(Image: Ford_Shelby_Mustang_2013_GT500_Convertible by Valder137CC BY 2.0)

We’re all suckers for the gorgeous old bodies of the 1960s and 70s, but you can’t ignore what the 2013 Shelby GT500 delivered under the hood.

Chew on these numbers, Ford haters:

662 horsepower.

631 foot-pounds of torque.

200-plus miles-per-hour top speed.

Ford SVT’s 5.8L supercharged V8 engine introduced in this car added 112 horsepower from the previous year’s GT500 and still INCREASED fuel efficiency by one mile per gallon.

Put another way? This pony is churning out 37 more horsepower than the 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06.

How did Ford engineers do this?

They completely overhauled the previous 5.4L V8. According to Car and Driver, Ford changed the camshaft profiles, added piston squirters and high-flow fuel injectors, bumped the boost from 9 to 15 psi by swapping the old supercharger for a larger, more-efficient TVS unit.

The cooling system was upgraded. Ford added a carbon-fiber driveshaft, strengthened the clutch, revised the gearing and upgraded the transmission, and added a beefier rear axle.

Maybe the best part?

This incredible car retailed for about $60,000—in many cases, about half of what you’d expect to pay for high performance cars of its caliber.

It’s a no-brainer, really. The 2013 Shelby GT500 is our #4 Mustang of all time.

Author: Matt Griswold

After a 10-year newspaper journalism career, Matt Griswold spent another decade writing about the automotive aftermarket and motorsports. He was part of the original OnAllCylinders editorial team when it launched in 2012.