General Motors has momentarily exited this category, with the final Chevrolet Camaro rolling off the assembly line nearly six months ago. GM assures enthusiasts that the nameplate will return, but the specifics, There are still many questions, such as whether the next Camaro will stick to its conventional internal combustion engine roots or explore the future of electric vehicles.
However, this story isn’t about the future of the Chevy Camaro, nor the latest iterations of the Mustang or the Charger duo. Instead, it goes into a past encounter between previous pony car models from Ford and Dodge.
These two iconic vehicles engaged in a head-to-head showdown down the quarter-mile at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, reaffirming the allure of muscle cars equipped with V8 engines. In this unequal contest, one contender boasts a distinct advantage in terms of raw power: the Dodge Challenger, likely in its SRT Hellcat Redeye guise.
Packing nearly 800 horsepower delivered to the rear axle by a supercharged V8 engine with a displacement of 6.2 liters, this beast rockets to 60 mph in just over three seconds.
On the opposing side sits the Ford Mustang Mach 1, equipped not with forced induction but a naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V8 generating 470 horsepower. While significantly less potent than its Dodge counterpart, how does this disparity translate on the quarter-mile strip?
The answer lies in a video captured at the Las Vegas track, recently shared on YouTube by Wheels. The footage captures the two rivals lining up at the starting line, executing tire warm-up maneuvers, and then launching down the track in a quest for supremacy.
At the race’s conclusion, one vehicle clocks in at just over 11 seconds, reaching an exit speed of over 123 mph, while the other trails by over two seconds, with a slightly lower exit velocity approaching 109 mph.
