1996 Ford Mustang Cobra

The Cobra was the highlight of the 1996 model year as the most visible changes were made to it than either the base or GT models. Though the vehicle looked much like the base and GT model at first glace, the Cobra had a much more aggressive styling that made it look more like a muscle car than either of the other models, which seemed appropriate enough.

Great features that were added included a sportier front bumper, round fog lights, and the removal of tag identification, which were traded in for side snake badges to symbolize the Cobra. The rear bumper of the Cobra was also changed so that it read Cobra instead of Mustang, which made the vehicle more upscale than before and gave it its very own identification. In addition to the bumpers, the hood of Cobra was also upgraded so that it hade a raised hood to help clear the intake with side vents. This feature also added to the sporty, aggressive look and feel of the Cobra. Ford also changed the rims that had been used for the previous two years so that they were now dark gray in the recessed areas and polished on the raised surfaces of the rims.

Not only were the cosmetics of the Cobra updated for the 1996 model, so too were some of the fundamental features of the car. The brakes were upgraded from the typical 11-inch front and 10 inch rear brakes to 13 inches in the front and 11 inches in the rear. The front calipers were also an upgrade to a dual piston instead of the single piston that both the GT and the base models used. After all of the changes and upgrades, the performance of the Cobra was awesome as well. The 305 horsepower and 315 torque coupled with a T-45 transmission could move the Cobra on the track as well as on highways.

Also new was the Mystic paint option which contained four major metallic colors: green, amber, gold and purple. The light intensities of the paint also varied depending on which angle the car was viewed.