Whenever a performance-focused vehicle is released in the U.S, you can be assured that Hennessey Performance will get its hands on one and bump up its performance. However, before working on a recent C8 Corvette and Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 that came into its shop, the tuner lined up the two to see how they compare in a straight-line.
Kicking things off is a drag race from a standing start where the Corvette has an advantage. You see, while the ‘Vette’s 6.2-liter naturally-aspirated V8 engine ‘only’ churns out 495 hp with the Z51 Performance Package, it is mid-engined and has much better grip than the GT500.
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Consequently, the Corvette gets off the line for quicker than the Mustang which, by the way, uses a 5.2-liter supercharged V8 with no less than 760 hp. The Chevy holds on to its lead for quite a long time and it isn’t until the C8 hits roughly 120 mph (193 km/h) that the Mustang overtakes it and storms ahead thanks to its added power.
For the second test, the two went toe-to-toe in a rolling drag race from 40 mph (64 km/h). This race favors the Mustang because it is able to put all of its power to the ground from the get-go without encountering any traction issues like it does when getting off the line.
Neither of these results are surprising but they have made us very intrigued to see how Hennessey’s twin-turbo Corvette will stack up against a GT500 when it’s been tuned and is running at full power.