Used Ford Mustang Shelby GT350s are starting to get affordable

Used Ford Mustang Shelby GT350s are finally dropping into the $30,000-$40,000 range, folks. Of course, depreciation itself isn’t news. Pretty much every car depreciates after it leaves the dealer lot. This is more of a public service announcement for everybody who stared longingly at the car’s initial price with tears in their eyes, wanting for a Mustang that revved to 8,250 rpm. 

Like other hyped-up sports cars, used GT350 prices were stubbornly high for way too long. It made sense. Some Ford dealers were tacking big markups on top of the approximately $50,000 starting price at the beginning. Owners who paid extra to have the privilege of owning the special pony car may have wanted some of that money back. After nearly half a decade of production now, the prices are finally settling back to where a regular low-depreciating car might find itself.

There are some really great examples of GT350s on used-car websites in the mid-to-high $30,000 area. I’ve been watching these prices ever since it was feasible that used GT350s could even be on the market (hey, I think it’s a pretty great car). My eyes lit up when I made my quarterly search this year. Here’s one on Cars.com. And here’s another on Autotrader. A couple even sold on Bring a Trailer. But look at the full listings, because there are scores of these suckers for about $40,000 with decently low miles on them. A brand-new 2020 Ford Mustang GT fastback without a single option will run you $36,825 today. Meanwhile, a base 2020 Shelby GT350 is all the way up to $61,635.

And perhaps, that new GT350 deserves some of the thanks for the used cars finally finding depreciation. Ford gave the 2019 GT350 a minor update. So all of a sudden, a newer and slightly better GT350 was available for the first time last year. Time to upgrade! And even more recently, the Shelby GT500 launched. That 760-horsepower beast means there’s just one more high-po (albeit much more expensive) Mustang that enthusiasts can put in their garage. 

We’ll note that early GT350s were recalled over potential leaky oil lines. Their track preparedness has also been called into question before. The flat-plane-crank 5.2-liter V8 engine hasn’t seen years of field testing by owners to determine its longevity, but like any other used performance car, there’s a risk-reward factor involved. That said, there are plenty of cars with relatively low miles waiting to be bought. Maybe you’re brave enough to take a chance on a 50,000-mile GT350 that’s lived its life above 8,000 rpm. If so, the deals are even sweeter. I’m just here to tell you that the ultimate track Mustang is more of a bargain now than ever.

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