Am I Trading my 2014 Shelby for a 2020 Shelby GT500?

So the new 2020 Shelby GT500 has been announced and it’s coming with 700+ horsepower as we’ve all heard.  So many people have been asking me, “Chad, are you going to trade in your ’14 GT500 for the new hotness?” The answer is pretty easy.  No.  My 2014 GT500 taught me a lot about high speed, high horsepower cars. 

One is that cars are no fun if you can’t connect that power to the road.  Having a car that constanstantly smoke the tires sounds awesome until you realize that’s about all they can do.  My GT500 with its 662hp can roast a set of tires in multiple gears but it’s hard as hell to launch.  So when you’re lined up next to someone you really have to count on the supercharger to pull you out of the hole because you most likely aren’t going to win the launch.

So what if the 2020 GT500 has amazing launch control?  Then would I get one?  Still no.  My current GT500 is freakin’ fast .  It claims 0 – 60 in 3.5 sec, a quarter-mile in 11.7 seconds, and a top speed of 200 mph.  None of that can be experienced when I pull it out of the garage on a sunny day.  Mainly I just experience the excruciating frustration of sitting in bumper to bumper traffic with very few openings to actually enjoy what the car was built to do.  Certainly there could be track days I suppose but the closest drag strip is over two hours away and requires driving across Toronto.

My 2014 Shelby GT500 is a really cool car with incredible abilities that I never get a chance to use.  It mainly sits in the garage which is exactly what the 2020 GT500 would do if I bought it.  There was a time I really craved having the highest horsepower machine I could buy.  I was drooling for it, but then I got it and it was all a bit of a letdown.  On the other hand my 2017 Focus RS is an absolute blast and a car I can have a lot of fun with no matter where I’m driving it.

So I’ve kind of learned my lesson.  I’m sure the 2020 GT500 is going to be incredible, it certainly sounds incredible but I’m going to let it pass.  I’ll still be interested what others think of it though.

I've Posted My 2014 Shelby GT500 FOR SALE

I’ve decided to finally put my triple black 2014 GT500 up for sale.  As I say in the ad it’s a very nice, very fast car that sits in my garage and does nothing.  So why do I have it?  I’ve posted it as $69,000 but that is negotiable.  I'm really just looking to get the loan paid off and out of my hair.

 

It’s stock expect for a few small cosmetic additions like headlight covers and fender scoops added by the previous owner.  It has the supercharged 5.8L rated at 662hp. There is really nothing wrong with it but the front spoiler is scratched up I assume from driveways, they were there when I got it.

I’ve really enjoyed the car.  It’s one of those vehicles that no matter how much you drive it you still get butterflies before starting it up.  Here in Canada we don’t get enough nice days to justify having a rear-wheel drive monster which is why my daily is the Focus RS.

If you're interest I'm in the Greater Toronto Area here in Ontario.  You can view the ad posting HERE

Driving This Summer

Now that my daily is a Focus RS and my “weekend” car is the Shelby GT500 the differences are HUGE!  This might seem obvious but it is clear that some cars are fun and others are serious.  The RS is quick, you can toss it around, floor it and listen to the pops.  It has a lot of helpers to keep you safe, it’s a fun car.  The Shelby on the other hand is serious.  If you plan on being frisky with it you can very quickly go from wheeeeeee to dead.

The best analogy I can think of is playing with a paintball gun and a real gun.  One you can run around laughing and popping it off while the other when you pull the trigger you better know what you’re doing or someone dies.

This is why I'm often considering selling the Shelby.  It's a car that you need to really get to know if you want to enjoy it but I just don't have the time and don't know the places to do it.  Little sad.

Finally Awoke the Shelby

This Sunday was finally a nice enough day to start getting ready for the summer car season.  So I took the opportunity to get the Shelby off the jacks stands and see where we're at.

The first thing was the battery was totally dead which sucked.  During the winter I noticed my trickle charger had dies and allowed the battery to croak.  But I went and bought a new one as well as let the car run for a solid hour but apparently that wasn't enough.  The new charger was working but the battery was still dead.  So I grabbed my portable jumper and got it running.That thing is the best purchase.  Saved me so many times.

Immediately the computer started telling me that the tire pressures were back.  Again the portable jumper to the rescue.  It has a compressor as well and I got the pressures up high enough to get it to the station.

After fiddling around with the jack I finally got it down on the ground and backed it out.  Everything seemed good but I needed to drive it to be sure.  So I took it to the station and filled up with air and fresh fuel.  Drove around for about an hour.  It was about 45 F so way too cold for those tires forcing me to be reserved and driving like an old man.

My old '07 Mustang GT would require that you set the idle if the battery went completely dead but this doesn't seem to be the case with the Shelby.  It all seemed just fine.  After I got back I let it sit a couple hours and then attempted to start it again and it popped to life right away.  So I might get away without buying a new battery.  I'm going to take the portable jumper with me for awhile just to be safe but it all seems fine so far.

The next nice weekend I'm going to swap the Focus RS winter tires to summer ones.

Shelby Walk Around

Hey guys.  I realized that since I've been doing the Daily Drive videos I have never really showcased the cars I'm driving.  Mainly I've just been shooting inside the cars.  Since we had a sunny day here in Ontario I thought it would be a good time to start.

I decided to start with the Shelby since it's only got a few more months of road time before it goes to sleep for the winter.  So my girlfriend and I found a nice spot and did a short video.  I hope you enjoy it.

Shelby GT500: Do I REALLY need it?

Two years ago I bought the GT500 because I wanted to replace my 2007 Mustang GT.  At the time I had the Mustang for a fun car and a Hummer H3 as a daily.  But the Mustang with just a 300 hp 4.5L wasn't all that much fun anymore.  If you read my old posts you'd see I went through quite a struggle figuring out what I wanted and finding it in my price range before I settled on the GT500.  It's now been two years and since then I've replaced the H3 with a 2017 Focus RS as my daily.  So I now have a fun car and a fun car which has left me feeling a bit weird about owning the Shelby.  Do I really need it?  No, of course not.  I guess the real question would be do I really want it?

Just the fact that I'm questioning it really means I'm not having the fun I expected to have with the Shelby.  The car is a beast.  With 662hp under your foot whenever you want it there is no lack of power.  The issue I've been encountering is when do I want that much power?  Really not that often.  Driving around on public roads on days it doesn't rain I find myself putting slowly behind traffic.  The pedal is dying to be mashed to the floor to let that supercharger whine but there is just no place to do it.  Most of the time the Shelby sits in the garage and of course it spends all winter in there under a car cover.  Meanwhile I pay insurance and the nearly $1000 a month loan.

The Focus RS on the other hand is always ready for some spirited driving in any weather.  You can really push the car to it's limits without fear that the big horsepower is going to toss you in a ditch.  The insurance is cheaper and so are the payments.  I'm starting to feel maybe the Shelby needs to find a new home.  Maybe if the Shelby is gone I could modify the RS or look to fixing up my '70 Plymouth back home.

If I was to sell the Shelby I couldn't be too flexible on the amount because the sale price needs to pay off the loan against it but looking at the local Canadian Auto Trader I believe these are in the correct range.

So what do you think?  Should I sell it?  Interested?

Camera Mods and GT500 Sound Test

Modified my camera mics then took the 2014 GT500 out for a little thrashing & sound test to see if I made them any better.  Did cold start, revs, external cam mounts & internal. Then a short walk around at the end. I don't think I made the sound quality any better but it was still fun making the video anyway.

Happy Forth of July America

Posted The First Episode of The Daily Drive!

Hey everyone PLEASE check out my first episode of the Daily Drive.  It's a little rough around the edges but I really hope it's something you can find interesting.

In this episode I drive the Shelby, give an overview of my plans for the series, we talk about being an American living in Canada, and how I came to the decision to buy a Shelby GT500.  I do a few small pulls to hear the engine whine as well.

I'd really appreciate if you would check it out.  Feel free to give some feedback.  Give a like if you feel it's worthy.

Welcome to YouTube

American Motoring just started a YouTube channel.  So please feel free to follow us.  We'd appreciate it.  To start off the channel we posted a quick video or our 2014 GT500 Shelby Cobra starting up and backing out of a garage.  It's short but we hope you enjoy the sound of 662 hp.  American Motoring YouTube

Low Ball GT500 Offer

The Shelby is all put away for the winter but this summer I took it to Barrie Ford here in Ontario for service.  It was no big deal, just a oil change but since then I would periodically get a message from the dealer asking if I'd be interested in selling it.  I know this is just a tactic to spark an interest in trading in your car for something new but after three of these emails I was curious what they would offer.

So I replied to the last email they sent asking what the offer would be.  They said, "Well it depends on your VIN and miles but the number would start with a 5 or a 3."

A 5 or a 3??  So $50,000 or $30,000??  Are they nuts?  You can't find them here in Canada for anything near that price.  I searched and searched to find the one I have and that was listed at $68,000.

So my curiosity is now satisfied. Yikes!

Cobra's Do Hibernate

This week Ontario already started spreading salt on the roads so that means it's time for the Cobra to go to sleep for the winter.  Today it was in the low 60s so it was possibly the last day to do outdoor activities without freezing your ass off.  As well as taking down the backyard gazebo and hammock I took the opportunity to put the Cobra into hibernation.

I wanted to get the tires off the ground so they don't get flat spots over the following months.  My garage is tiny as hell so jacking up the car high enough to get jack stands under it was some sketchy shit.  Eventually I got all four tires off the ground and the car is solid without crushing myself.

Next I hooked up a trickle charger.  Normally with my previous cars I would just disconnect the battery for the winter but then you have a whole procedure you need to go through to reset the idle in the summer and I'd rather not do that with the Cobra.  So instead I chose what I hope to be a reliable charger from Canadian tire.  Supposedly you connect it and sort of forget it.  It's supposed to be intelligent enough to know when to battery needs topped off and when it doesn't so it only does what it needed.  The idea of that makes me nervous though.  I don't really want to leave it unattended for weeks in the garage.  So I got it all ready but I'm not going to plug it in for a week or two.  Maybe I'll even just let it run for a bit instead of connecting the charger and only use it when I return to the States for the holidays.

Lastly I put the cover on.  I've never had one before but it came with the car so I might as well use it.  I'm not sure if it's weather proof or not but it's in the garage so I'm sure it will be fine.  Over all it kind of sucks to have to put it away but when everyone is sliding around and cars are caked with salt in the following months I'll be glad it's safe and covered in the garage.  Usually it'll stay there until late April depending on the weather.

Now my attention turns to the Hummer.  It's been acting really damn strange lately and I have some serious concerns regarding it getting me through the winter.  Unlike my Mustang GT I can't really get out the Cobra and drive it of the Hummer was to break down.  So I really need the Hummer to be there for me.  I was thinking of taking it into the shop Monday to see if they can diagnose the issue.  Fingers crossed it won't cost me yet another $2000.  I've already dumped $4000 into it this summer getting it ready for winter.

The New 2018?? GT500

The word on the street is that the 2017 or 2018 or whatever year GT500 is going to rival the Dodge Challenger Hellcat's horsepower numbers. (Link Here) So that means 700+ horsepower.

Let me start by being totally honest.  Since I own a 2014 GT500 which was the last year for the GT500, I really don't want there to ever be a new one.  Nor do I wish any future Fords to exceed the 662 factory horsepower numbers my car makes.  It just bugs the hell out of me when you buy something special and then there is a new something special the next year.  If you don't believe me just ask the 2012 GT500 owners.  They bought a brand new monster just to have it quickly be overshadowed by an even bigger monster in 2013.  It infuriates me.

So that all being said I will say I understand why Ford is making it...sort of.  When Dodge finally decided to join the big boys and make a road beast they were the "talk of the town."  Everyone was going on and on about the Hellcats.  Hellcat was all you heard in auto media and even I got caught up in it. I was calling Dodge dealers trying to get one before I realized I didn't need it.  So or course Ford wants to bring back its brute GT500 to get some of that media hype and show they can make another blunt instrument to be feared.  I get it....

However as an owner of a GT500 I can honestly say the last thing it needs is more horsepower.  It needs better brakes, better tires, better suspension, better horsepower it doesn't need.  But people feel the new platform will bring these things that the old GT500 lacked.  Everyone wants to see what the new Mustang chassis with the limited slip diff will do with 700+ horsepower.  The dream would be a car that handles like a GT350 but with the boosted grunt of the GT500.  The rumors are that it will use the same engine block as the GT350 Voodoo but with boost, so there shouldn't be a huge weight gain.  This then begs the question, "Why not just boost a GT350?"  In other words keep it a GT350 but boost it.  I don't know.  Previous GT500s used different engine than the GTs but I guess because it's the "biggest" it gets the GT500 name, but then it's using the same engine only boosted....  Blah, blah, blah.

I personally don't see the need for a new GT500.  Talking from experience there are few times you can actually have fun with all that power.  In a big city like Toronto, traffic is constantly in the way.  But you say, "The power is for the track stupid, not the street." Okay smart guy then why does someone buy a GT350R? "Well because it's an awesome track car."  Then why would you buy a GT500?  You see, it's kind of an endless question and the answer is a new GT500 is not really needed other than because they want to do it.  Perhaps you can argue it's for the drag strip but in reality they exist to make cars and coffee crash videos.

So no I don't want to see a new GT500.  I'm sure it's just because I don't want another factory GT500 on the road boasting more horsepower.  My car was kind of legendary for being the last big horsepower car from Shelby before Carroll Shelby passed away and the last of the GT500s.  I would love to keep it that way.  Of course what will happen will happen and eventually I'm going to have to go back to my old problem of do I add more power to my car or get rid of it.  With electric cars moving into the spotlight of what's considered fast perhaps all these petrol brutes will soon be the joke at a stoplight.

Check This Out

Of course I'm a little bias but today YouTube suggested a Hellcat VS GT500 video to me so I thought I would pass it along.

662 HP Can Be Tricky

Yesterday I was playing with my Shelby at a stoplight and did a hard pull.  I got grip, shifted to second, got grip and then at about 70mph I lost grip and the tails started to come around.  It didn't become a crazy disaster because I lifted and it straightened right out, but this seems to be the common reason why GT500s end up tangled in the trees.  You really aren't expecting to lose grip once the tires have traction after the shift.  Just like the guy in the video below.  I didn't get as squirrely as this guy because I lifted but I can certainly see how things could get out of hand quickly.

I have a pretty solid respect for this car so I'm usually ready for anything when I'm giving it the beans but still it was pretty unnerving.  The Drive Channel listed the 2013 and 14 Shelby GT500 among the top 10 cars out there that is trying to kill you.  Perhaps more serious tires are in order.

Dave Wood Pre-owned Centre In Newmarket

There is a used car dealership near me that certainly has an interesting stock of cars.  When I first moved to the area it seemed like any normal used car dealer but recently they appear to have started focusing on performance and specialty vehicles.  I walked past there today and took a few shots.







Just out in the lot today there was a 2010 and 2012 GT500 Shelby Cobras.  A 2015 Mustang GT, a Camaro convertible, a Charger R/T, and an old 1961 GMC truck with a 454 big block in it.

Then inside the showroom there was a Challenger Hellcat, a GT350, and a Camaro with it says a Limited edition Panther package that produces 600 hp from it's supercharger.  Never seen on of those before.  Unfortunately the dealership was closed for a civic holiday do I had to take shots through the showroom window.

 

I'm not sure why they are focusing on such a performance driven stock in a town like Newmarket but it's certainly fun to see these cars come and go.  I certainly didn't know about a Camaro Panther package before this.

As a side note I've heard this dealership isn't very good.  However my only experience with them was when my girlfriend's car broke down and she coasted into their lot a couple years ago.  She is an attractive blonde and was on the last straw with her troublesome car.  If there was ever a time to sell a person a car that was the time.  However the Dave Wood salesmen just stood in the showroom looking at her through the window.  She called CAA and they towed it away. They never came out or even attempted to approach her.

Some Interesting Stats

Everyone is going nuts about the new GT350 and rightly so it's an amazing vehicle.  But is it as amazing as the Shelby from the last generation?  Here are some stats from Car & Driver Magazine.  The GT500 stats in red.

Car & Driver Magazine Issue: Aug. 2012/ Feb. 2016
Vehicle Tested: 2013 GT500/ 2016 GT350
Price as Tested: 63,080/ 56,970
HP: 662hp/ 526hp
Torque: 631 lbs/ 429 lbs
0-60: 3.5 sec/ 4.3 sec
0-100: 7.9 sec/ 8.9 sec
1/4 mi: 11.8 sec/ 12.5 sec
Top Speed: 189 mph/ 175 mph
Braking 70-0: 155 ft./ 171 ft.
300 ft skidpad: 1.0g/ 1.0g
Weight: 3882 lbs/ 3790 lbs
EPA City/Hwy: 15/24 mpg/ 14/21 mpg

Everyone says 2018 is the year of the GT500 but for now perhaps the old king shouldn't be counted out just yet.

2014 GT500 Miles Per Gallon

When I picked up the GT500 I was cycling through the car's menus and I found fuel economy.  This was something I didn't give a crap about, because who buys a 662 HP car for the gas mileage?  Well the menu said 9.5 miles per gallon.  I thought what the???

I guess when a car like that is at a dealership the salesmen probably take it out and beat it.  It's hard to avoid that.  So I reset the number and continued on my way.  After a few weeks of driving two or three days per weeks I went back and looked at the number.  It was 12.5 miles per gallon and I was driving nice.  I was still getting to know this monster so I was "grandpa driving" everywhere.  12.5?  Geez.  I think that is worse than my Hummer.  Ouch

The car has a 16 gallon tank and when it's really low it takes not quite $60 CAD ($47 US) to fill it up with the highest octane.  So basically I can drive to work and back twice, then I need a refill.  The 07' Mustang GT could go almost a full week with its 4.6L V8.

This week was all sun so I could have driven it every day.  But I took a few days off and drive my eco Hummer just to give my wallet a break.  lol

Second Drive and Ticketed!

Some people have never gotten a ticket.  Some have gotten so few that they can recall what happened with each one.  I have gotten so many tickets I literally have no clue how many I have gotten.  Mainly they were all from speeding but there have been other things like excessive acceleration but never a fix ticket because I generally keep everything in tip top shape.

Well today I was driving the Shelby to work for the second time since I bought it and got pulled over.  I was doing absolutely nothing wrong so I had no clue what the problem was.  "Sir, I'm pulling you over today for not having a front plate."  I said, "Go look, there is no place to mount it." "Sir, that's not our problem.  In Ontario you are required to have a front plate."  BAM! Fix ticket for $110.

I'm sorry Officer but no amount of money is going to force me to drill holes in the front of a Shelby Cobra.  Really stupid law, all you see of a Shelby is the back anyway.  ;)

GT500 Postmortem: Buyer's Remorse?

I’ve owned several what I would consider to be nice cars.  They were all “every man” cars, nothing too exotic or fancy.  The Mustang is of course one of these, you can count several on almost any drive.  The GT500 is sort of a Mustang but then it isn’t one and purchasing the GT500 had some implications that I did not expect.  What I’m referring to is the way owning one shifted people’s views of me.

I have a group of “car guy” friends and we were all kind of in the same boat, tuning and upgrading what we have and dreaming of something better.  We could all relate to each other and shoot the shit about car culture and what was happening in it.  Then I bought the GT500 and I was kind of surprised to discover I’d been kicked out of the group.  Not literally of course but the attitudes of the guys I used to talk to certainly changed towards me.  Instead of being excited and encouraging about my purchase they had a bunch of jealousy and hatred.  Two people flat out told me they were jealous, another said they hoped I wrapped it around a tree, one said they wished they had my problems, and even my brother said, “I kind of hate you.”

I really never saw this coming.  It’s not like I bought a Ferrari or a Lamborghini, it’s basically just a Mustang with some extra juice.  If I had built my Mustang GT up to 662hp with a bunch for track goodies everyone would be fine with it.  But something about purchasing the Shelby gave people the attitude that I had obtained something that they cannot and therefore I’m an asshole.

Just to be clear I’m not wealthy.  I’m not rolling in cash and on a whim decided to drop a pile of cash on a play thing.  If anyone looked at my budget they would say I should not have purchased it.  I’m going to be paying a lot of money every month for a very long time.  But I made the decision that I wanted to have this and I made the sacrifice to have this huge burden on my budget. 

I’m a car guy, cars are my hobby and passion so I did what I felt I needed to do to make me happy.  I went from a car that I was extremely bored with and a car that really had nowhere to go in regards to tuning and upgrades, to a car with loads of possibilities.  Even in stock form I have so much to learn from it.  And from an investment standpoint it’s a car that could even pass on to my kids for them to sell or whatever.

If I could do it all over again I would not buy the GT500.  Normally I don’t give a crap about what people think or say but these were my buds.  I don’t want them thinking I’m some rich twat dropping bills on whatever I want.  It’s not like that at all.  So I asked the dealer if we could forget the whole thing and just switch it all back.  They were not responsive to this idea so I guess it's mine.