Ford has truly outdone themselves with the fastest Mustang to ever grace this planet. Designed to compete with the likes of the American Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye and the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, it can easily overpower and outmanoeuvre both and looks great doing it. It made its debut at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this year along with its sibling the GT350, which will both be available together for the first time in nearly 50 years.

Blended Exterior

Ford blends some of the styling of the 2015 Mustang with an all-new look that includes a huge double grille for greater air intake. The large grille is offset by a larger hood vent to balance pressure inside the engine compartment. This combination gives the 2020 GT500 50 percent more airflow and a level of downforce that has never been accomplished before on any Mustang. It is also equipped with wider fenders to accommodate 20X11.5-inch wheels. For 2020, the Shelby has a new rear spoiler as well as a diffuser for heat dissipation. As far as colours, if you do not want to settle for the plain old black or white, Ford has made three new colours available, Red Hot, Twister Orange and Iconic Silver, all available with painted stripes.

Step Inside the GT500

While the Shelby GT500 may be all about speed that does not mean you cannot have all the creature comforts as well. Inside you can choose carbon-fibre dash appliques to contrast the faux-suede door panel inserts that feature accent stitching. You also have a choice of full-power faux-suede seats or Recaro racing seats with safety harness pass-throughs. Ford definitely did not skimp on the electronics either. It is available with a 12-inch digital, customizable gauge cluster, 12-speaker audio system, 8-inch touchscreen multimedia system and even WiFi hotspot functionality. All this is in addition to all the other premium features that come standard.

What Makes it GO

Now for what makes the 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 the fastest street legal Ford! Under the hood of this iconic muscle car is a 5.2-litre supercharged V8 engine that puts out 567 kW and 847 nm of torque. One change is there will be no option of a manual transmission, only a pairing of a 7-speed, dual-clutch automatic. While Ford has taken away a little fun without a manual transmission, it does give you a variety of driving modes to make up for it. They include Normal, Weather, Sport, Drag and Track, and they added a line-lock and launch-control function. While there are no actual performance numbers as of yet, 0-100kph is estimated at around 3.5 seconds and a quarter mile should be gone in less than 11 seconds.

With a price of about $71,000 US ($104,600 AUS), obviously these muscle cars are not for everyone. If you want fuel economy, this Mustang is definitely on the wrong end of the spectrum. If you want to go fast, have fun and drive as if you do not have a care in the world, then yes, this is the car for you. They are fast, fun and definitely the fastest production Ford on the planet.