Next-generation Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 looks hungry for air and downforce.
The Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 is a badass. It looks angry as hell, has a bespoke flat-plane-crank V8 that makes it sound even more furious, and takes the performance potential of the S550 Mustang to lofty heights. However, the Shelby GT350 is part of a pair. Whenever we hear the name GT350, it automatically makes us think of the GT500. There hasn’t been a new GT500 since the Trinity-powered model ceased production at the end of the 2014 model year. Thanks to one gutsy Instagram user, Sinister Lifestyle, we now know what the 2020 Shelby GT500 will look like.
Judging by the geotag and the surroundings, it looks as if the 20-year-old also known as Kyle snapped a couple of sneak shots at an official Ford event. It’s likely that Kyle took them at a preview of the upcoming Challenger Hellcat and Camaro ZL1 fighter for Ford dealers. (We are as grateful for his courage as we are worried about his future employment.)
Aside from the wheels and the rear wing, the two pictures show a car that closely resembles our rendering of how we thought the new 2020 Shelby GT500 would look. The gaping maw of a front grille is bisected by a thick bar. Above that is a Cobra badge; below is just mesh, ready to suck in air to cool the powerful engine. Jalopnik thinks that it could be a supercharged V8 capable of generating as much as 770 horsepower and 743 lb-ft of torque. Two more massive air intakes sit below the headlights.
The thin-spoked wheels are most certainly made out of carbon fiber. We could believe it if the same were also true of the massive rear wing. Combined, they give the 2020 Shelby GT500 a handling-focused, track-ready appearance.
It’s a shame that we’ll have to wait until January’s Detroit Auto Show to “officially” see the 2020 GT500, but these pics should hold us over until then. They’re going to have to.
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.
