The 2012 Shelby GT500 bumps up to 800 hp.
Carroll Shelby has never been one to take a back seat in the muscle car race, so if a Lamborghini is ready to settle with a mere 700 horsepower, it just seems somehow natural to expect the Texan’s team to weigh in with 800.
Yep, the supercharged 5.4-liter V8 in the Ford Mustang-based GT500 Super Snake will make an astounding 800 horsepower when the 2012 model rolls into showrooms. That’s nearly 200 more ponies than the first GT500 made at launch in 2008 – but even more impressive, perhaps, it’s 100 more than you’ll get out of the new Lamborghini Aventador – for barely a third the price.
All right, perhaps you won’t get quite the bragging rights or quite as sophisticated a platform as the raging bull offers with the carbon fiber 2-seater, but Shelby insists the Super Snake is more than just a gussied up Mustang.
The Super Snake makes its debut in NY.
The 2012 GT500 features the Ford Racing handling pack including dynamic adjustable dampers, lowered springs, tuned stabilizer bars and front strut tower brace, forged brakes with 6-piston calipers, a special Borla exhaust, unique 20-inch wheels and more. A fiberglass hood helps puts the Super Snake on a weight loss program, meanwhile.
Why a New York intro? The Shelby brand has a rich history in the Big Apple, insists Shelby Amerivan President John Luft.
“The very first Shelby car was introduced there in 1962, as well as the 1968 and 2008 Shelby GT500KR and the 2006 Shelby Hertz GT-H. This year, we’re returning with one of the most powerful and important Shelbys ever built,” he says.
Shelby American will also be displaying the limited-edition GT350 at the upcoming NY Auto Show.