We've got some updated photos of that 2010 Shelby GT500 that's been roaming around in the open — only this time with more grille showing through the camouflage. All we need now is for the GT500 to join the 2010 Ford Mustang and 2010 Ford Mustang GT out for a prowl in Dearborn. They could do a dance routine! OK, we digress. There's some new details you'll want to take note of in these new shots and they include the aggressive mesh treatment on the grille, the rounded foglights and of course, is that a roll cage? It is, however it isn't clear if the cage is for testing or for production. Unlike the previous shots of the GT500 the sneaky shooters of KGP snapped, these five-spoke wheels are much different from what we saw last time 'round the spy photo bush. Full spy report below the jump.
Spy Report
After last-week's first shots of the 2010 Shelby GT500 Mustang, we have spotted another prototype—this time with better conditions and more revealing camouflage that has revealed a few new details. The camouflage on this latest prototype gets some new grille-mesh, which gives us our best look yet at the GT500's front fascia. We can now clearly see the outer edges of the grille, the aggressive mesh treatment, and new, pie-shaped auxiliary lights placed at the corners of the front grille. The Cobra badge still sits offset in the grille of this prototype, but it's taped over in black, and is just barely visible.The revised frontal camouflage is also pulled tighter to the front bumper, and the round fog lamps are now exposed, giving up another detail destined for the new Shelby's face. While the prior Shelby GT500 prototype was wearing the wheels from the current model, the latest test car was wearing new open-spoke five-star wheels, and the rear rubber looks notably wider than the front.
A close pass-by photo has raised another question about the specs of this prototype—namely the type of seats that will be used on the Shelby GT500 Mustangs. The passenger seats appears to be curiously covered in what appears to be the same material used to camouflage the dashboard design. The test driver's seat was uncovered, and could be identified as a Sparco EVO2—a very serious high-performance seat. A roll cage is also clearly installed in this prototype. Outfitted as it is, this Shelby looks nearly competition-ready.
A roll cage in any prototype doesn't necessarily mean anything, as certain tests require extra protection, but have nothing to do with an actual production application. Similarly, the aggressive driver's seat could be in place for some special, aggressive track testing, and may not be production-bound. It's the presence of the "bag" covering the other seat that has us more than a little curious. The prior Shelby prototype was outfitted with relatively conventional seats, and were completely uncovered. Then again, the interior was also completely uncovered, so we may have just caught a uniquely uncamouflaged interior. Perhaps the seat cover is only hiding some cool Cobra embossing—we can only speculate at this point.
What was clear was that these latest shots of the Shelby GT500 gave us our best look yet at its front fascia, and it's level of specification made it ready for some serious high-performance duty. Whether the spec-level captured here is destined for production is the real question—a question that only Ford insiders can answer at this point.