American muscle car drag race: Shelby Cobra vs Mustang vs Viper

American muscle cars never really took off in the UK, which is a shame really because few cars offer quite so much character. The low burble of a V8 engine is hard to beat, so we’ve got hold of three muscle cars for today’s drag race – although one of them has an extra couple of cylinders.

Let’s take a closer look at the cars…

Shelby Cobra CSX

This is the new Shelby Cobra CSX, a modern reboot of the classic muscle car from the 1960s. Under that beautifully retro bodywork is the 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V8 engine from the current Ford Mustang, and it puts out 460hp and 569Nm of torque.

All that power is sent to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, and with no driver aids to help out it’ll take a lot of skill to get this car off the line. The Cobra weighs just 835kg, and it’s rather expensive at £195,000. Still, an original ‘60s Cobra could fetch upwards of £500,000, making this seem like a bit of a bargain.

Ford Mustang

Next up we have one of the most popular muscle cars on the planet, and one of the only ones sold in the UK. The Ford Mustang GT has the same 5.0-litre V8 engine as the Cobra sat next to it, putting out 460hp and 520Nm of torque.

This is sent to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, although the Mustang has launch control which should help out. It’s almost a full tonne heavier than the Cobra though, tipping the scales at 1,808kg. The Mustang will set you back £55,000.

Dodge Viper

Finally we come to the Dodge Viper, and it’s the odd one out here when it comes to the engine. Under that long bonnet is an 8.0-litre naturally-aspirated V10 which puts out 456hp and 664Nm of torque.

Like the other two cars, power goes to the rear wheels only via a six-speed manual gearbox, and the Viper weighs in at 1,595kg. When it was new this car cost £69,000, however these days it’s worth close to £80,000.

So which of these cars will come out on top? You’ll have to watch the video to find out…

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