2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 starts at $70,300, Ford confirms
An anonymous dealer source leaked the price to Jalopnik.
Ford is running a weird marketing campaign for the 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500 where it only trickles out small bits of info at a time. When the vehicle debuted, we had no idea how much power it made, and it took six months to find that out. However, we won't have to wait that long to discover its starting price, thanks to a loose-lipped anonymous source.
The 2020 Shelby GT500 will start at $70,300, Jalopnik reports, citing an anonymous dealership source. The source's information was subsequently confirmed through a Ford spokesperson, so it's legit. While that might be the starting price on paper, it's worth noting that the GT500 requires two extra mandatory charges -- $1,095 for destination and delivery, and $2,600 for a gas-guzzler tax -- that brings its actual price up to $73,995. But even then, that higher price doesn't include the usual taxes, title and license fees, so expect to pay a bit more.
After confirming the news to Roadshow,as well, Ford sent over pricing information for the GT500's optional equipment, too. The Carbon Fiber Track Package adds carbon-fiber wheels and aerodynamic upgrades for $18,500. The middle-ground Handling Package commands $1,500. If you want a black-painted roof, that'll be $695, with Ford asking the same amount for its "over-the-top" stripes. Finally, if you want a carbon-fiber instrument panel, you can tack another $1,000 onto the window sticker.
It's also worth pointing out that this is merely the suggested retail price. So long as the automaker doesn't get all uppity about it ahead of time like Dodge did with the Demon, dealers are free to tack on arbitrary markups without ramification, because demand will be high and supply will be limited. Honda Civic Type R enthusiasts were excited at the premise of a $35,000 hot hatch par excellence, only to be met with window stickers as much as to $10,000 higher. Some Honda dealers are still trying to fleece the youths, two full model years after the damn thing came out.
But for the price, the GT500 offers one heck of a compelling package. Its 5.2-liter supercharged V8 ditches the flat-plane crank from the GT350 in the pursuit of power -- 760 horsepower, to be exact, and 625 pound-feet of torque. It should be capable of hitting 60 miles per hour in the mid-3-second range, and a dual-clutch transmission is mandatory, since this car is about excelling at the track first and foremost.
Its pricing puts it right in line with the competition. The Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody commands about $73,000, but it's not exactly a sharply honed track tool, although it does make more power (797 hp). The 2019 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE track-day special costs $72,195 with a manual transmission, but adding a 10-speed automatic bumps the price by $1,595.
