2012 Shelby - delivery. Finally!
02-03-2012, 03:28 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Germany
Posts: 48
2012 Shelby - delivery. Finally!
So I picked up my GT500 from the dealership and drove it home today. I was a little excited, I must admit. The weather over here in Germany has been quite cold (-15 Celcius nights, -5 Celcius daytime), but It's been mostly dry. The roads are free from snow and ice. Nonetheless I was a little apprehensive about bringing the car home given the Goodyear summer-only tires. But I decided to do it anyway. Yes, it was scary at times. Full-throttle-spinning-in-4th-gear kind of scary. The lack of traction from the cold tires and the really cold asphalt wasn't fun. But I made it home safely.
The car is perfect. No scratches, no dings, or anything. 21 Miles on the odometer when I picked her up. Only the cueball shift **** had a light scratch/scuff in it. Don'T ask me why.
Am I thrilled? Yes, I am!
There are many things I was very surprised and impressed about:
Power? Plenty
Handling? better than I had expected. I drove a 2011 GT and liked it. The Shelby with the SVTPP I love. I mean, we're talking about a big, fairly heavy North American Ford here - that actually handles quite well! Yes, the live axle makes itself known from time to time. But it's not a big issue. I expected it to be worse. Granted, the streets over here are pristine, smoothe. I suspect, if the condition of the road surface were similar to what I was used to in Canada, the live axle would be less amusing to live with. But so far, no regrets!
Build quality / fit and finish? Again, better than I expected. Generally, fit and finish is something you figure out after having driven the car for a while. But the car feels solid, absolutely NO squeaks or ratles, gaps between fenders and hood/trunk all look equidistant. Materials on dash board don't feel cheap. Ok, they're not stiched in leather, but it's miles better than what we were used to getting from Detroit 20 years ago. Buttons, glove box, storage doors: everything fits, doesn't feel cheap. Recaro seats feel and look wonderful. But I suspect they're designed to fit around a 230 pound frame. At 180 pounds, my but is a little too skinny for a snug fit. The plastic Recaro seat belt protector thingies that seem to fall out from time to time on other cars, are still intact. Steering wheel materials feel very nice. Size is good. Positioning is ok, but telescoping would be a nice feature. Interior colour combo? Great job, Ford. External paint? Good, but the colour on the plastic bumper covers don't perfectly match the metal painted surfaces. But that's common, especially with white cars.
Features:EPS? haven't tried the settings out yet. Ambient/cluster lighting? Really, really cool. Transmission: requires some getting used to. I'm sure that after a few hundred miles, I'll be nailing each gear perfectly. But as for now, occasionally I catch 5th rather than 3rd during downshift. Upshifting works better. Scared I'll hit reverse one of these days. But I suspect that's impossible due to the momentum of the clusters.
Stereo? Loud. But the sound quality is better in my Citroen Jumper pickup truck, which really does have a decent factory stereo. Maybe the Shaker 1000 is better?
What do I really, absolutely hate about this car?
The voice command Sync, or whatever it's called. It took like 20 tries to call my wife. Kept dialing some other chick (with a completely different name) I had in my phone book. When it finally did get the correct contact/phone number, it didn't dial. It just sat there, with the number on the display.
So I tried to manually press the "phone/ok" button on the steering wheel, and the darn thing actually had the audacity to tell me that I should stop the car before pressing the button!
What the heck is the purpose of having a hands-free mobile phone feature in a car then???
Future mobile phone calls will be placed the good-old-fashioned way: with the phone stuck to my ear. Maybe it's a Microsoft thing. Maybe it senses that I've been an Apple user for over 10 years.
And the fact that it says "Microsoft" on the dash bothers me too.
But I do love this car! It's quite the beast!
Thank you Ford for making a car with so much bang-for-the-buck!
The car is perfect. No scratches, no dings, or anything. 21 Miles on the odometer when I picked her up. Only the cueball shift **** had a light scratch/scuff in it. Don'T ask me why.
Am I thrilled? Yes, I am!
There are many things I was very surprised and impressed about:
Power? Plenty
Handling? better than I had expected. I drove a 2011 GT and liked it. The Shelby with the SVTPP I love. I mean, we're talking about a big, fairly heavy North American Ford here - that actually handles quite well! Yes, the live axle makes itself known from time to time. But it's not a big issue. I expected it to be worse. Granted, the streets over here are pristine, smoothe. I suspect, if the condition of the road surface were similar to what I was used to in Canada, the live axle would be less amusing to live with. But so far, no regrets!
Build quality / fit and finish? Again, better than I expected. Generally, fit and finish is something you figure out after having driven the car for a while. But the car feels solid, absolutely NO squeaks or ratles, gaps between fenders and hood/trunk all look equidistant. Materials on dash board don't feel cheap. Ok, they're not stiched in leather, but it's miles better than what we were used to getting from Detroit 20 years ago. Buttons, glove box, storage doors: everything fits, doesn't feel cheap. Recaro seats feel and look wonderful. But I suspect they're designed to fit around a 230 pound frame. At 180 pounds, my but is a little too skinny for a snug fit. The plastic Recaro seat belt protector thingies that seem to fall out from time to time on other cars, are still intact. Steering wheel materials feel very nice. Size is good. Positioning is ok, but telescoping would be a nice feature. Interior colour combo? Great job, Ford. External paint? Good, but the colour on the plastic bumper covers don't perfectly match the metal painted surfaces. But that's common, especially with white cars.
Features:EPS? haven't tried the settings out yet. Ambient/cluster lighting? Really, really cool. Transmission: requires some getting used to. I'm sure that after a few hundred miles, I'll be nailing each gear perfectly. But as for now, occasionally I catch 5th rather than 3rd during downshift. Upshifting works better. Scared I'll hit reverse one of these days. But I suspect that's impossible due to the momentum of the clusters.
Stereo? Loud. But the sound quality is better in my Citroen Jumper pickup truck, which really does have a decent factory stereo. Maybe the Shaker 1000 is better?
What do I really, absolutely hate about this car?
The voice command Sync, or whatever it's called. It took like 20 tries to call my wife. Kept dialing some other chick (with a completely different name) I had in my phone book. When it finally did get the correct contact/phone number, it didn't dial. It just sat there, with the number on the display.
So I tried to manually press the "phone/ok" button on the steering wheel, and the darn thing actually had the audacity to tell me that I should stop the car before pressing the button!
What the heck is the purpose of having a hands-free mobile phone feature in a car then???
Future mobile phone calls will be placed the good-old-fashioned way: with the phone stuck to my ear. Maybe it's a Microsoft thing. Maybe it senses that I've been an Apple user for over 10 years.
And the fact that it says "Microsoft" on the dash bothers me too.
But I do love this car! It's quite the beast!
Thank you Ford for making a car with so much bang-for-the-buck!
02-05-2012, 04:00 AM
#9
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Germany
Posts: 48
Yes, you're right. I finally took some pictures of the car at the nearby castle.
Yes, yes, pics are coming.
Thanks!
Ok, good news. I've seen videos on youtube of some 5-speed 4.6l GT's which appear to miss 4th and hit reverse by accident, with dramatic results.
02-05-2012, 04:19 AM
#10
5th Gear Member
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Massachusetts
Posts: 2,244
beautiful car man...glad to hear you are enjoying her...i work at a ford dealership, and sometimes the sync can get a little whacky (especially when i first used it) but it is a great system, it just may not be picking up on your voice and/or accent (if you have one)...i know i can't speak how i normally do to my friends when i am using synce because it will do something else or not know what to do, but after time it learns you and you learn it...hope you enjoy some thousands of miles in that monster
oh, and i don't think you should worry about accidentally going into reverse...i saw you heard about the 4.6s missing into reverse, i never came across that because it locks and won't go into reverse
but all in all, enjoy the car, and take some more beautiful pics of her around germany
enjoy brother
oh, and i don't think you should worry about accidentally going into reverse...i saw you heard about the 4.6s missing into reverse, i never came across that because it locks and won't go into reverse
but all in all, enjoy the car, and take some more beautiful pics of her around germany
enjoy brother