Band - Blood Hound Gang: Song - Why Is Everybody Picking On Me?
Lyrics - ... "the drummer from Def Leopard got one arm, the drummer from Def Leopard got one arm, the drummer from Def Leopard got one arm, the drummer from Def Leopard got one arm..."
As I was looking through the lastest issue of 5.0 Mustang & Super Fords, I was also listening to the Blood Hound Gang's song "Why is Everybody Picking On Me?" I guess, since I was reading 5.0's 2003 Cobra / 2000 Cobra R comparision at the same time, the lyrics got switched around in my head to "The Mustang Cobra Needs More R, the Mustang Cobra Needs More R, the Mustang Cobra Needs More R, the Mustang Cobra Needs More R. And after reading the article, my new lyrics seem appropriate. Why, you ask?
Well, it isn't because of horsepower. The '03 Cobra belted out 373 rear-wheel horsepower (RWHP) @ 5,750 and 380 ft-lbs of torque @ a low
3,250 rpm. The '00 R only layed down 362 (RWHP) @ 5,400 and 372 ft-lbs of torque @ 4,400 rpms. (Note: Equals 429 and 415 HP at the crank respectively.)And their 1/4 mile numbers were: '03 Cobra - 13.095 @ 110.82 mph and 13.01 @ 110.69 mph '00 Cobra R - 12.942 @ 111.51 and 13.09 @ 108.55 mph
Clearly the 2003 Cobra has the muscle. And we all know that if its stock horsepower isn't enough, cheap simple mods can have you running easy easy 11s.
So why is it that the Mustang ('03) Cobra needs more R?
Braking: '03 Cobra - 100-0 = 341 ft / 60-0 - 121 ft "Nothing notable except measureable fade after just two stops (100-0 and 60-0 mph). "Test assistant told me, 'You're done' when the distance grew by more than
10 feet.'"'00 Cobra R - 100-0 = 328 ft / 60-0 - 117 ft "the car's multiple and consistant 100-0 stops were probably the more impressive of the two at
329 ft - zero drama, and arrow straight and true."Handling: '03 Cobra - .82Gs / 64.0 mph "While it doesn't have any particularly bad habits, it's nothing special." "Compared to the '00 Cobra R, it feels like it came from a completely different group of engineers with lower expectations and aspirations." '00 Cobra R - .94Gs / 69 mph "This is what 40 years of Mustang development and refinement should feel like."
Don't get me wrong guys and girls, I love the '03 Cobra! The car's looks and power, IMO, are simply awesome. I can somewhat understand the handling differences between the two cars--the '03 does have the added front-end weight of the blower. But why must the '03 Cobra trail _so far behind_ in these two areas after 3 more years of development?
Why is it after all these years that Cobra (or any Mustang for that matter) brakes still are not good... or more accurately stated, why do Cobra brakes still suck? My '93 Cobra has terrible brakes and I've talked with owners of newer Cobras and none, seem, to have any glowing reviews about their car's brakes. The fix was there, Ford. Those 00 R brakes should have been standard issue for the '01 and '03 Cobras.
So these are reasons why the Mustang Cobra needs more R. And the reason why the '03 Cobra is probably thinking "Why is everybody (motoring press) picking on me?
Patrick '93 Cobra '83 LTD