At Thoroughbred Ford, sound of new Mustang is music to their ears
Words filled with enthusiasm came out of the mouth of Leroy Adams when he talked about the sound the 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 will make when it hits the market this spring.
The sound, said Adams, is going to be awesome. He should know. Adams, an inventory manager, is in his 30th year with Thoroughbred Ford, at 8501 N. Boardwalk Ave., in Kansas City.
The change in the Mustang that has Ford people excited is the flat-plane crankshaft, which is similar to that of a Ferrari.
The flat-plane crankshaft design involves attaching the crank pins at 180-degree intervals rather than the usual 90. This allows for a firing order that bounces back and forth between the two cylinder banks with little to no overlap in exhaust pulses.
According to the Ford Motor Company, the 5.2-liter V-8 flat-plane crank will produce more than 500 horsepower. By comparison, the Mustang Boss 302 has 444 horsepower.
“The flat-plane crankshaft makes the exhaust noise so much better,” Adams said. “The rumble we have in the Mustang today is nothing. This sounds healthy.
“Top-line expensive vehicles have had it for some time, especially in the little four-cylinders.”
Adams, in his 30 years with Thoroughbred and 24 with the previous owner, has seen more than his share of Ford vehicles going through remakes. He really likes this one in the Shelby GT350.
“The most exciting part is the new design of the engine,” Adams said.
If you are looking for top-of-the-line Ford Mustangs, Thoroughbred Ford off I-29 and Barry Road in Kansas City is one place to stop.
Currently in the showroom is a white 2015 50th Anniversary Mustang. Only 1,964 of them were made to commemorate the Mustang. Since there are 3,673 Ford dealerships in the country, it is quite a get to have one.
“I am sure the huge stores in L.A. and Detroit, some of those guys get three, four or five of them,” said Steve Porter, president of Thoroughbred Ford.
The thing that makes the 50th Anniversary Ford Mustang unique is the limited numbers that were made.
“It has special interior and stuff that none of the other Mustangs have,” Adams said.
As of Monday morning, Adams believed the one they have, listed at a price just below $50,000, was close to being sold.
“Some are dealers coming out and coughing up that money to get them,” Adams said.
For now, the 50th Anniversary Mustang is in the Thoroughbred Ford showroom with a big red bow on top.
“A lot people look at it, but they don’t know what they are looking at,” Adams said. “They don’t know it is special. People who are Mustang lovers, they know what it is.”
Through the years, Thoroughbred Ford has sold more than its share of Mustangs, said Porter.
“We are one of the largest Mustang retailers in the region,” Porter said. “We were the largest Mustang dealer for years and years.
It is one reason they received a 50th Anniversary Mustang and have an order in for the new Shelby GT350. Ford has not announced how many 2016 Shelby GT350s will be made.
“We have an order in and as soon as they start pulling them, then hopefully we will get one,” Porter said. “They will be distributed by allocation. Allocation is based on how many you get and how fast you turn them. We have always sold a lot of high-performance cars.”
The cost of the 2016 Shelby GT350 will start in the low $50,000 range.
“He (Adams) said this ought to be the one I keep,” Porter said. “I said, ‘Leroy, I have no interest in having a 500-horsepower car.’”
But Porter is certain he will have a few customers who are interested enough in it to buy it.
If you have a story you would like to see in On the Move, email David Boyce at Drive@kcstar.com.
This story was originally published December 12, 2014 at 6:00 PM with the headline "At Thoroughbred Ford, sound of new Mustang is music to their ears."