I'm out in LA for the week and picked up the special new Shelby Mustang that Hertz is now renting.

This thing is a blast. It's not that powerful (325 HP), but the sounds it makes are straight from the big-bore late 60's era of Detroit iron. Nothing else sounds like this ... just roll down the windows and leave the radio off, baby, we're grooving to the Motor City engine sounds of the 60s while crusin' up the Pacific Coast Highway. Life is good.

One nice touch from Hertz, the stereo was already set on Sirius' 60s Hits channel when I got in. Cool.

 

Are you sure it's Shelby with only 325hp?

 

afaik its 325bhp

 

tachyon, please comment on

1) The ride
2) The driving position (comfy, or not?/flexible to adjust sterring rack, seats)
3) The acceleration (how does it feel against 550i) - i know it sounds beter
4) The overall build quality...


cause im considering a `stang for myself, and they are so rare in bulgaria, i would like some opinions...

 

Musta cost over a bill per day to have a ride like that

 

Yeah, wonder how many folks actually rent those prestige collection (assuming the Shelby falls into that category) beside tachyon

 

1) The ride is very firm but not overly harsh. It can be somwhat jarring at times, though - I'm guessing the live rear axle gets goofy on some roads. I've run it down boulevards, up the expressway, along the coast, and through Malibu canyon. At 80 mph on the highway it feels very secure and ready for more speed (kind of like the E60). And while it is nowhere near as smooth and composed as an E60, it actually handles the curves well enough.

2) The driving position is perfect. The seat bottom adjusts every-which-way electronically. The seat back is an old-fashioned manual ratchet, but it worked well for me to find a position that fit. I didn't need to adjust the steering wheel (has a nice, thick leather rim), so I didn't even check to see how it might adjust. You could easily drive this beast on a long road trip and be very comfortable in the seats.

3) The acceleration sounds a lot faster than it is, which I think is the whole point of this car. This is a heavy machine with not quite enough horsepower (325). The real Shelby 500 will be a beast! But the torque is good and has plenty of useful power all the way up and down the dial. My butt g-meter says it runs a 0-60 mph in six seconds. My ear g-meter says 4.0 sec.

4) Overall quality is better than I expected, but I didn't expect much. The fit of pieces and parts looks very good, but some of the materials are a bit lame. But, hey, this isn't an expensive car (maybe $32,500 max as it is set-up by Hertz/Shelby).

This is a car to been seen in and to hear ... not a car to drive to the limits. That makes it the perfect LA rental car.

 

thank you so much for the review... i drive around town mostly, so being noticed is a plus for me , and besides we dont have any real tracks around bulgaria so im not going to be driving near the limits.


The problem is that delivered to bulgaria the car costs 67300$, which is the same as what you would pay for a 530i But there are only 2 such cars in the whole country, so its novelty wont wear off

 

now that is what I would call a fun rent a car