Think muscle cars with huge power and manual gearboxes and it's easy to drift back to the hazy days of the '60s. Cars like the 1962 Pontiac Catalina Super Duty and 1964 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt were three-pedal monsters that helped to usher in the muscle car era. This new genre of cars, kicked-off by the Pontiac GTO, quickly turned into a period when there were no rules to stop anyone putting the biggest and baddest engine they could find under a hood. That all changed in the '70s, when an oil crisis and emissions regulations stopped these street racing leviathans in their tracks, replacing them with muscle cars that seemed to have lost their gym membership.These days, most performance vehicles come with a sophisticated auto gearbox, so it would be fair to assume that if you want to find the most powerful muscle car with a manual, you'd be best off looking at the big block, big power machines of the '60s. But that would be wrong. It turns out that modern muscle cars didn't completely give up on manuals, and there is one at least that has double the power of the 450 horsepower '60s classics (assuming, that is, that the manufacturer's claims were accurate) and still comes with a stick shift. All we can say is: we are glad it exists. Let's have a look at this contemporary manual muscle car hero.HotCars used official manufacturer data for this article, as well as independent tests of the vehicles discussed. This feature is not designed to be buying or investment advice. The 2026 Shelby Super Snake-R Makes The Mustang GTD Seem A Bit Underpowered Shelby AmericanFord Mustang GTD SpecsWhen the Mustang GTD was unveiled in 2024, Ford quite rightly had a lot to talk about. The GTD is fitted with a supercharged 5.2-liter V8 that generates 815 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque, making it the most powerful production Mustang in history. The GTD hits 60 mph in 2.8 seconds and a staggering 202 mph top speed, meaning it is the second-fastest production Ford ever, after the GT hypercar. All this power, combined with sophisticated aerodynamics and race-derived suspension, means the GTD can achieve a sub-seven-minute lap of the Nürburgring.The only teeny tiny fly in the ointment for the GTD, from a purists' point of view, is that it isn't fitted with a manual gearbox. Admittedly, it doesn't come with some dawdling slushbox. This is a rear-mounted eight-speed dual-clutch transaxle connected to a carbon-fiber driveshaft, but there will always be some enthusiasts who will demand a manual. So what if you wanted GTD power but also the ability to stir the gearbox pudding yourself? Shelby has the answer. The Super Snake-R Doesn't Try To Hide Its Supercar-Level Power Shelby American Take one look at the 2026 Shelby Super Snake-R and you know it means business. This limited-edition widebody sports car, which is street legal but designed for the track, has, as the name suggests, pumped out bodywork that makes it as imposing (or maybe even more) as a GTD. The Super Snake-R starts life as a base Dark Horse Mustang, and then the overall appearance is enhanced by metallic widebody fenders, staggered 20"x11" front and 20"x13" rear magnesium alloy wheels, and a package of carbon fiber body components including a large front lower splitter, rear pedestal wing, and lower rear diffuser.Then there is the power — which eclipses even the GTD. The Shelby's supercharged 5.0-liter V8 engine in the Super Snake-R actually produces more than 850 horsepower, putting it firmly in supercar territory. But the best bit is this: it is available with a Tremec TR-3160 manual 6-speed or a 10-speed automatic transmission. A Closer Look At The 2026 Shelby Super Snake-R Shelby American Shelby's new R is built on the S650 Mustang platform and is, unsurprisingly, the most aggressive Super Snake ever offered by the company. The Gen 4 Ford Coyote 5.0-liter V8 is hooked up to a 3.0-liter Whipple supercharger to produce more 850 horsepower (although a torque figure was unavailable), which is at least 35 gee-gees more than the GTD. Shelby then fits the car with its extreme cooling system and performance radiator, performance half shafts, and a Borla cat-back exhaust, to ensure that it can handle day to day activities as well as track work. The manual gearbox gets a short throw shifter. Shelby Has Reworked The Suspension And Braking System On The Super Snake-R Shelby Underneath, the Super Snake-R is fitted with a fully adjustable coil-over suspension system, harness bar cross member, and front and rear sway bars. The magnesium wheels are extremely light, weighing approximately 36.75 pounds in total, or nine pounds per corner. For extra stopping power there are two-piece slotted brake rotors. Inside, there is a Shelby-spec interior that includes rear seat delete, billet shifter knob, the all-important serialized plaques, and embroidered seats. A harness strut bar ties together the rear shock towers to increase rigidity. Here's How Fast The Shelby Super Snake-R Is ShelbyThe Super Snake-R isn't that much more powerful than a GTD - they have 850 and 815 horsepower respectively — but that does translate to more speed. The Shelby will accelerate to 60 mph in 2.1 seconds, according to Topspeed.com, compared to the GTD's 2.3 seconds. The estimated top speed of the Shelby Super Snake-R is estimated to be around 200 mph, roughly the same as the GTD.The biggest difference is the price, with the Shelby costing $224,995, which is considerably cheaper than the GTD's $327,960 sticker. When you get into these kinds of six-figure price tags, pricing probably does become a bit more abstract, and I guess if you are dropping that kind of money on a 'Stang you probably have quite a lot of cash to burn. But, perhaps surprisingly, a Porsche 911 GT3 RS, is only marginally more expensive than the Shelby, and a fair wedge of cheddar less than the GTD. A GT3 RS would have cost $251,995 in 2025, and that car can get to 60 mph in a still fairy sprightly 2.7 seconds. There Is Another American Muscle Car With Monster Power And A Manual Gearbox Stellantis If you are more of a Stellantis guy than a Ford guy, look no further than the Dodge Challenger. This car is no longer in production, but only as far back as 2023, the SRT Hellcat model was being offered with a six-speed manual gearbox. The Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat has 707 horsepower, and, with a manual six-speed, is slower than the auto, with 60 mph arriving in 4.0 seconds, but if you are a fan of stick shift muscle, that shouldn't matter and these cars should be on your wish list. The Jailbreak version had even more power at 717 horses.A quick scoot through the classifieds reveals that the Challanger Hellcat with a manual 'box can be had for around the $50,000 mark with very low miles. If you can do without the 800 plus horsepower and the track-honed goodies, the Hellcat manual represents a very affordable entry into what is likely the twilight of the great manual American muscle car.