At the risk of starting a shouting match....

[Confused]

I have been following this site for quite a while now and have a couple of questions and thoughts.

 

First regarding the clutch issue, I know that NOT everyone can afford two cars but did you really think that a GT500 was going to be a practical daily driver ?

After all the owners manual discourages driving with the F1 tires when the outside air temperature is below 40 deg F.

 

Second with all the negative comments on the high dollar over engineered clutch that came with the '07-09 GT500 the value of these fine cars will diminish.

 

Yes my GT500 is a hanger queen, never seen a wet road, never been washed. I do have multiple cars but must say that in my 50 years of driving cars my GT500

is the finest car I have ever owned or driven. I accept the idiosyncrasies ( beside the clutch issue) that comes with owning one of these cars.

Although some or many people are having issues with their GT500's I think Ford and SVT has done an outstanding job designing and building this car.

 

After all I wanted a race car, that is why I bought one....

 

No disrespect intended to anyone and I hope everyone who owns or will own a GT500 will enjoy it......

[SicShelby]

There are three types of GT500 owners (pretty much). 1) Those that have had issues with the clutch and had them fixed (little to no problems), 2) those that have had issues and are continuing to have issues (or problems with getting the TSB done), and 3) those that haven't… had issues. So, the category you fall under will give a pretty strong potential indication of where you sit with Ford...

 

I happen to fall under number 1; I had the TSB done by Ford with no challenges really, and everything's doing just fine. In my opinion they acknowledged the issue and made it right. Currently, I have a little over 34,000 on the Shelby, and unlike yours, it has seen rain and snow... I bought the car to drive and enjoy, and I've done/am doing just that! I tend to drive it hard(er) than my daily, and honestly it takes the abuse without batting an eye; it was built for that. Hell, I didn't buy it as a future investment, that's not what I do. So sure, it has some chips... has a teeny bit of curb rash and a scraped chin spoiler... oh well! It still makes me smile when I hit the throttle and feel the rear end break loose! I would have it any other way.

 

 

 

That’s not to say that I don’t take care of it, though. I spend more time claying, polishing, waxing, vacuuming, shampooing, and cleaning the engine bay and underside of the car (and I NEVER thought I would be cleaning the underside of a car), than many think is within the “sanity range.”

 

 

 

So, call me crazy…

 

 

 

 

 

[pmustang]

The Clutch issue is not a little idiosincracy (sp?) its a defect pure and simple. Ford would not have had 3 or is it 4 TSBs on the issue and fixed many hundreds (or is it thousands) for free if it were part of the cars experience. I have had many many cars and many have had faults (the BMW mini cooper S is one of them, horrible ride quality and questionable quality) but an out and out clutch failure at 5k miles was not one of them (on that car it was 16 miles before the clutch failed and BMW fixed it.) I understand your point, its a 12-15mpg hard riding scary handling car in the rain, its not a daily driver par se but the clutch issue is definitely not supposed to be part of the bargain nor is the horrid wheel hop in my opinion but i fixed that as well.

 

Also I love mine enough to have bought it in the UK where a factory warrantee is a distant dream.

 

Cheers. Peter

[lawdude]

Not sure what your point is..

[0201212]

Clutch problems and all I bought the car to drive!!!! It is my DD and will stay that way for a long time. Rain, snow, and sunshine she will be on the road getting me to work faster then I should.

[thewheelman]

Also not sure what the point it....but.....(Almost) Daily Driver here with TSB done, no real problems w/dealer or Ford. Rain, not so much snow, lots of bugs and bird crap, she's a trooper. Love to take road trips with it, excellent grand touring car. I agree: Ford, SVT and Shelby combined to bring us one of the best performance cars on the road!

 

On the other hand, I cannot find this reference in my owner's manual--"After all the owners manual discourages starting the engine when the outside air temperature is below 40 deg F." My GT 500 supplement only states that the tires are not compatible with weather below 40 deg.

[DubbsFaris]

Yeah, I really look at this as 2 categories. Those that will replace their clutch when it burns out, like all will eventually do in something with 500+HP, and those that want Ford to replace it.

 

No stock clutch is going to hold up forever. I am fully aware that on the new GT350, its even a wimpier clutch and I expect it to go out at any time! When it does, guess what, time for an upgrade. If frames crack in half, or bodies warp...yeah, you would see me all over this board complaining to high heaven. A clutch? That doesnt even raise an eyebrow.

 

Lexus just put a recall for the LS460L because engines are blowing up, and with 12k miles, I am on my second engine. THAT is a TSB worth mentioning.

[glroy]

I have purchased 3 Fords new all of them standards.

02 Mustang GT warranty replacement clutch 2000 KM, 2nd clutch 70,000 Km or so worn out

07 Shelby GT500 warranty replacement clutch 12,000 KM will replace with an aftermarket when it goes would be very happy to get 70,000 But I am in the 500+ club so the clutch should be on my dime.

08 ranger warranty clutch 8,000 KM will replace it when it goes

So from my experience the clutch in the Shelby is no different than any other Ford clutch.

 

Figured out after I had the Shelby for a month or so "I need a second vehicle" hense the Ranger

I try not to drive the Shelby in the rain cause it is not fun and it is a PITA to detail the undercarriage

 

I believe Ford has given me everything I paid for so far nothing more and is consistent with other new Fords I have bought. Nothing to shout at.

 

Glen

[nsted3]

I have been following this site for quite a while now and have a couple of questions and thoughts.

 

First regarding the clutch issue, I know that NOT everyone can afford two cars but did you really think that a GT500 was going to be a practical daily driver ?

After all the owners manual discourages starting the engine when the outside air temperature is below 40 deg F.Second with all the negative comments on the high dollar over engineered clutch that came with the '07-09 GT500 the value of these fine cars will diminish.

 

Yes my GT500 is a hanger queen, never seen a wet road, never been washed. I do have multiple cars but must say that in my 50 years of driving cars my GT500

is the finest car I have ever owned or driven. I accept the idiosyncrasies ( beside the clutch issue) that comes with owning one of these cars.

Although some or many people are having issues with their GT500's I think Ford and SVT has done an outstanding job designing and building this car.

 

After all I wanted a race car, that is why I bought one....

 

No disrespect intended to anyone and I hope everyone who owns or will own a GT500 will enjoy it......

 

 

I have no idea why you would think a cobra is not a practical DD, it is. First and formost my father daily drove his 98' cobra for 3 years at 100 miles per day. I realize its not the same car back then as it is today but still. Secondly I have no idea where this 40deg note came from but I love how you are assuming that everyone lives up north. I live in FL and that is not an issue. Right now I am DD a 700hp acura rsx which is a 4cyl. It puts out a lot more hp per liter than a shelby cobra does, modified or not. Now that is not a practical DD but it has worked like that for years now.

 

Yeah, I really look at this as 2 categories. Those that will replace their clutch when it burns out, like all will eventually do in something with 500+HP, and those that want Ford to replace it.

 

No stock clutch is going to hold up forever. I am fully aware that on the new GT350, its even a wimpier clutch and I expect it to go out at any time! When it does, guess what, time for an upgrade. If frames crack in half, or bodies warp...yeah, you would see me all over this board complaining to high heaven. A clutch? That doesnt even raise an eyebrow.

 

Lexus just put a recall for the LS460L because engines are blowing up, and with 12k miles, I am on my second engine. THAT is a TSB worth mentioning.

 

 

In regaurds to the Lexus, that is a recall just like you said and not a TSB. They obviously have a poor motor design or something, I have no idea. Also your right that not all stock clutches hold up forever, however it should have no issue getting to AT LEAST 40,000 miles. Obviously not everyone can put on near that many miles no matter how they drive due to a bad design. Some people can and have no issues and some simply cannot.

[vandy09]

ehhhh. i bought mine to drive the dog piss outta her. i dont drool over, bust my ass for, and buy a car to go look at it under the lights of my garage. ive had mine for about 2 months and put about 2k miles on it. granted i will be driving my ok beater k5 this winter. but come spring or a nice dry day the shelby comin out to play.

 

i have an early model 09 and as far as i can see havnt had the tsb done. but i also havnt had any issues with it. if i do it will be fixed.

 

maybe just me?

[me32]

i agree with the OP, an also mine is not a DD either, i couldnt afford the gas each day to Drive it as a DD.

[vandy09]

i agree with the OP, an also mine is not a DD either, i couldnt afford the gas each day to Drive it as a DD.

 

 

sadly she shelby gets better gas than anything else ive got right now. its either the shelby gettin 19ish avg. or the H2 gettin 11 or my K5 jimmy gettin around 14.

 

shelbys not as good on gas as my 03 gt but its not bad as long as you dont roll the trottle too much

[me32]

sadly she shelby gets better gas than anything else ive got right now. its either the shelby gettin 19ish avg. or the H2 gettin 11 or my K5 jimmy gettin around 14.

 

shelbys not as good on gas as my 03 gt but its not bad as long as you dont roll the trottle too much

 

 

i give you credit all V8's i use to be the Same way, but i drive anywhere from 75-100 miles a day, it got to the point driveing my 89 5.0 was costing way to much. had to get a better DD

[mach 1 1970]

I moved to another brand cause of so many problems with ford non- customer service. Don't want to bash ford here but I left. 05 Ford GT,08 Shelby KR, 10 fusion. 03 terminator. 07 GT500 .Each car had too many problems for my money. Sad but true.

[Yobi1Kanobi]

I am driving mine daily. And will continue to enjoy her that way. I drive about 100 miles a day and find her to be very well behaved. I might get a little road wear on her but nothing that can't be taken care of later when she retires. And you want to talk about cars that fall apart and people drive them everyday MERCEDEs , they are grossly expensive to repair and break all the time yet people have an image of them being daily drivers. One clutch issue ( that is being addressed) should not make this car any less of an ultimate driving pleasure.

 

My .02

[malcoll]

Seriously... it's just a FORD MUSTANG. A great Mustang...but it's still JUST A FORD MUSTANG.... a bigger engine (by the way the same basic engine as my wifes last two expeditions ...the first went to 189,000 miles)......but seriously, it's NOT a race car from the showroom floor. You can make it a race car, but off the showroom...not even close. Fast yes, cool, yes, muscle yes......expensive YES........future collectible....maybe (doubtful)............race car...no. EASILY a great, fun, exciting, daily driver...is my 1969 Mach a daily driver...could be but it's not.....same with my 1996 Viper...was a daily drive for a few years...but no windows or roof.....not a comfortable daily drive. Daily driving is why I bought the Shelby, specifically to be a daily driver...which it is VERY good at..but future collectible race car....NO.

[regalt87]

3 Years DD 34K miles. All interstate. full Clutch TSB that included the tranny repair at 23K because it had a slight restriction going into 2nd and 3rd gear. Clutch feels better and the little catch or restriction when you go into 1,2,3rd is still there. Dealer does not feel that is a problom, they sent me to drive another one they did the TSB on and compare. Ken drove my car and said mine is a whole lot better than his and now he is taking his back. If I rev up to higher RPM's it shifts fine???

Air bag reflash twice because sometimes it didn't recognise the wife in the seat. Fixed. ( I think the car does that cause it knows she hates it! )

Other than that is hasn't really been a bad car.

 

I have mixed feelings. I had to do a few suspension mods to get it to handle the way it should and there are a few other things that fell short of what it should have been especially considering how much this car cost. But it is stupid fast. and that's a crapload of fun.

 

I like the car but I am not sure how much longer I can live with the shifting issue. I had considered trading it in on a new 2011 6cyl mustang and supercharging it and putting 410 gears in it. Problem there is has any one else done it? what are the expectations? how much can this engine take?

 

I will give them credit however, they have listened and made the new ones better in many ways. (except looks IMO)

[DubbsFaris]

I moved to another brand cause of so many problems with ford non- customer service. Don't want to bash ford here but I left. 05 Ford GT,08 Shelby KR, 10 fusion. 03 terminator. 07 GT500 .Each car had too many problems for my money. Sad but true.

 

 

 

And yet you still post here...

 

I can only guess you have a Z06 after the homer post in the other thread.

 

[me32]

And yet you still post here...

 

I can only guess you have a Z06 after the homer post in the other thread.

 

 

 

+1

[08jester]

And yet you still post here...

 

I can only guess you have a Z06 after the homer post in the other thread.

 

 

 

Yea, what's up with that......

 

My car is not a DD either. For me that is not enjoyable. I enjoy a nice drive with friends and beautiful weather. She has never seen the rain and never will but every chance I get, when the weather is nice, she gets out of the garage for a drive.

Before the SS package I enjoyed the car just a much. Drove her for 1 1/2 years before the package was done and she was just as much fun.

My DD is a Toyota Tacoma better gas mileage, no curbs to worry about or idiot drivers, I love it.

[mullens]

The Clutch issue is not a little idiosincracy (sp?) its a defect pure and simple. Ford would not have had 3 or is it 4 TSBs on the issue and fixed many hundreds (or is it thousands) for free if it were part of the cars experience. I have had many many cars and many have had faults (the BMW mini cooper S is one of them, horrible ride quality and questionable quality) but an out and out clutch failure at 5k miles was not one of them (on that car it was 16 miles before the clutch failed and BMW fixed it.) I understand your point, its a 12-15mpg hard riding scary handling car in the rain, its not a daily driver par se but the clutch issue is definitely not supposed to be part of the bargain nor is the horrid wheel hop in my opinion but i fixed that as well.

 

Also I love mine enough to have bought it in the UK where a factory warrantee is a distant dream.

 

Cheers. Peter

 

With the 5 days of sunshine a year you get out there the car should last forever..

[pmustang]

With the 5 days of sunshine a year you get out there the car should last forever..

 

 

 

That is if it does not end up in a ditch with our regular wet roads!!!

 

Its a blast to drive it here where very few exist but there is a price to pay.

 

Just bought the smaller pulley as grabber suggested and new wheels so its staying for now in the stable.

 

Peter

[Alloy07]

You have never washed it?

[Confused]

You have never washed it?

 

 

 

Never washed it, just used spray detailer. It is covered with sheets as are all of my cars..

 

BTW I did not buy any of my cars as investments although some are now worth six figures.

[msw.63]

I moved to another brand cause of so many problems with ford non- customer service. Don't want to bash ford here but I left. 05 Ford GT,08 Shelby KR, 10 fusion. 03 terminator. 07 GT500 .Each car had too many problems for my money. Sad but true.

 

 

That's too bad. I have had problems which led to the 2008 TSB repair in 5/2009 for transmission problems on my 2008 Shelby and just last week the 2010 TBS repair on the clutch that was replaced in 5/2009 with 2008 parts. I do not race the car and most of the miles on it are highway. When I do commute with it, the distance is 85% freeway. I tend to believe the wearout of clutches is more than people using it as a daily driver; it sounds like a potential design or manufacturing problem. If it was not, I don't believe Ford would have put out multiple TSBs on this issue and replaced so many--my repairs would have been over $3,300 if Ford had not agreed to cover it.

[svtmattUT]

I have been following this site for quite a while now and have a couple of questions and thoughts.

 

First regarding the clutch issue, I know that NOT everyone can afford two cars but did you really think that a GT500 was going to be a practical daily driver ?

After all the owners manual discourages driving with the F1 tires when the outside air temperature is below 40 deg F.

 

Second with all the negative comments on the high dollar over engineered clutch that came with the '07-09 GT500 the value of these fine cars will diminish.

 

Yes my GT500 is a hanger queen, never seen a wet road, never been washed. I do have multiple cars but must say that in my 50 years of driving cars my GT500

is the finest car I have ever owned or driven. I accept the idiosyncrasies ( beside the clutch issue) that comes with owning one of these cars.

Although some or many people are having issues with their GT500's I think Ford and SVT has done an outstanding job designing and building this car.

 

After all I wanted a race car, that is why I bought one....

 

No disrespect intended to anyone and I hope everyone who owns or will own a GT500 will enjoy it......

 

 

First, you can buy a used beater for $500 - $2000. If you can't afford that then you have no business buying a $40-$55k sport car. I have a $2000 Subaru svx that goes like the devil in the snow. Second, I have had three different clutch revisions installed, the final one did the trick (2010 clutch) drives like a dream, all under warranty. It is heaven to drive now.