When Ford released the 662-horsepower Mustang Shelby GT500, Shelby American wasn’t content.
So on its own, the legendary aftermarket tuner went back to the design board – and upped the power to 850 horses.
Shelby recently sent an “independent test driver” down to Brandenton Motorsports Park in Brandenton, Florida to put the 2013 Shelby GT500 Super Snake to the test at the drag strip. Amazingly, the driver was able to make a quarter-mile run in 10.66 seconds, hitting 137 miles-per-hour.
Even more impressive? He did it all with pump gas and street tires.
Shelby brags that the Super Snake is “more than just raw power and ridged track performance. Owners can drive this car every day with its docile and comfortable ride in normal traffic situations.” We drove the standard Ford Shelby GT500 and if the Super Snake is anything like it, the good folks at Shelby aren’t just blowing smoke.
But what will an extra 188 horsepower cost you over the stock $54,650 GT500 from your local Ford dealer? Why, just an extra $39,995 is all.
At just shy of $100,000, the Shelby Super Snake is surely best suited for someone with a big checkbook and who also doesn’t know that the Nissan GT-R exists, which will do the quarter-mile in 10.8 seconds and for less money.
Only 500 of the Super Snakes will be built at Shelby American in Las Vegas, so it’s sure to be a classic in 30 years time. While we love calculating cars like the Nissan GT-R, there’s something to be said about the bullheadedness of a true American pony car like the Super Snake.
850hp and it still can’t get bellow 10? Time to shed some weight on the pony.
And how well does it do when you put curves in front of it?
I would imagine it doesn’t do too bad. I never got the whole “mustangs can’t handle curves” argument. I’ve driven a few on circuits and they handle just fine at speed.
It was more about American muscle cars not handling curves in general.
old stereotypes are old. It comes down to the driver.
Not so much.
speaking from experience?
Am i missing something about the GT-R price? The nissan website shows a starting price of $99,590. I wouldn’t call that “much” cheaper.
Well the Super Snake, just like the regular GT500 gets optioned up really quickly. After all the upgrades you’d realistically want for a 850-hp car (like a transmission cooler), you’ll be paying well above $100,000.
Does that not hold true for the gt-r as well? remember you’re comparing the base gt-r to an upgrade of a special edition of a $30,000-ish mustang.
The Super Snake is not based upon the $30,000 mustang but rather the $55,000 GT500…they’re quite different…
But comparing bases, the Mustang is still cheaper. You don’t get the options that you would with the GTR, but that why the GTR is more expensive.
You’re missing the point. The stock mustang and the GT-R aren’t in any way comparable.
Then there ya go. The GTR is of a different class, and really can’t be compared. It would be like comparing a Honda Civic with mods on it to a Porsche 911 Turbo. Least that’s how I see it. I would venture to guess that someone buying the Mustang wouldn’t even look at the GTR for that simple fact. If they did have that kind of money, they would just buy the GTR, and not bother even looking at the stang. Unless they really wanted it for some reason.