an educated guess of what will happen with twice the horsepower. The owner quotes some numbers like a “low-nine-second” quarter-mile time at 151 mph (244 km/h) trap speed and a 221.5 mph (356.5 km/h) at the standing mile. Mind you, these are numbers with the stock 2.3-liter blower. Since then, the car has been upgraded with a 2.65-liter VMP blower.
Will it hook?
Even in stock form, the 2013 Shelby GT500 is a tricky car to launch, let alone one that has well over 1,000 horsepower. The car goes up against an impressive array of European high-performance and exotic cars, some of which have their fair share of upgrades. Admittedly, a start from a dig would result in a lot of tire smoke and a severe loss for the Shelby GT500. The video below shows clearly how the manual-equipped Mustang Shelby GT500 stacks up to the European exotics and their quick-shifting, dual-clutch automatics.
