A rare supercharged Ford Mustang ruled the roads before the GT500

At the end of the 20th century, muscle car fans were feeling the pain.

By 2001, the Camaro and Firebird were discontinued, SUVs were booming, and Ford’s Mustang was running on the same basic DNA as it did in the late ’70s.

The New York Times even suggested ‘Muscle SUVs’ were taking over.

It looked like the golden age of muscle cars was over for good with Ford even attempting to replace the Mustang with the FWD ‘pony car’ Probe in the ’90s.

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Muscle cars were on life support

The performance vehicles coming out of the US at the time were underpowered, with the Mustang GT of the time only able to muster 215 horsepower from a V8.

But then, Ford changed everything.

In 2004, Ford dropped the fifth generation Mustang, and it kicked off a new era of performance cars.

As the revival continued, one of the peak releases was the 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 – sporting a supercharging 500 horsepower V8 that packed the punch enthusiasts had been dreaming of.

While the GT500 had everything older performance cars offered, it also brought with it modern touches that kept the cars in fighting form against the wave of European-style cars on the market.

In the middle of all this upheaval though, one often-forgotten Mustang came in swinging — the Mustang SVT Cobra, nicknamed the Terminator.

This rare car bridged the gap between two eras of muscle cars, ruling the roads before the GT500 came onto the scene.

The Ford Mustang SVT Cobra Was Built to Fight Back

When GM pulled the plug on the Camaro and Firebird, Ford had a decision to make.

It could’ve stepped back too — but it didn’t.

Instead, John Coletti and the Special Vehicle Team (SVT) got to work, and they built a Mustang that was nothing short of a weapon.

The result was the Mustang SVT Cobra – the Terminator – and it was a beast.

The Ford Mustang was Terminator by name and by reputation

SVT’s newest Mustang project at the time was nicknamed the Terminator, and while the origins of the name are murky, the name says it all.

Supposedly, the Ford’s goal was to ‘terminate’ their competition in the muscle car market with the Mustang SVT Cobra as the final blow.

The car was built between 2003-2004 and packed power that left other competitors trailing behind for the time.

Ford took its 32 valve 4.6 liter modular V8 and paired it with an Eaton supercharger.

The Terminator produced 390 horsepower and 390 lb-ft of torque — big numbers (and major speed) in comparison to other cars from the 2000s.

That’s more than the E46 BMW M3, which has 333 horsepower.

Underneath, it packed forged pistons, a forged-steel crankshaft, Manley forged H-beam connecting rods, and was fitted with an aluminum flywheel.

It launched hard and handled tight, reaching 60mph in only 4.5 seconds.

The SVT Cobra’s top speed is limited to 155mph electronically, but this supercharged car could outpace the BMW M3 of the time easily even so.

Rare then, collectible now

The SVT Cobra is rare in comparison to other Mustangs, with Ford building just 8,394 Cobra coupes and 5,082 convertibles in 2003.

In 2004, those numbers dropped to 3,768 and 1,896.

Compare that to the over 140,000 Mustangs sold overall in 2003 — this was a rare trim.

Back then, the SVT Cobra coupe cost $34,750, a far cry from the BMW M3’s $46,000 price tag.

According to Hagerty Valuation Tools, a 2003 or 2004 SVT Cobra coupe in good condition goes for around $21,300 USD almost a quarter of a century later. 

Different valuation tools vary greatly on price, with Hemmings suggesting the Mustang has jumped in value by over $10,000 in the past decade.

So if you want a piece of modern muscle car history, the Mustang SVT Cobra looks to be turning into a collectible icon.

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