Barrie Ford Update

Hey Gang,

It's been awhile since I posted.  Been going through some issues with my career and for a time I thought perhaps I'd have to do some cut backs which meant getting rid of the Shelby.  It's really been upsetting because I think I've finally been settling in with it.  I see the 2020 GT500 coming out and I don't have the drive to rush out and trade mine in.  I feel my GT500 is enough and if I want more it can easily be modded.  But the career stuff has calmed down so things seem fine now.

If you recall I had some issues with Barrie Ford in the past.  They are a SVT dealership where I bought my Focus RS.  I was totally happy with them until after a recall they returned my RS back to me a filthy mess.  Half a tank of gas, dirty, bird crap on it after they kept it for 6 days.  So I gave a bad review to Ford.  Then they contacted me not to apologize but to say I should revoke my complaint because it wasn't the service guy's fault and it looked bad on him.  So "F" them.  I now go to Shanahan Ford.

Yesterday I received a call from Barrie Ford.  They asked how the RS was and wanted to remind me that they have a "Friends & Family" bonus that if I refer a friend or family to them for a new car I'd get a $100 gift card! Wow, a whole $100!  Imagine that?

This dealership REALLY doesn't get it.  Consider this.  If I don't like them would a pathetic $100 gift card really motivate me to send a friend or family member to them?? No.  However if they just had good customer service and weren't such cocky assholes I would refer friends and family to them for free.  You want to share a good experience with others you care about.

I really don't understand this place.  They have a great facility that sells Ford's top vehicles but they have a huge chip on their shoulders and don't respect the cars after a sale.

Some people responded that I'm being a jerk.  However when I lived in Madison Wisconsin the Ford dealership Kayser Ford was amazing.  They would wash my car before returning it every time it went in for service.  If it was in more than a day the car would come back with a full tank of gas.  So I bought two Mustang GTs from them.  Maybe they spoiled me.  Barrie Ford said they don't do this.  But after spending a pile of cash on a performance car shouldn't we expect them to?

Being completely honest when I walked up to my RS and saw what a mess it was I shook my head but moved on with it.  It was disappointing but I was fine.  It was the phone call from Barrie Ford, not to apologize but to insist I change my review that pushed me over the edge.  That was when I was done with them.

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.

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.

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.