Grabber Lime 2020 Shelby GT500 Mesmerizes at M1 Concourse

Ford Performance found a way to make the 2020 Shelby GT500 even more of an attention-getter at a Michigan drive event.

It’s been several years since Ford has produced a new Shelby GT500 Mustang. The good news is that the 2020 model is almost here. In fact, you can see one in all of its Grabber Lime glory in this video from the YouTube channel StangMode. The bad news is that there’s still a lot that remains to be revealed about it.

Ford invited StangMode out to the M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan to drive the 2020 GT500 and other Mustangs, including the 2019 GT350, on the track. Before he goes out to set some lap times, StangMode spends a few minutes showing his viewers around the 700-plus horsepower mega Mustang. Its Grabber Lime green paint is appropriately named because StangMode can’t take his eyes off of it. According to StangMode, “Pictures don’t do it justice. Not even this video does.”

But there’s plenty more to see than just that. It’s no mystery that the 2020 model doesn’t share the same headlights as the 2018-2019 Mustangs and uses the units from the 2015-2017 cars instead. It all comes down to cooling. StangMode says, “The carbon composite radiator cooling system fits … better with those [2015-2017] headlights.”

That radiator has to keep the supercharged 5.2-liter V8 (which differs from the GT350 in another major way because it uses a cross-plane crank) cool on the road and at the track. StangMode and the rest of us will have to wait until this summer to find out exactly how much power it generates, but there are two things we know for sure: The hood has cool push-button releases on both sides (think hood pins without the pins) and it stays up thanks to a strut instead of just a prop rod.

Inside, the GT500 features a two-tone interior and Ford’s trick digital instrument cluster. The rotary shifter for the dual-clutch automatic is connected to a pair of Raptor-esque shift paddles behind the steering wheel. As a Ford representative puts it, “You can’t miss them.” When StangMode asks him why Ford isn’t offering a manual gearbox, he deflects and tries to put the focus on the 2019 GT350 across the parking lot.

That’s OK. Pretty soon the media embargo dam will break and the internet will be flooded with 2020 GT500 specs and driving impressions. When that happens, we’ll be sure to keep the information flowing here on The Mustang Source.

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Derek Shiekhi

Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.

After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.

While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.

Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.

In addition to writing for a variety of Internet Brands sites, including JK Forum, H-D Forums, The Mustang Source, Mustang Forums, LS1Tech, HondaTech, Jaguar Forums, YotaTech, and Ford Truck Enthusiasts. Derek also started There Will Be Cars on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.