Mustang Shelby GT500

Make
Ford
Segment
Coupe

Think the new Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 is a lot of machine? Well it is, but Shelby American thinks it can get more out of it. And it's brought a concept showcasing that point – along with a street-truck concept – to the SEMA show this year.

Called the Dragon Snake, Shelby American's own take on the GT500 is envisioned as a drag racer, as you might have discerned from that bonkers rear wing. But it's not just a visual upgrade: where the 5.2-liter supercharged V8 delivers over 760 horsepower as it is, Shelby says it can squeeze upwards of 800 hp out of it.

Shelby American has also fitted the GT500 Dragon Snake with a revised suspension, a retuned dual-clutch transmission, its own set of wheels, lighter glass, high-flow cats, and is even considering a widebody option (like Dodge offers on the Charger and Challenger).

"The 2020 Shelby GT500 is truly amazing in stock configuration, but we wanted to explore its pure acceleration capabilities," said Shelby R&D chief Vince LaViolette. "So we worked closely with Ford Performance and other partners to create the ultimate 'weapon of track destruction' in the quarter mile." But the Dragon Snake isn't the only concept it rolled across town from its Las Vegas headquarters to the convention center for this year's show.

Joining the Dragon Snake is the Super Snake Sport – an F-150 pickup closer to the old SVT Lightning than today's Raptor. The standard-cab street truck features a lowered suspension, upgraded brakes, a host of visual enhancements, and a supercharged V8 good for a massive 755 horsepower. It may not be pretty, but it ought to blow the doors (however many of them) off just about anything else on the drag strip.

"While our current four-door Shelby trucks are extremely popular, hardcore fans dreamed of a two door in the spirit of the great 1960s muscle cars," said Shelby American president Gary Patterson. "The Shelby Super Snake Sport F-150 is that vision come to life as a concept vehicle."