Yes, it's only February, but Ford is helping us get ready for warmer weather with the Mustang Shelby GT500 Convertible. This high-performance pony car is now available for 2013 in a drop-top body style.
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Top up or down, the GT500's 650-horsepower, supercharged V-8, classic muscle-car styling and racing-stripe-trimmed cabin means you'll have a ton a fun and look good, too.
For Ford, the Mustang is a constant work in progress, and the 2013 Shelby GT500 convertible is the recipient of the automaker's latest design tweaks. Gaping upper and lower grilles, a front splitter and a domed hood define the front of the Shelby GT500 and hint at the supercharged V-8 that powers it. One of the car's most distinctive features is its paint job, as the show car was finished in metallic blue with white racing stripes.
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When lowered, the top can be finished with a soft tonneau cover that helps streamline the rear of the car. The racing stripes continue over the trunk and down the tail, which has four exhaust tips tucked nicely under the bumper. The springboard-style rear wing is a little excessive, even for a performance car, but the five-spoke 20-inch wheels look great in a dark chrome finish.
Despite the balmy winter temperatures in Chicago this year, the convertible season is still a few months away. Ford is gearing up for top-down driving by launching a new convertible variant of its high-powered Mustang: the Shelby GT500.
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First shown in coupe form at the L.A. Auto Show last year, the Shelby GT500 convertible uses the same supercharged V-8 engine that delivers an impressive 650 horsepower and a top track speed of more than 200 mph.
Last year, Ford design chief J Mays said he thought headlights on cars were getting out of hand. They're functional elements; there's no reason they need to be huge, Mays (no relation to me) said.
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You can see the results for yourself on the 2013 Ford Fusion, whose thin headlights are only as big as they need to be. The Fusion's grille, on the other hand, is huge and slung forward, perched atop a lower inlet. At least most of it is functional, which is something I couldn't say for the grille on Ford's 2013 Lincoln MKS.
A proper shifter inspires confidence in the overall driving experience by adding precision to the transmission’s operation. Manual transmission shifters may automatically come to mind as potential culprits when done wrong, but automatic transmissions can drop the ball in similar ways even without a manual clutch to get in the way.
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While the 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 may not be the most powerful Mustang out there, it does the best job of putting all that power to the road, according to Cars.com Managing Editor David Thomas. The Mustang Boss 302 appeals to performance-minded buyers with its barebones interior and track-ready suspension, yet it still offers a comfortable ride and seats. There's nothing equal to it — certainly nothing for around $40,000, David says.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released its first batch of 2012 model year ratings this month. Under the stricter guidelines, only three 2012 models — the Chevrolet Camaro, Cadillac CTS and Toyota Camry — have earned five-star composite scores from the safety agency. In fact, as we previously reported, the Camaro is the only vehicle to earn a perfect rating across the board since the new guidelines took effect for the 2011 model year.
NHTSA’s composite scores are composed of five-star ratings for frontal, rollover and a combined side pole and barrier tests. The side pole test, which is new, simulates a 20-mph side-impact crash into a 10-inch-diameter pole or tree at a 75-degree angle just behind the A-pillar on the driver’s side.
The redesigned 2012 Camry earned a five-star overall rating, getting four stars in the frontal test, five stars in the side-crash test and four stars in the rollover test.
Ford has consistently evolved the Mustang with fairly significant changes each model year since 2010. For 2013, the front and rear styling has been tweaked on V-6, GT and Boss 302 models, and the GT's 5.0-liter makes more power.
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The big news is the GT500, which receives an additional 100 horsepower for 2013, plus a host of other performance upgrades.
In order that make sure there's no question that the Ford Shelby GT500's is the ultimate Mustang, the automaker has added another 100-horsepower to the model, which now produces 650-hp and 600 pounds-feet of torque from a new supercharged 5.8-liter V-8.
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Despite all the upgrades under the GT500's skin, the exterior changes are few.
The Ford Boss 302 was introduced just last year as a 2012 model and maintains its position in between the Mustang GT and the Shelby GT500, with its 444-horsepower 5.0-liter V-8.
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Though, now that many of the once exclusive options, such as Recaro seats and a limited-slip differential along with an engine oil cooler, are now available on the regular Mustang, the Boss 302 is more of appearance package than pure performance enhancer this time around. That doesn't mean we don't think it's worth a drive.
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