Ford has released the first official pictures of the 2010 Ford Mustang GT500.
At 540bhp and 510lb ft of torque, the new Ford Mustang GT500 is one of the fastest, most powerful cars ever to wear the Mustang nameplate.
There’s also the famous Cobra badge on the bonnet, a sign that performance car legend Carroll Shelby played a role in developing the new pony car.“We were always in close contact with Carroll,” revealed Herman Salenbauch, Ford’s director of advanced product creation.
While Shelby didn’t have the final veto, Ford designers and engineers sought Shelby’s sign-off on even minor details, such as the need to move the snake insignia to the opposite side of the grille to make room for the snorkel required to improve engine breathing.
Upgrades over the new Mustang include a more aggressive front end, with a functioning air extractor on the bonnet. There’s a revamped rear valance, and a larger rear wing, complete with a small Gurney flap.
With its 5.4-litre, 32-valve V8, revised aerodynamics and a three-mode stability control system, the latest incarnation of the Mustang GT500 “summarily outperforms the old car in all aspects,” says Jamal Hameedi, chief engineer for Ford’s SVT operations.
The 2010 remake of the Mustang GT500 should make a tough rival for the reborn Chevrolet Camaro.
Paul Eisenstein
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