Shelby GT500 Reincarnated with 1,000 RWHP Is Pure Terror

Back in 2013, the Shelby GT500 Mustang was scary. Thanks to its 1,000 rear-wheel horsepower, this modified one is terrifying.

They say time heals all wounds. The logic is that as days, months and years go by, you feel the pain of a defeat or personal loss less and less. In a way, you become desensitized. Car enthusiasts get desensitized over time, too. Back in 2013, Ford did something outrageous when it introduced a Shelby GT500 Mustang with 662 horsepower. Not too long after that, Dodge brought out the 707-horsepower Challenger Hellcat and stunned the world. These days, what used to be eye-popping amounts of power that’d get a quick “Oh, cool” or “Nice.” So what does it take to make an impressively potent car these days? The quick answer is more power.

A lot more than you’d need in the past. Factory horsepower – no matter how high it is – is only a starting point. The 2013 GT500 that David Patterson (aka ThatDudeinBlue) drives in this video has that kind of output. Its modified V8 cranks out 1,000 horsepower – at the rear wheels.

How did the owner of this monster get to that magic number? Patterson says the car “still has the 5.8-liter supercharged V8 using the stock supercharger” and six-speed manual gearbox. They modified pretty much everything else. The big V8 is topped with built heads and runs hotter cams. E85 flows through the larger injectors. A smaller pulley helps the blower stuff 20 psi into the combustion chamber.

According to Patterson, this GT500 has “fully upgraded suspension, Bilstein shocks … lowering springs.” The rear end is fully built to handle all of the firepower that’s shot through it.

Despite the fact that it has 1,000 rwhp and a live rear axle, the GT500 hooks up surprisingly well. The gearing is so tall that Patterson can hit 60 mph in first. At WOT, the road ahead runs out in a hurry. The expression on Patterson’s face when he blasts away from stops is a mixture of grim determination, absolute fear, and childlike excitement, then soon changes into a big smile.

The car enthusiast community may not be as easy to impress with horsepower stats as it once was. However, 1,000 still seems to be…1,000. After one hard pull, Patterson says, “As soon as the [supercharger] whine kicks in, the temples get pulled back. Best feeling in the freaking world.”

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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.