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2020 Mustang Shelby GT350R track/road test

svttim

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i believe the non R also got the same abs.

How did your laptimes compare in both?
I wish I could tell you but I rarely keep track of lap times. I will say this, when I got in the R for the first time, I felt like I wqas back in my FR500C again. It was that good
 
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95CobraR

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..."Substantially" may seem subjective to some drivers.
It is certainly a subjective value. We are only talking lap times here. The main goal for many people is winning amateur races (there are no pro races group in my area).

I think the car would be good in an a proper racing class. There is the problem that Shelby GT350/Gt350R has been moved up a class to compete with the Corvette Z06 or the Porsche 911 S. It is not fair to race against much more expensive two-seat performance cars. It's a heavy Mustang.

Nonetheless, I think the value of driving one is great. It sounds perfect and performs beautifully. It's good to go on any proper race track in America.
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dpAtlanta

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I think the car would be good in an a proper racing class. There is the problem that Shelby GT350/Gt350R has been moved up a class to compete with the Corvette Z06 or the Porsche 911 S. It is not fair to race against much more expensive two-seat performance cars. It's a heavy Mustang.
You make an interesting point Doc.

While I have no where near the track time or racing ability that a lot of folks have here... I am able to drive back-to-back a Cayman and a GT350. I have drove the same roads with the same cars and they are quite different. While the lateral g's, braking g's and acceleration may be similar, the seat-O-the-pants meter says these two are not similar vehicles. The Cayman is really easy to "flick" around corners and change direction. The Shelby has no problem handling the same request, it just seems to be more strain to accomplish the same task.

If I had to pick only one of the two to take to a track or a spirited drive in the mountain twisties... I would pick the GT350 because of the exhaust. It just satisfies and completes the sensory overload while enjoying the G-loads.

Great time to be a car lover huh?
 

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oldbmwfan

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Eh. "substantial separation" between the 350 and 350r and "we didn't build up to speeds that challenged their powress" (re: brakes) are two comments that really tell me the review is worthless.

Unless they are talking about substantial separation in price point!
Challenging the brakes is only a matter of top speed. The separation between the base and R cars is in the handling, not the power.
 

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You drove both versions with cup2 tires? Like 2019 vs 2019? or 2020 vs 2020? Very curious how same brakes and same tires could result in braking later/better in the R... What were your laptimes when you compared both cars?
Do you think having wheels that are 15 lbs lighter per corner would NOT make a difference to braking?
Plus, you know the tires have a different diameter so gearing is effectively different too, right?
 

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Do you think having wheels that are 15 lbs lighter per corner would NOT make a difference to braking?
Plus, you know the tires have a different diameter so gearing is effectively different too, right?
yep, i've used lighter wheels and 30 series tires on my 350 and my opinion is that it's not significant/substantial.
 

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My takeaway from that is that 1.5 seconds is a decent gap, but that his comments about the cup2's being stickier on the R vs the non-R make me think that's likely a big part of that 1.5 seconds. I didn't know they used diff compounds on them!

If you can't notice the difference of a 30% reduction in wheel weight, not much I can say.
 

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jmn444

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If you can't notice the difference of a 30% reduction in wheel weight, not much I can say.
Lol you make it sound like it should be night and day... a pro driver only found 1.5 seconds on a 135 second course... the cars are not THAT different when you can pick up more than that from tire changes.
 

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My takeaway from that is that 1.5 seconds is a decent gap, but that his comments about the cup2's being stickier on the R vs the non-R make me think that's likely a big part of that 1.5 seconds. I didn't know they used diff compounds on them!

Makes me want to try the other cup 2's because i wasn't very impressed with the cup 2's i got on my '19.
I would love to see the differences in times
 

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Lol you make it sound like it should be night and day... a pro driver only found 1.5 seconds on a 135 second course... the cars are not THAT different when you can pick up more than that from tire changes.
Responsiveness and feel doesn't always translate to outright speed, for one. Example: my Fiesta ST feels more lively and fun on dinky 15" wheels and 185 winter tires than it does on the stock (heavy) 17s with 225 performance tires, even though it is much slower. There is a noticeable difference in steering feel and suspension response (over potholes especially, similar to curbs on a track). When VW put boat anchor 18" wheels on the 50th Anniversary GTI, they actually changed both shock and spring tuning to restore the handling. 16-17 lbs/ corner (between wheel and tire) is a HUGE difference.

For another point, 1.5s difference is a lot in the hands of the same driver on the same day at the same track. I do wish they would have thrown the R wheel/tire package on the base car to see what difference all of the other little bits make. And I agree that the '19 base changes narrowed the gap to the R by quite a bit, but they didn't eliminate it.
 

svttim

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Responsiveness and feel doesn't always translate to outright speed, for one. Example: my Fiesta ST feels more lively and fun on dinky 15" wheels and 185 winter tires than it does on the stock (heavy) 17s with 225 performance tires, even though it is much slower. There is a noticeable difference in steering feel and suspension response (over potholes especially, similar to curbs on a track). When VW put boat anchor 18" wheels on the 50th Anniversary GTI, they actually changed both shock and spring tuning to restore the handling. 16-17 lbs/ corner (between wheel and tire) is a HUGE difference.

For another point, 1.5s difference is a lot in the hands of the same driver on the same day at the same track. I do wish they would have thrown the R wheel/tire package on the base car to see what difference all of the other little bits make. And I agree that the '19 base changes narrowed the gap to the R by quite a bit, but they didn't eliminate it.
Lest we forget, the 19R received upgrades at the same time the base model did and the 2020 gets a bit more so, theoretically the 19 and 20s should be faster. Now, theory and reality are not the same
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