Faster Than A Speeding Bullitt
Voted the #1 sports car in America for 50 years, its regarded as the most powerful Mustang ever. The 2020 Mustang puts the horse, in horsepower. The 2020 Mustang offers five available engines, including the 5.2L supercharged V8 - the most powerful street-legal Ford production engine ever. It has been said that those who have power will use it to keep it. Abraham Lincoln said, “Nearly all men can handle adversity. But if you want to test his character, give him power. Power and character are what the
2020 Mustang has plenty of. The 2.3L EcoBoost provides 310 horsepower, 350 lb-ft of torque, turbo charging and direct injection, twin independent variable cam timing (Ti-VCT). Through meticulous design and a commitment to excellence, this pony delivers and the competition is fully aware. The 2.3L High Performance is the first EcoBoost engine powered by Ford Performance. What differentiates it is that it has a slightly larger twin-scale turbo compressor, fresh engine calibration and large radiator, 350 horsepower, 350 lb-ft of torque, active exhaust
with quad tips, 90% of available torque from 3,000 rpm to the red line, the most powerful in-line four cylinder in America, most powerful EcoBoost engine ever in a Mustang. The GT 5.0 Ti-VCT V8 has an engine that comes with 460 hp with 420 lb-ft of torque and has port fuel direct injection. The 5.0L Bullitt engine takes the standard 5.0L Ti-VCT V8 from the Mustang GT plus 97mm air intake for enhanced horsepower and torque.The Third Law of The Universe is the Law of Action, which states that we must be in constant action in order to manifest our thoughts, dreams, and emotions. Thoughts, dreams, and emotions
combined manifest themselves in the form of the Mustang Bullitt. In 2018, Ford released the Bullitt to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Mustang GT Fastback in the movie Bullitt starring Steve McQueen, which featured one of the most famous car chase scenes of all time. The nearly 11-minute chase between Bullitt and a Dodge Charger driven by nefarious hitmen produced a chase sequence that since became an industry standard for all car chases on film. The 1968 Dodge Charger shown, in actuality two, had unmodified 375 hp 440 Magnum V8-powered engines. The two 1968 390 cu. in. V8 Ford Mustang GT Fastbacks (325 hp) with four-speed manual transmissions were used for the chase scene. The Mustangs were lent by the Ford Motor Company to Warner Brothers as part of a promotional agreement.
The car was once owned by Sean Kiernan in Tennessee, whose late father Robert Kiernan bought the car for $6,000 in 1974 after responding to a listing in Road & Track. The Mustang was used to replace the family’s MGB. The matriarch of the family, who was a schoolteacher drove the Mustang for about five years until it developed clutch trouble. The vehicle sat undisturbed in the Kiernan’s garage for decades. When Sean became older, he and his dad disassembled the engine in hopes of rebuilding it but never fully accomplishing that task. The father and son duo kept it a secret that they were in possession of it for years.
They were waiting for the right opportunity to reveal their prized possession as rumors and collectors begin to get closer and ramp up efforts to acquire the car. Robert Kiernan passed away in 2014 leaving the car to Sean. Employed as an auto paint salesman, Sean’s boss, Casey Wallace inquired about Sean’s vehicular inheritances which included another sportscar. As it turned out Wallace had a mutual friend that was in the process of looking to make a film about two teenagers that came across the Bullitt Mustang during a barnyard find only to have their dreams of owning the car interrupted by bad guys seeking to acquire the car as well. It was at this point that Kiernan decided that it was time to reveal the true identity of his prized possession and share it with the world. Rumors and car collectors had long suspected that the Kiernan’s had the car. As a matter of fact,
Steve McQueen had written a letter to Robert Kiernan in the 1970’s attempting to buy it. Mecum Auctions auctioned the Bullitt Mustang Hero Car owned by Kiernan at its Kissimmee auction on January 10, 2020, for a record price of $3.7 million, including auction fees. The legendary professional wrestler Jake “The Snake” Roberts once said, “The snake will always bite back”. It has also been said that a snake deserves no pity. The Shelby GT 350 doesn’t need any. The 5.2L NA Ti-VCT V8 comes with a Flat-Plane Crankshaft. It has 526 hp, 429 lb-ft of torque, a redline of 8,250 rpm makes it the highest performance production V8 Ford has ever produced.
Next is the ultimate king cobra – the Shelby GT 500. The 5.2L Supercharged Cross-Plank Crank V8 has 700 hp, 625 lb-ft of torque. It can go 0-60 mph in 2 seconds and can cover ¼ of a mile in less than 11 seconds. For those in the dark about what “GT” stands for, GT most commonly stands for Grand Touring or Gran Turismo. An automobile awarded the GT designation by its manufacturer generally means the vehicle is high performance and, unlike a race car, features an interior built for comfort. The GT350 only had minor updates for the 2020 model year. These upgrades include updated suspension tuning and new colors Grabber Lime, Twister Orange, Iconic Silver, Rapid Red. The 2020 also introduced a new option, the Heritage Edition Package celebrating 55 years of track focused Mustang Fastbacks, which includes Wimbledon White paint with Guardsman Blue Over-the-Top racing stripes, unique Guardsman Blue sides stripes not available on other GT350s.
To commemorate 55 years since the first Shelby Mustang, Shelby American created Carroll Shelby Signature Edition versions of the 2015-2020 Shelby GT350 and Shelby GT350R. The 2020 GT500 was unveiled at the January 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. It is powered by a hand-built 5.2-liter "Predator" aluminum-alloy V8 engine with a 2.65-liter roots-type supercharger. The Shelby GT500 produces 760 hp and 625 lb-ft of torque. Other performance-enhancing tech standard on the 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500 includes an rpm-selectable launch control system and electronic line lock, otherwise known as burnout mode. Mustang offers three available transmissions, the 10-speed automatic,
TREMEC six-speed manual, and the TREMEC seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, each designed to get the most out of your vehicle. Standard on the Shelby GT500 the all-new TREMEC seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is the first ever dual clutch transmission in a Mustang. The system comes with multiple modes to make for lightning-fast shifts. Ford partnered with Tremec to design the unique paddle shift automatic, which can change gears in as little as 80 milliseconds, and says it offers "maximum driver control". The seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is major contributor to the Mustang GT500's overall performance.
Both the Mustang and Camaro wear retro-inspired designs that pay homage to their 1960’s origins. The Camaro does however manage to display more modern styling while the Mustang caters more to its tradition. Both the Mustang and Camaro offer room for four passengers despite a very compact feel in the canopy. This is due to room and space sacrificed for weight. This translates into speed. The Camaro is the lightest car, but the Camaro’s ZL1 1LE's 650 horsepower is a ways off the GT500's 760 and the Dodge Challenger’s Redeye's 797.Just as with its 1960’s predecessor, chrome and brushed aluminum are found throughout the cabin of the modern-day Ford Mustang. A V6 engine is no longer an option in the Mustang. It was replaced a few years back with a
highly competent turbocharged 4-cylinder. Aside from this base 4-cylinder model, all other variations of the Mustang come with a V8, the most potent of which is a supercharged 5.2-liter mill putting out a whopping 760 horsepower in the new-for-2020 GT500 model. The Camaro is available with a turbocharged 4-cylinder, a V6 and a 6.2-liter V8 that comes supercharged in the top-spec ZL1 model. Recently, the three sportscars were put to the test on a restricted track. The Mustang Shelby GT500 was the clear winning coming in at 11.3 seconds on the quarter mile track followed by the Camaro’s, 11.6-second quarter-mile pass, a tenth quicker than the Challenger. Reflecting back to the classic chase scene up against the Challenger, clearly history has repeated itself. This may be attributed to the fact that the Challenger is heavier than its two contemporaries. According to in Car & Driver Magazine,
“Everything about the Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye Widebody is big and bodacious.” All critics have basically summed it up that the Mustang is the better performance car, while the Challenger is the heaviest and has tire traction issues. The Challenger managed a 3.6-second sprint to 60 mph. That's a solid number, but it's not as quick as the run in the Camaro, which has 110 less horsepower. By 100 mph, though, the Ford is quicker than the Chevy by 0.3 second, and by 160 mph, it's more than five seconds faster. Both Ford and Chevrolet offer great infotainment software, and the latest versions of each are available in the Mustang and Camaro.
Ford brands its infotainment system as "SYNC 3," while Chevrolet’s is known as "MyLink." On top of these competent setups, both vehicles offer Android Auto and Apple CarPlay as well. The Mustang also includes Amazon Alexa integration. Both vehicles offer fun software for use at the track. The Mustang’s system is called "Track Apps" and can provide acceleration and lap times along with G-force data. The Camaro has a more sophisticated system that Chevrolet has dubbed the "Performance Data Recorder." This system includes a camera located at the front of the vehicle that can record a video of your drive to an SD card with overlays of your speed, G-forces, steering angle, engine rpm and more. Overall, the Camaro offers up more intricate performance details than the Mustang. The base price Chevrolet’s Camaro begins at $25,000. The Dodge Challenger starts at $28,085.
The 2020 Mustang Shelby GT500 has a base price of $73,995, which can be inflated past $95,000 for a fully loaded model with the few options that are offered. The 2020 Ford Mustang starts at $26,670 for a fastback coupe model with the standard four-cylinder engine. The V8-powered Mustang GT starts at $35,630, and convertible models start at $32,170. A six-speed manual transmission is standard, and a 10-speed automatic is optional for around $1,600. Those prices are about average for a sportscar but going to higher trim levels or adding options can significantly increase the cost. The GT Premium Fastback starts at $39,630 and can top $50,000. A GT Premium convertible with a average price of $45,130 is even more expensive. The Mustang Bullitt starts at $47,810. Currently Ford is offering a $500 bonus cash for current military, first responders, medical professionals and their families.
For these hard times during the COVID-19 Pandemic, you can have a taste of excitement on a budget. Sixt is Germany’s largest car rental company. Sixt also has several branches here in the US in Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, and Miami. Ranging from $175-$250 you can rent a Mustang Shelby GT-S for a day. The ideal location for wide open roads is Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. For a tropical rush akin to Miami, without the traffic its recommended to speed along the winding West Ozello Trail. Some curves are so sharp that posted sign order speed limits as low as 10 mph. It is said that this road is comparable to the “Tail of The Dragon” in Tennessee.
Beginning at Deals Gap on the Tennessee/North Carolina state line is the Tail of the Dragon. It is considered by many as one of the world's foremost motorcycling and sports car touring roads. Anyone looking for an exciting highway will enjoy this 11-mile stretch of US 129. A little closer to home here in Alabama is north of Atlanta, Georgia is Suches, Georgia, home of the Six Gap Route. Six Gap consists of: Wolfpen Gap, Woody Gap, Neels Gap, Hogpen Gap, Unicoi Gap, and Jacks Gap. The entire figure 8 including the short 3-mile US 129 connector is 77 miles long.
The southern loop is 35 miles and the northern loop is 38 miles. Each of the six segments includes crossing through a mountain “gap” or low pass, hence the name Six Gap. Four of these gaps are at points where the Appalachian Trail, stretching from Georgia to Maine, crosses the roadway. Celebrity Mustang owners have been Jay Leno, rapper Nelly, Tim Allen, Clay Cook, Bruce Willis, John Cena, Sylvester Stallone, former US President Bill Clinton, Bob Seger, Kelly Clarkson, Sammy Hagar, Lewis Hamilton, and CDQ.
To learn more about this American icon and legend, and how you too can be an owner, travel over to Town & Country Ford in Bessemer, Alabama and meet with Michael Jamison aka “MJ the Soldier”. Mr. Jamison, who’s also a retired US Army Master Sergeant was recently Town & Country’s top August sales consultant. For a great experience while shopping for your next new or pre-owned vehicle, stop by Town & Country Ford and ask for Michael Jamison. The Ford Mustang is an American icon, a representation of American muscle and mechanical majesty. The legendary Bullitt was just as much of a character as any of the veteran actors in the cult classic film. Fifty years later, people still want a taste of nostalgia of when America put the hustle in muscle. As much as it is an icon, it is what the vehicle represents, innovation manifested in the collective pageantry of perfection and might, the dare to dream and capture lightning in a bottle. Innovation is the unrelenting drive to break the status quo and develop anew where few have dared to go. Furthermore, innovation is taking two things that exist and putting them together in a new way. This new way has yet produced a superior product that has stymied the competition and given its driver the power over the open road. In physics, power is the amount of energy transferred or converted per unit time. We have the energy. The time is now.