Although it's a 10-year-old car at the present moment, the 2014 model year Ford Mustang GT owned by the folks at The Fast Lane is no slouch. Introduced by the S197 in 2010 for the 2011 model year, the 5.0-liter Coyote is much superior to the 4.6-liter Modular.
Ford quotes 420 horsepower and 390 pound-feet (make that 529 Nm) of torque, which is marginally worse than the Chevrolet Camaro SS of that era. Then again, GM's pony car packs a 6.2-liter small block.
Rather than pitting their S197 against the Camaro SS, the father and son duo from The Fast Lane picked an import in the form of the 2024 model year Nissan Z. Not the 400-hp base specification, but the performance-oriented NISMO that pumps out 420 ponies at 6,400 revolutions per minute. 384 pound-feet (520 Nm) of twist also needs to be mentioned, with said torque available from 2,000 to 5,200 rpm.
Over two races from a dig, the Z NISMO proves quicker in the quarter mile, recording 13.82 and 14.03 seconds at a mile above sea level. Given that it's a twin-turbo V6, the Nissan's engine doesn't suffer as much as the Ford's NA V8 at this kind of elevation.
Driven by Tommy Mica, the pony car posted 14.71 and 14.54 seconds at no more than 103 miles per hour (make that nearly 166 kilometers per hour in the metric system). From a roll (at 30 miles per hour or 48 kilometers per hour), the Mustang GT and Z NISMO cross the quarter-mile line neck and neck.
Equipped with 285-section rear tires from Dunlop, the Japanese coupe is then joined by a Porsche 911. Despite not being equipped with launch control, the Targa 4S makes easy work of the Z NISMO. Considering the Neunelfer's flat-six engine location and 305-section rear tires, what did you expect?
Photo: The Fast Lane on YouTube
Pictured on the unprepped surface of a Colorado runway, the Porker boasts a twin-turbo boxer with a similar displacement to the Nissan's V6. In this application, the German challenger's engine produces 443 horsepower at 6,500 revolutions per minute and 390 pound-feet (529 Nm) of torque at 2,300 rpm.
The 911 ran 12.51 seconds in the first dig race, then improved to 12.44 seconds at 118 miles per hour (190 kilometers per hour) in the second. By comparison, the Z NISMO couldn't do better than 13.66 seconds at 108.4 miles per hour (just over 174 kilometers per hour) with launch control and some torque braking.
As expected, the 911 further asserts dominance over the Z NISMO from a roll. On the other hand, bear in mind the Neunelfer costs quite a bit more than the Nissan, and ridiculously more than the S197 'Stang.
Excluding the $795 destination charge, the 2014 Ford Mustang GT used to retail at $31,095. The automatic-only Z NISMO is $64,990 or a staggering $22,495 more than the 2024 Ford Mustang GT. As for the all-wheel-drive 992 Targa 4S, that would be $151,400.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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