The First Shelby GT350R Mustang Just Rolled Off The Assembly Line

Ford’s incredible Shelby Mustang V8 crackles en route to the nearest race track.

Looking as menacing in production form as it would on the floor of an auto show, Ford’s new 526-horsepower ShelbyGT350R Mustang rolled off the company’s Michigan assembly line for the first time Thursday.

“This is a special day for all Mustang enthusiasts” crowed executive chairman Bill Ford, a noted Mustang supporter. “We have take the GT350 formula to the next level of innovation, style and performance. Today the legend continues.”

Indeed, at $48,000 for a “regular” GT350 or $62,000 for the GT350R, with its carbon fiber wheels and magnetically adjustable shock absorbers, the car achieves new levels of technology previous unimaginable in the pony car.

But the car’s very best attribute is one you’ll have to experience in person to appreciate. Its 5.2-liter V8 engine has a racing style flat-plane crankshaft (think Ferrari) to produce a crackling full-throttle shriek unlike anything to come before from Detroit. If this doesn’t get your motor runnin’, we don’t know what will. 

Photos by Sam VarnHagen, courtesy of Ford Motor Co.

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