In reality, with any rolling start, the Mach walks away from the Cobra, end of story. The only exception was from a slow, nearly lugging Third-gear start. Then the Cobra pulled a fender on the Mach, only to have the Mach trot on by within a second or so. Even when we cheated and started the Cobra in First and the Mach in Second, it was Mach all the way. The Mach's advantage held as speed rose. Believe us, the Cobra was never going to run down this Mach no matter how far the pair ran out the back door. Only if the Mach 1 pilot was asleep and the Cobra driver lying in wait would the outcome be in any question, and then only for a short time. So, the bottom line was both cars would begin accelerating, and for the first half second there was no relative motion. Then the Mach would begin steaming ahead, constantly pulling a lead on the Cobra.
We did not attempt any standing-start runs, but the results are predictable. The Mach, with its live rear axle, could use the more aggressive launch, and our particular Mach, with the torque arm rear suspension, would simply plant the rear tires and leave. The Cobra's IRS is sensitive to pavement characteristics, so it may have allowed a modest launch or wheelspin, depending on traction. So the Mach would win again.
Seat Of The Levi'sOnce again we're reminded how Mustang Cobras can feel heavy and slightly unwieldy around town or on tight secon-dary roads. It's a perceptual thing, coming from cues as subtle as the thick steering wheel, the somewhat high steering effort, the clunky shifter action at parking-lot speeds, the shifter being too far forward, the heavy clutch pedal, and even the overstuffed bolsters in the seats that cramp all but the smallest drivers.
The Mach 1, by comparison, feels lighter than its missing 200 pounds would suggest. Of course, our test car did have greatly improved suspension geometry, but with a lighter clutch pedal, a smooth shifter, a thinner steering wheel rim, and-yes-lighter, more-alive steering, the entire car came off as eager and willing. The louder Bassani exhaust didn't hurt, either.
But most of all, there is the power delivery. The refined-dare we say formal-Cobra has a rheostat powerband. Turn it up and you get more; dial it down and you get less. But the sound and the push in the back stay basically the same. It's not a bad sound, especially the arousing wind whistle from the Eaton blower at full throttle, and the push in the backside is plenty healthy. But compared to the centrifugal Mach, it's the brother that gets straight As and stays out of trouble.
Vortech's Mach starts off with enough snap to hold your attention, then piles on the power in an escalating rampage. It's going to go fast and it won't let you forget it. The combination of a hair more gearing and compression ratio, as well as the wheel blower's logarithmically increasing air delivery, makes the Mach feel more explosive than sveltely powerful like the Cobra. And given the Vortech SQ blower's quiet gear train, there is no whining to put up with at idle either. It's a lusty combination.
The Long HaulIf we have a caveat about the Vortech Mach, it's long-term durability. Unlike the Mustang Cobra, which was engineered from the get-go by Ford as a blower engine with an iron block, stupendously strong Manley connecting rods, and forged pistons, the Mach Four-Valve is definitely built on the light side.
Mach 1 engines are not simply Cobra engines wearing a party-hat hoodscoop. To reduce runaway parts counts in the modular engine line, and thus increase interchangeability from engine to engine, Ford has tidied up things in the parts bins. So, while the Cobra continues with the heavy-duty, high-cost innards, the five-speed Mach 1 engines use a low-rent cast piston, a pressed-metal connecting rod, the good eight-bolt Cobra crankshaft, and an aluminum block. Built to sparkle as a naturally aspirated engine, the Mach 1 Four-Valve has 10.25:1 compression pistons, which provide sporting amounts of cylinder pressure for themselves and their con rods in stock form.