Car Mitzvah
By Diego Rosenberg
Photography by Steve Temple
In Judaism, a boy is considered a man around age 13 after becoming a Bar Mitzvah ("son of commandment"), meaning he is subject to the responsibilities of Jewish law after jumping through some hoops. But is anyone truly a man until he gets to drive a 300-plus horsepower Mustang? Would driving the new Shelby GT-H make me more of a man in God's eyes? I set out to find out during a visit to California for my cousin's celebration.
Coming of Age
I never had an opportunity to have a car like this during my own Bar Mitzvah because nothing put out more than 240 hp at the time (not to mention I didn't have my license yet). Today, we have gotten over the emissions bottleneck that affected our cars for 10-15 years, so it was with great anticipation that I had the opportunity to advance beyond my man-boy existence.
Once I arrived at the Hertz office (and after having received the scare of my life with "Your Grand Marquis is ready"), I was led to a shining black Mustang with gold stripes and-oh, that grille. I was accompanied by two ladies who proceeded to orient me with the special features, such as the hood pins, the serial number, and the special badging (presumably to let me know they knew of the car's features and "Don't you dare return the car without them"). They had a checklist for the visual inspection that consisted of the following, among others:
Exterior Inspection
Front Grille
Pony Logo Front
Hood
Hood Pins/Brackets
Hertz Side Badges - Both Sides
Pony Gas Cap
Rear SHELBY Letters
Interior Inspection
Shelby Doorsill Plate
Shelby Dashplate
Upholstery
Underhood Inspection
Cold-Air Intake
Engine Security Seal
Shelby Engine Plate