South Florida-based tuning house Palm Beach Dyno knows its thing when it comes to performance-modding Mustangs of all sorts, including the formidable Shelby GT500. In its latest video, the company compares three drive belts to determine which one conveys the most power.
The upgraded supercharged V8 first gets a relatively wide 70mm (2.7-inch) belt, which then drives the engine to a maximum of 1,038 PS (1,024 hp / 763 kW) and 978 Nm (721 lb-ft) of torque. The second test sees it replaced with a somewhat narrower 63.5mm (2.5-inch) belt, and the reduction in friction raises the output to 1,046 PS (1,032 hp / 769 kW) and 1,034 Nm (763 lb-ft). Rev count also increases slightly in the middle area.
The third and final test involves a 60mm (2.27-inch) belt that enables the GT500 to slam the rear wheels with 1,094 PS (1,079 hp / 805 kW) and 1,109 Nm (818 lb-ft) of torque. As you can now see, even such obscure parameters as supercharger drive belt width matter sometimes!
The project is far from over, as Palm Beach Dyno plans to test the car again with a Kooks manifold, a Dodson coupling and new cylinder heads.