My take: Daily driving will probably be a lot better with the 22' Mach 1, it's almost 10 years newer than your Shelby and will have the latest creature comforts.

It would be a downgrade in the sense that daily driving a Shelby is pretty much as badass as you can get.

Whipple that Mach 1 and you'll probably have just as much power as your Shelby did and handle better.

I love dailying my Shelby but I admit that it is tiring trying to avoid bad drivers every. single. day.

Let us know what you decide on!

 

The Mach-1 is going to have a lot more creature comforts, and will be a lot more comfortable to drive. Could just throw a Whipple on the Mach-1 and will be at GT500 power levels. The GT500's were truly the last true muscle cars, and the new Mach-1 is more sports car then muscle. It really comes down to what your personal preference is, I'd go drive an Mach-1 and see how you like it.

 

I have the 22 GT500 Base HP as well as a 22 Mach1 HP. The Mach1 HP has a double splitter and Recaro bucket seats. I do not enjoy driving it around as a daily as it tends to scrape on bumps and ramps. I have suited it for the track with some minor modifications with rollbar, harnesses, brakes, wheels etc. But generally the suspension set up is pretty good for the track and is (was) better in handling than the GT500. (Just lately I added the Steeda sway bars, springs, endlinks so will be testing the GT500's handling in 2025).
I was going to get rid of the Mach1 but I just cannot. I love this car. Open road and track driving for sure. Compared to the GT500 is does lack the acceleration & speed especially noticeable on the longer straights on a track. (I leave my 'racing' for the track). My GT500 on the street, just feels uncomfortable and it just wants to go. It needs speed! It does not like the traffic.
I was considering changing to the X-pipe exhaust on the M1 because the GT500 sounds so much better and it's stated that the M1 could increase by 10hp without it's suitcase. (I also removed the carbon filter on the intake and added the bigger GT500 air filter to claim another 18HP). I was told not to Whipple the Mach1 for track use as the whole set-up is not designed to handle the extra weight. But I'm sure many would debate this. I think for daily use, the Supercharger will be great.
Since the Mach1 HP has the Recaro seats and the GT500 base has the normal seats, my wife prefers the GT500 for comfort. I prefer the bucket seats. Not sure what Mach1 you getting but it depends whether it has the Recaro seats, double splitter etc and decide what you prefer.
I think it boils down to personal preference and use. I don't daily either of my Mustangs but thought I would add my 5c worth.

 

I did the H resonator delete. You should do the delete, it really wakes up the sound on the Mach 1. Also did the intake carbon filter removal. Both are a must on the Mach1! The resonator delete is about 25 lbs of crap off the car also. I do not have the HP on mine, but I did put the HP wing on!

 

Hi to all fellow GT500 owners,

As stated on the title, i am on the fence of switching to a 2022 Mach 1 from my 2013 GT500(bought it earlier this year) due to following reasons. i would hope someone can help me to come to sense. Don't want to use the word "downgrade" to a S550 Mach 1. But horsepower and value wise, it feels like downgrading. The Shelby is pretty rough on the road. This is our first Shelby but not the first S196+1.

• comfort (current GT500 is on Cup2(265/325) and stock suspension)
• daily driving ability

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Zac

I daily drive a 23 Mach 1 and it is nice combo of sport car and comfort. I have a 2010 Gt500 that I keep for the fun runs. If you could, keep both

 

Hi to all fellow GT500 owners,

As stated on the title, i am on the fence of switching to a 2022 Mach 1 from my 2013 GT500(bought it earlier this year) due to following reasons. i would hope someone can help me to come to sense. Don't want to use the word "downgrade" to a S550 Mach 1. But horsepower and value wise, it feels like downgrading. The Shelby is pretty rough on the road. This is our first Shelby but not the first S196+1.

• comfort (current GT500 is on Cup2(265/325) and stock suspension)
• daily driving ability

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Zac

Pros and cons of both cars Zach:

2013 Shelby
Pros:
More exlusive
Brute force acceleration
Cons:
Solid rear axle
Rides like a truck
Old school vibe (could be a pro)

2021-2023 Mach 1:
Pros:
Independent rear
Handles much better
No transmission shift issues
More modern tech
More compliant ride
Warranty
Cons:
More common
Less power

 

What? Rides like a truck? It's as smooth as butter, lol.

 

See if you can find someone to give you a ride in a base 20-22 GT500. You’ll be pretty surprised at what a comfortable and docile car it can be. You’ll probably have a hard time test driving one at any dealer, though. I bet there’s a member here who would be happy to give you a ride. In normal mode, the ride is totally daily driver livable, and the dual clutch shifts butter smooth 99% of the time. Plus, you won’t be wanting for power over the 13. The main drawback of the 20+ GT500 as a daily is the atrocious fuel economy. The 13 will do much better if you’re easy on it, and the Mach 1 is almost an economy car by comparison.

 

I would not want to get a DCT for driving experience. Had E90 m3 with DCT. it doesn't get bored real quick.

 

i do see alot of good bullet points and advices. Much appreciated. What an active forum in here !


The main thing for me is the comfort of the ride. I do understand the SRA can be dramatic. and do wish i was living somewhere with better road(compare to where we live in NY).

Are there any suspension mods/wheels mods to minimize the rough ride on road driving? as i stated, im running Cup2 265 40 19 front and 325 30 20 rear with aftermarket Forged wheels.


I still can not wrap my head around having to pay 45-49k for a Mach 1. do you guys see these prices will drop in 2025?


Who got the crystal ball?



Zac

 

How many miles are on your car? Your car could be due for a suspension refresh if there's a good bit of miles on your oem suspension components.

I kinda recall when I first got my 08 GT500 at 22,000 miles, it was somewhat "plush" for what the car is, now that the car is around 55,000 miles, I can tell the suspension is getting a bit worn and isn't as forgiving over bumps like it used to be.

Smaller rims/more tire can help with a smoother ride, when I ran 20" Shelby Razors, the ride was a lot rougher than I liked for daily driving and I took them off and went back to the stock wheels after a few months.

 

How many miles are on your car? Your car could be due for a suspension refresh if there's a good bit of miles on your oem suspension components.

I kinda recall when I first got my 08 GT500 at 22,000 miles, it was somewhat "plush" for what the car is, now that the car is around 55,000 miles, I can tell the suspension is getting a bit worn and isn't as forgiving over bumps like it used to be.

Smaller rims/more tire can help with a smoother ride, when I ran 20" Shelby Razors, the ride was a lot rougher than I liked for daily driving and I took them off and went back to the stock wheels after a few months.

8000 miles. the cup 2 is not helping.

 

Mach 1 is a GT350 with a bulletproof engine making 40hp less and slightly smaller brakes. Hard to go wrong for something that's going to be used mostly on the street.

 

Start with new tires, cup 2 are good for track but not street as you probably know. This will make the biggest difference in ride and go from there.

 

I found the GY PS4S 305 & 325 works great for the street and rain.

Edit: Michelin PS4S not GY! My mistake.

 

Not a direct comparison but I ran the previous version A/S3+'s on my 08 GT500 in the stock 18" wheel size and for my stockish power levels, they performed just fine. I'd have to hammer the throttle pretty hard to get them to break traction.

Rain driving was awesome, they channeled the water very well, I wanted to go with th A/S 4's but Discount Tire didn't carry those when I needed tires so I went with Nittos, with the nittos it's a night and day difference from the A/S3's I had when it comes to rain driving, I have to be really careful now, whereas the A/S 3+'s I could still ride 5 over the speed limit and feel rather safe.

Maybe wait to see if any 13/14 owners chime in though as I know those year Shelby's have a good bit of more power than previous years.

 

Not a direct comparison but I ran the previous version A/S3+'s on my 08 GT500 in the stock 18" wheel size and for my stockish power levels, they performed just fine. I'd have to hammer the throttle pretty hard to get them to break traction.

Rain driving was awesome, they channeled the water very well, I wanted to go with th A/S 4's but Discount Tire didn't carry those when I needed tires so I went with Nittos, with the nittos it's a night and day difference from the A/S3's I had when it comes to rain driving, I have to be really careful now, whereas the A/S 3+'s I could still ride 5 over the speed limit and feel rather safe.

Maybe wait to see if any 13/14 owners chime in though as I know those year Shelby's have a good bit of more power than previous years.

Agree. Great tire, I even ran them in the snow, and while driving carefully and slowly, I felt confident.

 

ideally, i would like to change to 265/40/19 and 315/3520 A/S 4 or 4s if i was to keep the gt500. and see how it goes from there.

 

That tall of a tire will probably rub the rear fender.

 

My personal opinion, there is nothing wrong with daily driving the GT500. Put the suspension in Normal mode, and while it feels like it's got considerable body roll, it does ride like you're on a cloud. It's a bit of a kidney bruiser with the suspension set in Sport mode. As others have suggested, see if you can get a ride in one, or see if someone would let you drive a newer Mach 1, see how you like it compared to your '13 GT500. The IRS is going to ride/handle differently and your powerband is going to be significantly further up the RPM gauge. Get used to winding it out

With my '14, I've got 315 Nitto NT555R2's on the rear, and have been cross-country twice with it, driving in the rain at 70-75 mph without issues. I came up from a 2013 Track Package GT w/ Recaro's, so the Shelby, while a pretty significant upgrade, was mainly a drivetrain upgrade vs a whole new car.

 

Just saw the picture of your car. Very nice. Is it lowered? seems like mine has bigger wheel gap with 265 and 325

 

I run Michelin Pilot Sport AS 4 265/40 19's on front and 285/35 20's on the rear. I find they ride pretty smooth. Now I don't run them in rain (personal preference) and I garage it from Oct-April because of the salt and snow where I live.

 

i thought about going that route/size if i go back to stock SVT wheels. Currently running slightly wider wheels. 19x10 and 20x12. But its good to hear GT500 owner uses A/S 4

 

i thought i have seen gt500 member running 275 40 19 front and 315 35 20 rear on stock suspension without issue (no plan to mods/lower in future). can someone please confirm?

 

2007 - 2014 - Wheel/tire fitment guide

I have a good bit of practical experience with wheel and tire fitment in my 2012 Shelby. While a few refer to me as the site expert, it’s only because I have worked with several different wheel configurations and tire sizes than most have done. Let’s face it, a mistake buying wheels and tires...

www.fordgt500.com

 

Please don't do it. It makes NO sense. Enjoy the last real SHELBY from the factory that SHELBY had something to do with.

 

Just want follow up on this tread and give my review on the tire setup we did.

So we have decided to keep the Shelby and installed what we think is more comfortable tires. We went with Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 4, 265 40 19 front and 305 35 20 in the rear on 19x10 and 20x12( after trying 315 35 20 for the rear, they were too tall for our cars. and looked too funny haha).
The ride is more quite compare to what we had(cup 2). Traction seems better. But I do feel like the car is heavier than having cup 2(maybe different rear tire size?). Ride quality also improve slightly.

Overall, we are happy to run these A/S 4 at least for now. When the weather gets warmer here in the east coast, we will definitely drive it more and report back.

 

So we have decided to keep the Shelby