Car Spies Record the 2016 Shelby GT350

While most of the public is enamored with the upcoming release of the 2015 Ford Mustang and the first application of an EcoBoost engine in the pony car, spy work is underway to uncover anything possible about the upcoming 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350.

An example of the top secret car was recently spotted in Santa Monica, California by car spies who released images and a video of the performance car parked as well as driving briefly. As was the case with the new generation of the Mustang, Ford is pulling out all of the stops to obscure as many details of the upcoming performance car. Considering the creative lengths its engineers underwent to hide the 2015 Mustang’s fastback design, there is no telling for sure what is under all of the bulky wraps. Interestingly enough, the areas that are most obscured are the brakes and wheels.

One spy was able to capture some telling details from the inside of the car. Among the interior clues is the fact that the engine has a 6,500 rpm redline, but with an over-rev feature that allows up to 7,000 rpm for a short time, like in the 2014 GT500. Just how long the car can over-rev isn’t clear, but the GT500’s system supplies 8 seconds of it. Also visible was a six-speed manual transmission.

Through the camouflage on the car, some people have pointed out what looks like large extractor vents on the hood and rear fenders. The rear features four exhaust tips and a diffuser that looks to be functional.

Considering that there is a real pony cars fight going on with Chevrolet releasing the much-ballyhooed Camaro Z/28 and Dodge announcing the Challenger Hellcat, expect Ford to keep the new GT350 under tight wraps. See the video below to briefly hear the engine and exhaust as the car speeds out of a parking lot, then leave a comment below to tell us what you think so far.