DETROIT _ The Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 is not going out quietly.
The screaming 8,250-rpm, V-8 pony car rides into the sunset this fall wearing the historic Wimbledon White and Guardsman Blue stripe paint scheme of the original 1965 GT350 that tore up race tracks and made Mustang a legend 55 years ago. It marks the last batch of GT350s to roll off the Flat Rock assembly line since its 2016 debut.
You may have heard your windows rattle last week when I rode Mustang's demon to Hell, Michigan's challenging roads and back. With its high-pitched pterodactyl shriek, the 526-horse, 5.2-liter flat-plane crank V-8 _ different than the low-pitch T. rex gurgle of Mustang's traditional V-8 _ has always stopped bystanders in their tracks.
Add its original paint scheme, and the last GT350 proves irresistible. It has always been so.
Ken Costella owns a 1965 Shelby Mustang GT350 that John Tunstall and Joe Jenkins piloted from 1965-1974.
In 1965, Shelby race driver Ken Miles � immortalized in "Ford v. Ferrari" _ won at Green Valley Raceway in Texas, establishing Mustang as a racing force. As the GT40 thrilled international crowds, GT350 made hearts race back home.
As the Mustang Mach E leads Ford into electrification, the sixth-generation muscle car shoulders a burden beyond its traditional role as America's favorite sports car. Together with the Ford F-150 pickup and Bronco SUV, Mustang is now a key corporate pillar in Ford's promise to deliver toughness, adventure and performance.
You'll know it by the Guardsman Blue stripes and Shelby Cobra. The 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R Heritage Edition.
For the last five model years, the GT350 has defined performance.
With its daring 2015 Mustang redesign, Ford reestablished its pony at the head of the Detroit muscle car pack after years of trailing crosstown rival Camaro. Keen to rekindle its performance cred, too, Ford resurrected the Shelby GT350 for the first time since 1965. It led a stampede of speed including the Bullitt, GT500 and forthcoming Mach 1 models.
The 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R Heritage Edition (see snake on steering wheel) is a driver's car with plenty of convenience features _ cruise control, radio -for when you're not hammering the V-8 engine at 8,000 RPM.
Given its '60s heritage, there's no doubt the GT350 is the brand halo. Like its 1965 forefather, its racing version _ the GT350R-C _ was an instant success on the race track, winning in its 2016 IMSA Daytona debut.
"Looking back on it, what Ford and Carroll Shelby created back in the mid-'60s was so important to Mustang," said Mustang marketing boss Jim Owens. "The Shelby GT350 Heritage Edition vehicles are a meaningful tribute to the Shelby legacy."
With its manual transmission, wicked Shelby Cobra badge and athleticism, GT350 embodies Mustang's ethic: a wild stallion in a field of pure-bred horses.
The interior of the 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R Heritage Edition features signature aero vents, manual parking brake and six-speed tranny. A badge on the dash identifies the number for the Heritage Edition.
I've driven more precise cars _ Porsche, Corvette, Supra _ over Hell's undulating roads this year, but none made my hair stand on end like the Shelby. With 31 more horses than the mid-engine Corvette, the GT350 gulped real estate along Hadley Road. But with 317 cubic inches of V-8 up front, I always felt like I was hanging on to the great beast's neck.
Boasting magnetic shocks and huge Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 gummies available on my GT350R tester, Ford engineers have worked miracles to strap the 3,700-pound 'Stang to the asphalt. But the naturally aspirated engine _ rare in this turbocharged age _ begs to be revved to 8 grand, where it hits a deafening 104 decibels (the dB race car limit at some race tracks, FYI). It's the highest-horsepower, normally aspirated eight-cylinder Ford has ever crafted. It creates a deep bond between car and driver.
Go like Hell. The 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R Heritage Edition is the most raw perfromance Mustang with 526-horsepower, gummy Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, and a six-speed manual.
"We're still deeply in love with the GT350R," wrote Car and Driver magazine at its annual Lightning Lap competition at Virginia International Raceway in 2016. "We love that every time the throttle opens, it sounds as if a million tiny hammers were being fired into the exhaust."
The 760-horse supercharged Mustang GT500 cyborg sibling may be faster, but GT350 is the class heartthrob.
Back off the throttle, and the V-8 pops and gurgles like it's digesting a meal. Stab the throttle for a heel-and-toe downshift, and the Cobra seems to spit fire. During my time in Hell, I never turned on the radio. The engine is soundtrack enough.
But like the standard Mustang upon which it's based, the GT350 is an easy daily driver. Dial back its Sport and Track modes (my preferred settings for Hellish delights) to Normal and it cruises along happily through Livingston County.
The 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350R Heritage Edition thrives on Hell (Michigan's) challenging roads. It's even more fun on a track.
I gave it navigation instructions through the Android Auto app, tuned to my favorite comedy stations on Sirius XM, set cruise-control for town speed limits. These are alien concepts to the 1965 GT350 that spawned generations of enthusiasts six decades ago.
It's a seductive package that's been in demand for five years. In 2016 GT350 sold for $49,995 _ my winged, more track-focused GT350R was $66,495. For 2020 those prices are $61,635 and $74,630, respectively. Demand has been through the roof.
Tack on an additional $1,965 for the Shelby Heritage Edition. It's a small price to pay for history.
