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When Steve Saleen parted from Saleen Motorsports, it was unknown what would come of the near legendary line of high performance Saleen Mustangs.  Mr. Saleen departed to start the new SMS Supercars, and the original company has retained the Saleen name (after a couple lawsuits) and has now become Saleen Performance Vehicles.

A few months ago, the new Saleen Performance Vehicles released their first take on the refreshed 2010 Mustang, minus Steve Saleen's influence, in the form of the Mustang 435S.  The changes to the exterior of the Saleen 435S were minimal, but along with suspension upgrades, the new Saleen received engine improvements to the tune of 435 horsepower.  This monster Mustang is an excellent first chapter to the Steve-less Saleen Performance, but we all knew that more was to come.

Exterior
Ford was able to redesign the 2010 Mustang lineup to give it a far more aggressive look and many of those styling cues extend into the 2010 Shelby GT500.  Ford also shaved 20 lbs off the 2010 Mustang Shelby GT500 compared to the 2009 Mustang.  The weight has dropped from 3,944 to 3,924 lbs, giving the 2010 models a power to weight ratio of 7.26 lbs per horsepower compared to the 7.88lbs/hp  of the previous GT500s.  The exterior of the 2010 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 is nearly identical to the 2009 models in almost every dimension, but with the help of the new 'King of the Road' suspension tuning the 2010 sits over an inch lower than the previous models.

Exterior Dimensions of the 2010 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 (2009 Dimensions)
•    Height, Overall: 54.5" (55.7)
•    Length, Overall: 188.2" (188.0)
•    Tread Width, Front: 61.9" (61.9)
•    Tread Width, Rear: 62.5" (62.5)
•    Wheelbase: 107.1" (107.1)
•    Width: 73.9" (73.9)
•    Turning Circle: 37.0' (37.0)

The 2010 Ford Mustang galloped into the public eye with an aggressive new appearance, but the 2010 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 has received mechanical improvements to make this new Cobra better than the last.

Engine
When the Shelby GT500 moniker returned to the Ford Mustang in 2007 with 500 horsepower, it was the most powerful production Mustang ever sold, and the 2010 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 builds on that.  The Ford Mustang Shelby GT500's 5.4L Dual Over Head Camshaft V8 makes use of a similar supercharger and intercooler setup as the 2009 models which made 500 horsepower and 480 lb-ft of torque.  However, using tuning adjustments that Ford's Special Vehicle Team (SVT) developed when building the 2008 GT500 King of the Road, the 2010 GT500 makes a whopping 540 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque.

The 2010 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 debuted at the 2009 North American International Auto Show after months of spyshots and speculation about the newest high performance Mustang.   The  two 2010 Shelby GT500s were perched on two elevated, lit platforms, with one Ford Mustang in Torch Red and the other Ford Mustang in Kona Blue Metallic.  The physical refinements of the 2010 Ford Mustang are followed closely in the GT500 models, and thanks to the GT500-specific rear diffuser, rear spoiler, and front fascia the new Shelby has an even more aggressive look from the current models. The 2010 Mustang Shelby GT500 is powered by a supercharged 5.4L V8, making 540 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque,making it the most powerful factory production Mustang ever offered.

Click here to view the 2010 Mustang GT500 Galleries!

Click here to discuss the 2010 Mustang GT500 on the forum!

Many enthusiasts 'couldn't wait' to see the 2010 Ford Mustang, and evidently, Ford couldn't wait to show it off.  While we all expected to get our first look at the new Mustang as a whole on Tuesday night, late Monday night Ford began releasing videos and images of the new Pony.

It began on 2010Mustang.com, with an intro video that ended with what appeared to be a computer generated (or heavily enhanced) burnout by a 2010 GT. Between the spyshots and the teasers, we all had a fairly good idea of what to expect, but there were a few changes that you couldn't see from the teasers and spyshots.