0-270km/h in 8.3 seconds: Electric drag car sets new benchmark

An all-electric drag racing car has taken the horsepower race directly to V8 engines with a new level of near-silent acceleration.

Ford’s Mustang Cobra Jet 1400 is a purpose built drag car that has set a new performance benchmark for an electric car.

In a sport where superchargers and big V8 engines rule, Ford claims the Cobra Jet 1400 has covered the benchmark quarter-mile race track in 8.27 seconds.

More impressive is that it crossed the finish line travelling at 270km/h.

YouTube videos suggest one of the demonstration runs at the US Winternationals last weekend was slightly slower – 8.83 seconds at 252km/h – but it’s still a mighty quick drag racing time for any car, especially an EV.

When taking off the instant torque hit had the car standing on its rear wheels. A jockey wheel at the back stopped the nose from rising too far.

Slowing the car from those speeds required a parachute, as per drag racing regulations.

Keen EV watchers will realise those figures aren’t miles away from those achieved recently by a prototype Lucid Air (9.9 seconds at 232km/h).

However, that Lucid was driving all four wheels, whereas the Mustang Cobra Jet 1400 drove only the rear wheels, making it more difficult to launch off the line.

The Mustang drag car has been developed with an 800V electrical system and includes four electric motors, each producing 350kW.

Ford claims the car was producing 1502 horsepower at its wheels (cars lose power between the engine/motors and the wheels), or about 1100kW.

Engineers are confident there’s more performance left in the Cobra Jet 1400 from a performance perspective, too.

“Since revealing the car, we’ve continued to fine-tune it and now know we’re just scratching the surface of what we may be able to achieve with this much electric horsepower in a drag racing setting,” said Mark Rushbrook, director of Ford Performance Motorsports.

He also hinted that such extreme one-off projects could be used to boost the outputs of future electric Fords, saying they give “great insight into what may be possible in high-performance all-electric vehicles for Ford going forward”.

While many fans will no doubt be unconvinced at the lack of noise that is such a big part of drag racing, National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) chief development officer Brad Gerber talked the tech up.

“Our fans are fascinated by horsepower in all forms, and the electrification of an iconic vehicle like the Mustang Cobra Jet 1400 shows that innovation at Ford Motor Company never rests,” said Gerber. “We look forward to seeing the Cobra Jet 1400 and continuing discussions with Ford about the future of electrification in drag racing.”