• A supercharger and other mods have give the Mustang Dark Horse an extra 350 hp and 232 lb-ft.
  • The twin-turbo’d V8 of the M8 Competition xDrive allows it to hit 60 mph in less than 3 seconds.

Equipped with a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 churning out 617 hp, the BMW M8 Competition is an absolute beast. However, can it do the seemingly impossible and keep pace with a Hennessey-tuned Ford Mustang Dark Horse with 233 more horses?

A few months after the U.S. tuner unveiled its beefed-up Mustang Dark Horse, it lined up against the extraordinary pony car for a series of races alongside the M8 Competition. We’re not sure why it decided to test it alongside a BMW at a significant power disadvantage, but it does serve as an interesting test between American and German muscle.

Read: Hennessey Supercharges Mustang Dark Horse To 850 HP

To significantly boost the performance of the Mustang Dark Horse, Hennessey has added a supercharger, a new fuel pump, and upgraded fuel injectors to the 5.0-liter V8. When working alongside a high-flow air induction system and an engine tune, the car delivers 850 hp and 650 lb-ft (880 Nm) of torque—a colossal increase of 350 hp and 232 lb-ft (314 Nm) over the standard model.

Hennessey says that thanks to its upgrades, the pony car needs just 3.2 seconds to hit 60 mph (96 km/h) and will run down the quarter-mile in 10.9 seconds at 133 mph (214 km/h). BMW also claims the M8 Competition hits 60 mph in 3.2 seconds, although some independent tests have recorded times in the high 2-second range, as well as quarter-mile runs in under 11 seconds.

850 HP Hennessey Mustang Dark Horse Vs BMW M8 Competition Ain’t Really A Fair Fight

In the first race, the all-wheel drive traction of the M8 Competition helps it get off the line ahead of the Mustang. As the speeds start to build, and the Hennessey car starts to put its power to the ground, it breezes past the BMW without breaking a sweat.

The second race had a rolling start. Once again, the BMW got off slightly better, but none of the German engineering that’s gone into it was enough to prevent the heavily tuned Ford from overtaking it before the finish line.