Auto Trends

The history pages are full of cool cars that were hardly capable of blowing an ant off the tire tread at wot (wide open throttle). We proudly present some of the more notable models.

1978 Mustang King Cobra-

With a name like King Cobra, you’d think this Ford Mustang would have been a screamer. It came with a spoiler, fender flares, decals up the wazzoo, a hood scoop, t-tops (like the Trans Am), and an impressive 5.0 liter emblem on the hood to let everyone know that you meant business.

Unbeknown to some, the only business you were truthfully going to be up to with the 129 horsepower 302 cubic inch engine, is slow business… very slow business! The King Cobra was of course back in the days when the government was beginning to tighten down on manufacturers to reduce emissions and improve fuel economy (CAFE standards), so the 5.0 only received a tiny 2-barrel carburetor, a measly 8.4:1 compression ratio, and one single exhaust pipe, which they tried to pass off with a chrome tip.

To achieve reduced smog, the King Cobra received an EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) valve, PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) valve, and single catalytic converter to go with its single exhaust pipe. Despite Ford’s efforts, the King Cobra still only received about 17 mpg breathing out of a blocked straw.

These are classics and sure do look performance oriented, but if you like performance to go along with your go-fast looks, then this is one Mustang Cobra that would best be left on the used showroom floor. The new 2008 Shelby Cobra with 500 horsepower 5.4 liter will be much more to your liking…

1969 Porsche 914-

The Porsche 914 was Porsche’s version of a sports car for the poor folk. These were the kind of folk who wanted the Porsche symbol, yet didn’t mind the Volkswagen performance and boxy looks. While this car has received its share of brownie points over the course of its existence, if you were to buy one now and take it out on a Saturday night cruise, you’d be left at just about every stop light by mom’s in their mini vans and dad’s in their Mazda Miata’s.

While the car was a mid-engine configuration, which has always made for a nicely balanced race car, the 4-cylinder that Volkswagen provided was among the same prowess as the infamous 69 beetle and hill challenged Volkswagen hippie van.

You did have a few choices of engines, ranging from slow, really slow, and appallingly slow. These choices are better known as the 1.7 liter with 80 horsepower, the 1.8 liter with 79 horsepower, and the 2.0 liter with 95 horsepower, all with a five-speed manual gearbox which was standard on all models.

These are classics, but to today’s standards they certainly do not live up to what the name Porsche has come to be known!