From the April 1995 Issue of Car and Driver.
If timing is everything, this report may seem worth next to nothing. That's because between the time we write these words and the time you read them, the window of opportunity to obtain the 5.8-liter Mustang Cobra R will have slammed shut. To get your hands on one of the 250 racer-basis 1995 R-models, you needed to have your order spew out of the fax machine at Ford Special Vehicle Team between 2 p.m. EST January 5 and the moment they were all spoken for five days later.
Missed it by that much.
You also would have had to show a racing license and résumé (yours or your driver's) and convince SVT that you intended to run the car in IMSA, SCCA, NHRA, or IHRA events. So even though the '95 Cobra R is as street-legal as any other Mustang, Ford has taken some pains to see that this one does its Camaro hunting on genuine racetracks, not on Burgerjoint Boulevard.
If you think that makes this 351-cubic-inch go-fast pony something of a ringer in the long-running saga "Camaro versus Mustang: Slugfest in the Streets," well, we agree.
But it is the most powerful Mustang currently on Ford's books, so if only for historical perspective, it's worth a close look.
Jumping straight to the bottom line, Ford does not exactly score a performance knockout, even with the long-stroke crankshaft, limited production, restricted availability, $35,000 bill, and track-only fudging of the street-fight rules. When we tested it (admittedly, well before the development cake was fully baked), the new Cobra R's claimed 300 horsepower generated a 0-to-60 time of 5.4 seconds, just a tenth of a second ahead of what your basic $20,000 streetgoing Camaro Z28 can do. The Mustang's quarter-mile slip read 14.0 seconds at 99 mph, compared with the Camaro's 14.1 at 101.
Once rolling, the long-stroke 5.8-liter V-8 had pretty good thrust to offer, feeling responsive and lively and pulling up to a peak velocity of 151 mph. It didn't do so real quietly, though. The Ford guys assured us the mid-rpm rattle was "air cavitation in the intake manifold." Sounded more like nickels in a Folger's can to us.
This Mustang was a mighty stiff-legged horse, but the ride felt decent as long as the pavement was. And it pulled 0.89 g on the skidpad, feeling obligingly neutral and manageable.
Ford also uses the Cobra designation on a hotted-up 240-hp Mustang (C/D, April 1994), but the '95 R is an entirely different animal. It's destined for the track, not the street—although it has dual airbags and is fully emissions-legal, so Ford can sell it without federal hassle. The only warranty is the one required on the emissions equipment—and that's handily voided the instant normal race prep lays a wrench on any of the critical hardware.
The 351 V-8 from the F150 Lightning sport truck forms the basis for the R powerplant. It has the same 4.0-inch bore of the Mustang-orthodox 302, but its stroke stretches from 3.0 up to 3.5 inches. The Lightning's ratings of 240 hp at 4200 rpm and 340 pound-feet of torque at 3200 climb to the R's 300 hp at 4800 and 365 pound-feet at 3750. The increases are achieved via higher compression (9.2:1 versus 8.8), more aggressive cam timing, and a larger-diameter air-meter body. Cooling-system capacity is increased in anticipation of the racetrack duty cycle.
The taller engine requires a bad-boy hood bulge, so a whole new panel is molded from lightweight fiberglass. Together with modest decontenting (no air conditioning, radio, back seat, power windows, or sound insulation), weight is held down to 3326 pounds—less than the 3400 we measured for the 1994 Cobra, despite the bigger lump of engine and the extra ballast of a 20-gallon racing fuel cell.
A sturdy Tremec 3550 five-speed replaces the standard Borg-Warner T5OD gearbox, and the R runs a tighter final-drive ratio of 3.27:1 (from 3.08). Suspension is standard Mustang in design but tuned harder, with much higher spring rates and adjustable Koni dampers. The brakes use the normal Mustang 13.0-inch front rotors but add fore-aft balance adjustability. Alloy wheels unique to this car measure 17 by 9 inches and carry 255/45ZR-17 BFGoodrich Comp T/As. A "rally bar" linking the tops of the front strut towers and the cowl is the only structural enhancement.
If this describes precisely the kind of Mustang you'd want, so you could finally quit averting your eyes from Z28s sitting in the next lane, don't run over the messengers for telling you it isn't available. Instead, tell Ford (try the Special Vehicle Team hotline, 800-367-3788) you want the 5.8 engine, as soon as the racing program has proved its durability. Then wire into Car and Driver on America Online, and maybe we can get word to you faster next time.
