2013 GT500 Review

662HP631TQ

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My 2013 GT500 Review.
First...
Pictures and I will reserve Post 2 for review Information!

In an effort to not duplicate efforts, please check out the pics in Snoop's post below. Those are the pics I intended to post in the first place, but I was really tired from flying and it was 3 AM in Dubai!
 
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662HP631TQ

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Before I give my review I just want to express some personal opinions about the car in general here.
1. I don’t hold this car in any special regard. What I mean is, it is a car like any other I have ever owned. I take care of it to the same level and I drive it like any other car, except it is much faster and powerful than anything I have ever owned.
2. The car in the southern weather I drive in, in the winter, was not hard at all to drive rain or shine. I think it is only when you have a heavy foot you get into trouble. Like I have said many times, if you want this thing to turn you around you can, or if you are just trying to drive normally around town, it is very forgiving in my opinion.
3. The Goodyear tires can be slippery, but I think under very normal driving conditions you will be ok in Southern weather (I have 0 experience with Northern weather in this regard) Don’t get me wrong, I do plan on switching to the Michelin Super Sports eventually, but the Goodyear’s are ok tires.
4. Performance pack wheels have grown on me to a great extent. Even after buying the Shelby Alcoa Wheels, I think the PP wheels are nice, just a bitch to clean.
5. I may be oblivious to things but I can’t say I was really in-tune on some of the complaints such as high clutch pedal, shifting problems, any noises, or any of the other complaints I’ve heard. I have smelled some clutch/brake a few times but I chalked it up to it being new and it has since gone away. All the small cosmetic work I did on it was easy to install. I installed the license plate bracket, Hood Struts, front splash guards, and the Short Antennae. The ONLY terrible mod was the Rear splash guards. You either have to take the wheel off or had a very small type Phillips screw driver or wrench screwdriver mechanism. IT IS TIGHT IN THERE!


Picking up the car
Now onto the review, I picked it up on 22 December after ordering in May and it being built in June and shipped in November. The Dealer I picked it up at was going through construction. So the car was HORRIBLY dusty when I got there. I had no choice but to ask for a complete and thorough wash and detail. I will say they did an excellent job on the car. I was very pleased. I looked it over and it all looked GREAT! I talked to the sales manager. Since this was just a “Delivery Dealer” and not a dealer that sold it to me, I talked to him for a while. When he heard I got it around 3 grand under sticker he was in shock. He told me he sold 2 this past year one went to California for 15K above sticker and another overseas through some acquisition company for 18K above sticker. So I left and drove home.

Initial Impressions
I didn’t have far to drive home so I racked up an INCREDIBLE 3 miles. A very disappointing 3 miles I might add. Why? 4K Rev limiter and No Boost. I forgot about the factory limiters for the first few days while driving 3-4 miles at a time. I was really pissed the day it broke loose. After I got those 10 consecutive miles out from under me I stopped at a light not remembering that I was about to unlock its full potential. So I gunned it from the light and it broke loose! That is when the car became fun. It rained 4 days straight and I had limited days in the US to drive so I finally took it on a 4 hour drive to get a Paint treatment/sealant and XPEL clear front installation done. I drove all the way there and back in the rain with NO PROBLEM. Under 50 degree weather and raining should have spelled disaster in those Good years but they didn’t. Car maintained well even at speed (The speed limit of 65 at least).

Ongoing impressions
The car is a pleasure to turn on with its exhaust note. The Navigation system and Shaker pro may not be worth it, but I think they work well and in keeping it stock probably help keep a clean factory look. The recaros on long trips seem to be uncomfortable, but I am a bit chubby AND have back problems so that may be why. The look of the seats is awesome. Some people call the leather cheap, but lets not kid ourselves this is not a 200K exotic, for what it is, it’s a very nice setup. The rear seats are nice too, not as nice as the fronts but still nice. Rear visibility is of concern on the convertibles, but if the weather is nice you can peel back the top anyway. Trunk space is small but what do you expect ESPECIALLY with the sub in the back. As far as the power…. IT IS THERE! The power is almost instant and it is there. I have never experienced with any car what I experience with the Shelby. I don’t have an extensive list to compare to just a 99 Cobra and my Caliber SRT-4 I had about 330 FWHP on. So this definitely blows them away.

That is about all I can say about the car. I guess they say respect the power. I did that from the beginning and didn’t run into any problems. I keep all nannies on and it keeps things going well. The biggest difference besides this car and any other car I’ve driven aside from power is that it stays planted at speed. It feels like it lowers itself into the ground and just is a pleasure to drive.

Great car and I don’t think I’ll mod for power or ever get tired of it!
 
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Husky44

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Beautiful car, but man, you've got the biggest garage I've ever seen! What do you keep behind all those other doors? I dream that one of these days I'll have a garage like that to hold all the cars I dream of owning. :D
 

662HP631TQ

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Beautiful car, but man, you've got the biggest garage I've ever seen! What do you keep behind all those other doors? I dream that one of these days I'll have a garage like that to hold all the cars I dream of owning. :D

LOL! THat is a storage business, I was storing my car for a while, can't trust it at home lol!
 

662HP631TQ

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By the way, PLEASE no comments on the dirtyness of the engine bay it rained for like 6 days straight... I hated it! No sunshine for my convertible!
 

03Cobra05GT

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By the way, PLEASE no comments on the dirtyness of the engine bay it rained for like 6 days straight... I hated it! No sunshine for my convertible!

Dude, your engine bay is disgustingly dirty! Why!!??? lol :poke:

Looks great. I really love DIB/Black, I think it might be my 2nd fav, and of course, the 2nd fastest color lol.
 

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