Is Ford Really Making A Mustang Shelby GT500 In 2025?

If you count yourself even a casual enthusiast of automotive history, the name Carroll Shelby likely carries as much weight as Michelangelo does among art historians. Some in the Shelby-worshipping masses no doubt view the Mustang GT500 as his Sistine Chapel. The vehicle, of course, debuted in 1967, doing so with an imposing 428 cubic-inch V8 engine under the hood that delivered 355 horsepower and could accelerate 0 to 60 mph in just 6.5 seconds. With that kind of power, it instantly became a high-water mark in the muscle car arena, and remains a career-defining offering among Shelby's legendary slate of high-octane offerings.

The GT500 was, understandably, a big hit among speed-loving consumers, with earlier builds continuing to rank among the most coveted vintage cars on the scene. One was even the source of some controversy when it appeared in a recent episode of History's hit reality series "American Pickers."

Shelby, of course, didn't stop making GT500 Mustangs after 1967, though Ford stopped making them after the 1969 model year. The manufacturer brought them back for a wildly successful revival run in 2007, and continued producing supercharged GT500s for the next 15 years. It's been almost three years since production on the GT500 ended for the second time, and rumors are already surfacing that Ford is bringing it back for 2025. It would seem, however, that those rumors are not true. And as of this writing, there has been no official word from Ford regarding the return of the GT500.

It's worth noting that any revival of the Mustang Shelby GT500 would be undertaken without Carroll Shelby himself, as the famed driver and designer died in 2012. But it's also worth noting that the man was not overly involved in designing the 2007 GT500 revival, though he reportedly did offer Ford some input at the prototype stage. Shelby was apparently a little more involved with the 2013 GT500, and was rumored to have been working on that very model at the time of his passing.

In any case, Ford's design team got along well enough in their GT500 pursuits without too much help from Shelby during the build's 15-year revival between 2007 and 2022, though his Shelby American shingle was, obviously, very much involved. Those vehicles were, after all, not just stunning to look at, but also absolute beasts in the power department, with the '07 GT500s being touted as the most powerful Mustangs ever built upon release, delivering upwards of 500 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque.

The Ford design team did not rest on their laurels as future generations of the GT500 arrived, and continued to deliver massive numbers in terms of power. By the time the '22 builds hit the streets, they were pushing the power output to places even Shelby mightn't have anticipated for the Mustang, with their supercharged V8s pushing an astonishing 760 horsepower and torque at 625 pound-feet. As Ford ultimately pulled the plug on the GT500 after that same model year, one has to wonder if the manufacturer's engineering team just could not imagine souping the Mustang up any further.

While that brings us up to, ahem, speed on the beginning and end of the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500, we've, admittedly, yet to address the ongoing rumors that the manufacturer is preparing to bring the legendary machine back in 2025. As we already noted, Ford has so far made no public assertions that any such revival is actually in the works. So, take the rumors of the GT500's return with the proverbial grain of salt. 

Either way, this is hardly the first time rumors have circulated about fictional new cars, with both the Dodge Dart and the long-fabled CAT pickup truck recently receiving such attention. As was the case with those vehicles, it would appear the '25 GT500 rumors have largely been bolstered by a handful of YouTube videos purporting to have images of the actual build. And like the other videos, the GT500 spots also appear to be based on fake, A.I.-generated images.

There are, naturally, a few easy ways to tell if an image is an A.I. fake, and a few of those tells are on display in one of the fake '25 GT500 videos we found on YouTube. If you do watch that video, you'll spot an obvious mistake in the first few seconds, with a rear angle shot of the supposed new GT500 displaying a spoiler that is not actually connected to the car itself. There are further tells throughout, including distorted lettering, incorrect badging, and a not so snake-y Shelby logo that shifts location in the front grill throughout — all of which screams A.I. fake and essentially debunks the '25 GT500 rumors.