Fact: The 2003 SVT Cobra is the baddest production Mustang ever built. Another fact: With less than $2,000 in bolt on parts, the '03 Cobra will go from "really fast" to "kick your teeth in, sell your mother, FAST." Race Pages got a grip on a white 2003 Cobra and decided to throw a few parts at it to see for ourselves just how easy it is to go stupid-fast with the car.

The Plan
    Because the 2003 Cobra comes from Ford with an upgraded engine, suspension, transmission, and interior, there are plenty of areas that we won't have to touch to reach our eventual goal of running low-11's with complete streetability. Our intention is to use this car to test components from various 2003 Cobra parts suppliers to show Race Pages readers how to build an almost-10-second street car with creature comforts.
    Just like any owner of a car such as 2003 Cobra would do, we intend to do the buildup of the vehicle in stages over the course of about a year, at each stage doing dyno testing and track testing so that everyone can relate to the real-world results and

cost-effectiveness of each group of modifications. One thing we did different from the "hardcore" Cobra owners was that we did the most cost-effective mod in Part 2: the smaller blower pulley. That's because we wanted to see what exhaust and very basic bolt-ons would do without ramping up the boost.
    Although you'll want to read through the entire story to get the specifics, rest assured we got our money's worth. The final results read like this: 422 rear wheel horsepower, 391 lbs-ft of torque, and 12.43 at 113.2 mph in the quarter-mile.

The Exhaust
MagnaFlow 2.5" Stainless Exhaust
    Several top exhaust companies make excellent 2003 Cobra-specific exhaust systems, but we chose MagnaFlow due to its excellent rep-utation and close location. We began with MagnaFlow's mandrel bent cat-back system (PN 15644, retail price $616.07) for the Cobra. This is a 2.5" cat-back system that uses very nice, polished 3.5" tips. Please note that this is an IRS-specific part, and other systems labeled for 2003 Mustangs will not fit!

    MagnaFlow uses all stainless steel in the pipes and mufflers for long life and the mufflers have a stainless steel perforated core that reflects heat and resists corrosion better than cold-rolled steel. They also retain their finish longer, adding to MagnaFlow's reputation for long life and clean appearance. There is a lot of different ways to build a muffler that sounds great and makes good power. MagnaFlow chooses to build the 2003 Cobra system with straight-through mufflers that use acoustical absorbing materials for sound absorption. The dense wall of fibers filters out the harsh exhaust vibrations producing a throaty performace tone, especially with the Cobra supercharger whine adding to the exhaust note.
    The installation was performed by MagnaFlow at their beautiful installation facility, and everything went smoothly and without hiccups. Once completed, the car was definitely louder, especially at full throttle. Exhaust sound is one of those subjective things, and most people we asked found the MagnaFlow sound mild at idle but deep and powerful when you're on it, especially over 3,000 rpm.