Page 32 - MotorTrend (March 2020)

TRACK TEST

ustang vs. Corvette? Go ahead, These two contenders offer different interpretation of a mid-six-figure Euro-
pinch your thumb and index finger kinds of appeal, both inspiring great pean supercar; the Shelby has nearly the
to the bridge of your nose, squint desire in the high-performance enthu- same interior as that rental Mustang
your eyes, and blink hard. When siast world. Both offer capabilities convertible at the Hertz counter at LAX—
Myou look again, the words on the that measure well against far pricier albeit with better seats and some minor
page won’t have changed. foreigners, without the kind of sacrifices brightwork tacked on to disguise its cheesy
Rarely has MotorTrend conducted (or that used to come with the label “Made rotary shift knob and plasticky switchgear.
concocted) such a bold comparison. But in America.” Gone (mostly) are the Ford’s interior guys still have some work
it’s a mad, mad new world we’re in now. long-muttered utterances about cheap to do before they can declare their Shelby
Forget the Blue Oval’s sacrosanct rivalry features and fixtures, crude handling, and variants to be world-class premium.
with Camaro, which had always left the lack of refinement. But this is not a comparison test for
Corvette to chase the elusive, pricier Of course, when you look inside these value shoppers who peruse our Buyer’s
Porsche 911. two cars, there’s an immediate differ- Guide, niggling over inches of legroom and
Oh sure, the base pony car models will ence. The Corvette is an American warranty coverage.
still compete, same as always. But the
top-end Mustang GT500 is so excellent
In addition to the GT500’s driving modes,
it deserves higher-octane competition. one can adjust the damping rate and
The final piece of evidence: The Mustang steering weight to suit.
Shelby GT500 costs more than Chevrolet’s
new mid-engine Corvette supercar when
similarly equipped. Game on.
The C8 Corvette and Shelby GT500
have stirred up more buzz than anything
else that’s come from the Motor City in
recent memory. After decades of teases
and concepts, the ’Vette finally slides the
engine back in the chassis to join the tran-
saxle aft of the driver’s derriere. And after
the extremely successful Shelby GT350,
which finished a sharply creased second
place in our 2019’s Best Driver’s Car, Ford
brought in even heavier artillery with a
load more horsepower and torque.

32 MOTORTREND.COM MARCH 2020