Any word on sale date for Mustang GT500 Shelby Cobra?

Hi all,

I'm in the market soon for a newer performance car...I've been reading
about the new 450+ hp GT500 from SVT. I've read it is a 2006
model...but, haven't been able to find out a sale date for the car. My
dealers down in New Orleans area...when asked didn't know a date at
all. Heck...a couple of them had never heard of the car!!

Any ideas out there when it will be available? I've heard Ford intends
to make as many of them as demanded...and would be priced about $35K or
so....

Thanx in advance,

chilecayenne

As of now the GT500 is a show car/concept only. It's not even safe to
say it's a lock for production. If it does see the light of day,
pricing is going to be closer to Corvette territory ($52K) than Mustang
GT territory (currently $35K for a well-optioned vert). Ford has a lot
of problems, and a low production, hi-performance Mustang may or may
not make the cut. Ford's latest venture in that direction, the Ford
GT, is currently earning them a couple black eyes. Cracked front
A-arms (made of cast aluminum) have caused Ford to advise owners to
park their cars pending the installation of custom cut billet
replacements. They've also got leaking balancers, that they're
proposing to fix with a shade tree mechanic's sleeve.

Bottom line, if you're holding out for a $35K GT500, don't hold your
breath.

Last I heard, it was going to be 3rd or 4th quarter of '06 that they'd
actually start showing up.

> wrote in message
oups.com...
> Hi all,
>
> I'm in the market soon for a newer performance car...I've been reading
> about the new 450+ hp GT500 from SVT. I've read it is a 2006
> model...but, haven't been able to find out a sale date for the car. My
> dealers down in New Orleans area...when asked didn't know a date at
> all. Heck...a couple of them had never heard of the car!!
>
> Any ideas out there when it will be available? I've heard Ford intends
> to make as many of them as demanded...and would be priced about $35K or
> so....
>
> Thanx in advance,
>
> chilecayenne
>

Youre probably right on the pricing.. but they ARE going production. Even if
just a limited run, thats been said by the SVT guys at several shows.

> wrote in message
oups.com...
> As of now the GT500 is a show car/concept only. It's not even safe to
> say it's a lock for production. If it does see the light of day,
> pricing is going to be closer to Corvette territory ($52K) than Mustang
> GT territory (currently $35K for a well-optioned vert). Ford has a lot
> of problems, and a low production, hi-performance Mustang may or may
> not make the cut. Ford's latest venture in that direction, the Ford
> GT, is currently earning them a couple black eyes. Cracked front
> A-arms (made of cast aluminum) have caused Ford to advise owners to
> park their cars pending the installation of custom cut billet
> replacements. They've also got leaking balancers, that they're
> proposing to fix with a shade tree mechanic's sleeve.
>
> Bottom line, if you're holding out for a $35K GT500, don't hold your
> breath.
>

In article >, "japhar81" > wrote:

> Youre probably right on the pricing.. but they ARE going production. Even if
> just a limited run, thats been said by the SVT guys at several shows.

Man, you sure are well-connected. Gotta be the tires and wheels on that
V-6... those SVT guys must have been drooling.

Here's what I read last night in the June 2005 Hot Rod:

"The launch of a production GT500 is still too far off to carve
anything in stone, but as we followed the buildup of the Shelby GT500
show car Ford commissioned for a press introduction at the '05 New York
Auto Show, we got every indication that the car you see here is at
least as close to the planned production model as the '05 Mustang
concept was to its eventual factory version, if not closer. The most
important thing to note about the concept car, which was built by the
show car division of Saleen Special Vehicles in Troy, Michigan, is that
it was designed to mimic a production vehicle as closely as possible. .
.. ."

"With its final calibration far from set, SVT will only admit to 'at
least 450 hp' at this point, but we expect that number to creep up
quite a bit as the Shelby's fall '06 launch approaches, and we wouldn't
be surprised if the final tally falls close to the 500 mark (knock,
knock, Z06!) During our behind-the-scenes peak at the concept car
buildup, we heard more than a few comments about this being possibly
the first 500hp production car under $40,000. If Ford can pull that one
off, the Shelby legend will indeed grow beyond epic."

So . . . Fall '06? 500 hp? $39,999 MSRP? Time will tell. I'm guessing a
"'06.5" release, or later, a claimed 450 hp but an actual 500, and a
mid to high $40's MSRP. Ford just won't be able to say no to an extra
$5K profit per car. 5,000 cars, that's $25 million.

One thing the "'06" GT500 will have in common with its '67-'70
predecessors: "Due to the increased weight of the iron block 5.4L,
Thai-Tang says the new Cobra will gain up to 350 pounds compared to a
base GT and lose some of its front-to-rear weight balance. He
estimates that the GT500 will likely see about 56-57 percent of its
static weight on the front wheels compared to 53-54 percent for the
currrent 4.6L GTs."

Yikes. A supercharged 329 ci, 500 lb-ft engine and a 60/40 weight
distribution? 100 yd burnouts will be yours!

180 Out

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> Here's what I read last night in the June 2005 Hot Rod:
>
> "The launch of a production GT500 is still too far off to carve
> anything in stone, but as we followed the buildup of the Shelby GT500
> show car Ford commissioned for a press introduction at the '05 New York
> Auto Show, we got every indication that the car you see here is at
> least as close to the planned production model as the '05 Mustang
> concept was to its eventual factory version, if not closer. The most
> important thing to note about the concept car, which was built by the
> show car division of Saleen Special Vehicles in Troy, Michigan, is that
> it was designed to mimic a production vehicle as closely as possible. .
> . ."
>
> "With its final calibration far from set, SVT will only admit to 'at
> least 450 hp' at this point, but we expect that number to creep up
> quite a bit as the Shelby's fall '06 launch approaches, and we wouldn't
> be surprised if the final tally falls close to the 500 mark (knock,
> knock, Z06!) During our behind-the-scenes peak at the concept car
> buildup, we heard more than a few comments about this being possibly
> the first 500hp production car under $40,000. If Ford can pull that one
> off, the Shelby legend will indeed grow beyond epic."
>
> So . . . Fall '06? 500 hp? $39,999 MSRP? Time will tell. I'm guessing a
> "'06.5" release, or later, a claimed 450 hp but an actual 500, and a
> mid to high $40's MSRP. Ford just won't be able to say no to an extra
> $5K profit per car. 5,000 cars, that's $25 million.
>
> One thing the "'06" GT500 will have in common with its '67-'70
> predecessors: "Due to the increased weight of the iron block 5.4L,
> Thai-Tang says the new Cobra will gain up to 350 pounds compared to a
> base GT and lose some of its front-to-rear weight balance. He
> estimates that the GT500 will likely see about 56-57 percent of its
> static weight on the front wheels compared to 53-54 percent for the
> currrent 4.6L GTs."
>
> Yikes. A supercharged 329 ci, 500 lb-ft engine and a 60/40 weight
> distribution? 100 yd burnouts will be yours!
>
> 180 Out
>

gotta go pick up a copy