Shelby To Build 600+ hp GT500 Super Snake!

Shelby and the Ford Mustang are a match made in heaven. The Texan,ex-chicken farmer turned racer has helped Chrysler along with a few products too, and has made a few cars on his own, but most associate the name Shelby with the often replicated Cobra, of course, and fast Mustangs, especially the legendary GT500 of the ’60s.

Last year’s introduction of the Shelby GT500 marked the return of the high-powered muscle car. Its 5.4-liter V8 featured a Roots-type supercharger resulting in 500 horsepower and 480 lb-ft of torque, effectively making it the most appealing current-production Mustang and the world’s cheapest 500 horsepower car. A few weeks ago in New York, Shelby and Ford unveiled an even faster variant, the GT 500 KR (King of the Road), which features an extra 40 horsepower produced by tweaks to the supercharger and intake system. And if you think that Ford and Shelby are calling it a day you’re mistaken, as they’ve just unveiled the GT 500 Super Snake Coupe.

Even though it uses the same engine as the regular GT500 and KR,Shelby and Ford Racing were able to extract over 600 horsepower, and more than 590 lb-ft of torque for the Super Snake. The upgrades come courtesy of the Ford Racing Supercharger kit, and a Ford Racing exhaust system. Like all other GT500s, the Super Snake has a shift-it-yourself six-speed manual transmission, and drives the rear wheels through a 3.73:1 rear axle. Why so much power? Carroll Shelby himself says, “I told them that I wanted to build a vehicle that could blow the doors off of most anything on the planet. By partnering with Ford Racing, we’re giving enthusiasts a Mustang with that level of performance.”

All Super Snakes will receive a significant number of changes that ensure the rest of the car can keep up. These include the Ford Racing Handling Pack that offers uprated suspension components such as adjustable dampers, tuned stabilizer bars, a front strut tower brace and a further reduction in ride height for more aggressive cornering.An upgrade to Baer 6-piston caliper brakes is mandatory given the massive speed that the Shelby is capable of. They’re accented by Shelby logos and are kept cool by extra ducts. The larger brakes required larger wheels, which, in this case are 20-inchers made by Alcoa but designed by Shelby. There’s also plenty of special edition Shelby and Super Snake badges scattered around the car to let the world know what they’ve been overtaken by.

Shelby also announced that there’s a more potent version of this car in the works packing a full 725 horsepower – an additional 125 horses out of the same engine. That’s more power than most tuner Mustangs could conceivably put out, and will take the Mustang beyond muscle car, and into supercar territory. As you might guess, the 725 horsepower version won’t be covered by the factory warranty, so purchase at your own risk. The Super Snake won’t be sold through the SVT-approved dealerships as with the GT500, but rather each of the vehicles will be sold by Shelby like his Series 1 roadster. Production of the Super Snake is strictly limited, so act fast if you want one … they’re sure to go quickly.