2018 Ford Mustang Cobra Jet to be world's quickest rear-drive V8

Ford has announced it is readying its most powerful Mustang ever, insisting it will be capable of running the quarter-mile in the mid-eight-second bracket with a terminal speed of more than 241km/h.

Created to rival the 626kW Dodge Challenger SRT Demon, whose quarter-mile times could be beaten by more than a second, the 2018 Mustang Cobra Jet lifts its name from the original 1968 Ford-built Mustang-based drag racers that once dominated the sport.

The Blue Oval is yet to disclose how much power it has managed to extract from a supercharged version of the Coyote 5.2-litre V8, but it's thought Mustang Cobra Jet will overshadow the Demon with a power output approaching 650kW.

Ford says it will build just 68 cars, in either red or white paint, and each 2018 Mustang Cobra Jet will come with commemorative 50th anniversary plaques that pay tribute to the 1968 originals.

To help achieve its hypercar acceleration (expect a sub-2.2sec 0-100km/h time), Ford says it has re-engineered the current Mustang's rear suspension to incorporate a new four-link set-up and a heavy-duty 9.0-inch solid rear axle.

Coil-over suspension, race wheels and stickier dragstrip-optimised tyres complete the upgrades. Inside, the stripped-out cabin receives a full roll cage and a pair of ultra-lightweight race seats.

Thought to have been created to not only mark five decades since the original Ford-produced Mustang Cobra Jet was launched, the Blue Oval's real motivation is also to beat the Dodge Demon where it hurts -- on track.

Since its launch last year, the Demon has enraptured muscle car fans around the globe and the devilish Dodge will still have the upper hand for enthusiasts who actually want to drive their cars on the road.

Ford says out of the 68 Mustang Cobra Jets it will make, all will be non-VIN production cars, meaning it will be impossible to register them either in the US or Down Under.

Not that it matters, because the limited run of the world's most powerful pony car is thought to have already sold out despite an estimated six-figure price tag.

Ford's surprise announcement that it will sell a production turn-key drag racer in the US follows this week's news that the Blue Oval will race a Mustang V8 in the Australian Supercars racing category from 2019, under the Ford Performance banner.