The 2011 Ford Shelby GT500 is proof that some things, such as iconic design and spine-compressing performance, just never go out of style. Back in the late 1960s you could've walked into your nearby Ford dealer and drove out -- sideways if you so chose -- in the scooped and striped Shelby GT500, a modified version of a Mustang fastback that came packing a monster V8. Today, you can walk into your nearby Ford dealer and do the same. The difference, however, is that while the old warhorse was certainly powerful and quick, it would be left in the dust by the latest Ford Mustang to sport snake emblems on its flanks.

Last year, the Shelby GT500 got a number of tweaks to the suspension and tire fitment that effectively nullified previous gripes about the car's resistance to going around corners. And for 2011, Ford's engineers improved things further via the new aluminum block (versus the previous iron) for the big V8. The reduction of about 100 pounds of weight up front makes the newest Shelby more eager to turn in, and the revised engine manages to be both more powerful (by 10 horsepower for a total of 550) and more fuel-efficient -- so much so that it now avoids getting hit with a gas-guzzler tax.

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