2016 Ford Shelby GT350R Mustang First Ride: Video

Ford is aiming to make the 2016 Shelby GT350R Mustang the most nimble, fun-to-drive, most track capable Mustang yet. The engineering appears to be there. To the impressive latest generation Mustang chassis, Ford has added MagneRide dampers; big brakes with two-piece rotors, 6-piston front calipers, and 4-piston rear calipers; and massive Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 19-inch tires, 305/30s up front and 315/30s in the rear. Under the hood lurks Ford's new 5.2-liter V-8. This engine features a flat-plane crank, revs to 8250 rpm, and produces 526 horsepower and 429 pound-feet of torque.

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We are still a month or two away from getting behind the wheel of the GT350 and GT350R, but this week Ford invited us for a ride-along at Grattan Raceway in Belding, Michigan, just outside of Grand Rapids. Grattan is a two-mile road course with a patchy, somewhat bumpy surface. Ford engineers piloted the cars, and my driver was vehicle integration engineer, Tim Smith. Smith chose Track mode from the integrated driver control system, but dialed the MagneRide suspension back to the Sport setting to better deal with the uneven track surface.

The first thing you notice in the presence of the GT350R is the engine note. It's not like anything on the market today, especially not anything American. The flat-plane crank fires at 180-degree intervals, making the car sound like the lovechild of a NASCAR racer and a Ferrari, and the note out of the tailpipe is intentionally loud, especially at full throttle.

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