My Way
The more sculpted hood from...
The more sculpted hood from the GT 500 show car is one thing that didn'tmake the transition to production. Expect someone in the aftermarket tofix this with a show-car-style hood.
While I had high expectations for the GT 500 borne of too much time infast Mustangs, I'm also a compulsive tinker. The moment I decide to buya new car (or computer, gadget, or otherwise), I start locking in on allthe modifications I want to make as soon as I get it. I wouldn't evendrive my SVT Focus until I had it just the way I wanted it. Of course Idetermined I wanted a Shelby from the moment I saw it in person, despitenot knowing how I'd pay for it. From that moment I began plotting themodifications. Now that I've experienced the production car, I have afew more.
I know I'd rather have the look of the show car's hood and Shelby trunklettering. While showing us one thing and giving us another only createsnew products for the aftermarket to sell, it's just a wee bitdisappointing. Likewise, I applaud that Ford is finally offering asatellite radio option in the Mustang. Thank goodness. But I firmlybelieve iPod integration and navigation should at least be options. Forthat reason, I want to install a Pioneer AVIC-Z1 in my Shelby. It doesnavigation, XM NavTraffic that routes you around traffic with the nav,the option for either SatRad company, and the option for iPodintegration. In short, it does it all.
Likewise, the spread-out Shelby...
Likewise, the spread-out Shelby lettering didn't make it to theproduction car. The good news is the production lettering isn't held inplace by bolts or even locating pegs. It's just adhesive, so you shouldbe able to replicate the show-car look without too much hassle.
While inside, I think I'd upgrade the seats, as they aren't that muchdifferent from the GT seats. I know Ford is trying to build anaffordable car, so I don't fault them, but something like Recaro'sMagnifica covered in the factory Charcoal Black leather and accompaniedby a matched Recaro child seat for my son should do the trick.
As for the parts you guys care about, the recipe is already there fromthe Terminators. Adding a cold air-intake, short-tube headers, anafter-cat exhaust, a pulley, and, perhaps most importantly, a tune willturn the nice-guy Shelby into a neighborhood bully. I just hope therumors of a 600hp limit on the stock rods prove conservative, as thesecars should reach 600 hp to the tire in a hurry. The engineers said thecars were putting down mid-400hp numbers at the rear wheels withapproximately a 12-percent drivetrain loss, which sounds like more than500 at the flywheel to me.
Beyond that, I'll just tint the windows to keep out the Florida sun andhave Auto Paint Guard install and 3M Clear Auto Bra to protect theTungsten Gray paint and Satin Silver stripes. Ah, a guy can dream,right?
 Mr. Shelby is rightfully proud...  Mr. Shelby is rightfully proud of the lastest GT 500 bearing his name. |  How about this trick upshift...  How about this trick upshift indicator light in the form of a flashingSVT logo? |  |
Blow Me!
Photographed at Eaton's 100,000-square-foot...
Photographed at Eaton's 100,000-square-foot Athens, Georgia, supercharger plant, this is a prototype of the GT 500's M122H hybrid Roots blower. Displacing 122 cubic inches of air per revolution, the hybrid's greater thermal and mechanical efficiency translate into more power available at the Cobra's wheels. Check out the cutaway for construction details.
Say "Eaton Roots blower" and fond memories of being g-forced back into the seats of Terminator Cobras will immediately spring to mind, followed shortly thereafter by similar reminiscence of force-fed Lightning and Harley pickups. Farther back in the memory banks are the blown V-6 T-birds and Cougars of the late '80s and early '90s.
Each one of these Ford factory applications of Eaton-manufactured intercooled, positive-displacement supercharging has been a hit with enthusiasts, and we can safely predict the M122H sitting proudly atop the GT 500's fearsome 5.4 will continue this torquey tradition. In our initial look at the new Cobra (July '05, p. 54) we mistakenly said the GT 500 would have a screw blower. Well, it won't; but it will have the M122H, or what Eaton refers to as a hybrid-thus explaining the "H" in its designation. It's a hybrid of the fifth-generation Roots design as used on the Terminator and a patented, all-new sixth-generation that won't debut until 2008. It's still a Roots-unlike a screw blower, all air compression will take place in the manifold and not within the blower itself.
So why all the excitement? Efficiency. Both mechanically and thermally, the hybrid is substantially more efficient than its Gen V predecessors-thanks to reengineered rotor and port designs-and the GT 500 is the first production application of this hybrid design. The full Gen VI Roots, when it eventually comes along, will be even more efficient as it will have an optimized center-to-center distance between rotors, also known as "pitch spacing." In the meantime, the hybrid essentially combines Gen VI rotor and port designs with existing Gen V pitch diameter, or rotor spacing. In even more basic terms, think of it as Gen VI rotors in a Gen V housing.
According to Eaton, thermal efficiency is up by about 15 percent over the Gen V, meaning substantially lower blower-discharge temps. Lower air-charge temps offer less chance of detonation, permitting more spark advance to be dialed in. More advance equates to more power. And because the hybrid is also more mechanically efficient with fewer parasitic losses than its older Gen V siblings, it consumes less horsepower to generate boost. Are you detecting a pattern here?
Eaton's engineering and product strategy manager for Air Induction and Cylinder Head Systems, Craig Sell, nicely sums up the hybrid in fewer words than it takes to describe his title: "Turbo efficiency from a Roots blower." Sounds good to us- by Dale Amy
5.0 Tech Specs
Engine and Drivetrain: Iron 5.4
Bore and Stroke: 3.552x4.165 in
Displacement: 330 ci
Rotating Assembly: Forged-steel crankshaft, cracked forged-steel I-beamrods, and forged-aluminum pistons
Compression Ratio: 8.4:1
Cams: 0.394-in intake and exhaust lift with 184-deg duration (at 0.050)on the intake and 194-deg (at 0.050) on the exhaust (carryover from'03-'04 Cobra)
Heads: Four-Valve DOHC with 37mm intake and 32mm exhaust valves
Intake: Aluminum lower with integral air-to-water intercooler
Supercharger: Eaton M122H Roots
Throttle Body: Dual 60mm
Fuel System: Returnless with twin 220-lph fuel pumps and 47-lb/hr fuelinjectors
Exhaust: Cast-iron manifolds, twin cats, X-shape crossover, and dualmufflers
Transmission: Tremec TR-6060 six-speed transmission (ratios: 2.97 First,1.78 Second, 1.3 Third, 1.0 Fourth, 0.80 Fifth, and 0.63 Sixth)
Driveshaft: Two-piece aluminum
Rearend: 8.8 with Traction-Lok and 3.31 gears
Electronics
Engine Management: Silver Oak PCM
Ignition: Coil-on plug
Gauges: SVT-logo'd electroluminescent with silver faces
Suspension and Chassis
Front Suspension: Reverse-L independent MacPherson strut with 34mmstabilizer bar
Springs: Coupe: 34 N/mm; Convertible: 31 N/mm
Brakes: 14-in Brembo vented discs with four-piston calipers
Wheels: 18x9.5-in
Tires: Goodyear Eagle F1 255/45ZR18
Rear Suspension: Three-link solid axle with coil springs, Panhard bar,and 24mm stabilizer bar
Springs: Coupe: 28 N/mm; Convertible: 23.9 N/mm rear
Brakes: 11.8-in vented discs with two-piston calipers
Wheels: 18x9.5-in
Tires: Goodyear Eagle F1 285/40ZR18