When John Hennessey->ke1863 points to a car and says he wants to make a performance program for it, magic usually happens.

There was no doubt that when Ford brought back the Mustang Boss 302 for the first time since 1969 - that's a span of 42 years - Hennessey would be getting his picking finger ready. It just became a question of when the American tuning company would have a program ready for it.

Hennessey just introduced the HPE650 package for the Boss 302 and today, they've upped the ante with the release of the HPE700. Like most of Hennessey's tuning programs, you won't see a whole lot of extra decorations on the car. There are badges here and plaques there, but for the most part, what you see with the car is what you get. But when you open the hood, that's when all hell breaks loose.

Just like the HPE650 program, Hennessey's HPE700 program offers a mammoth horsepower improvement, which might seem over-the-top considering the Boss 302 already has 440 ponies in tow. However, anytime you can take that 440 and turn it into 700, we're pretty sure that you won't find a whole lot of people to complain about it.

UPDATE 10/24/2011 }}: The 2012 Ford Mustang Boss HPE700 by Hennessey is all kinds of awesome and it just proved it by running the quarter mile in 10.9 seconds at 130 mph! Check out the video of the run by clicking on the image above!

More on the 2012 Ford Mustang Boss HPE700 after the jump

2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 HPE700 by Hennessey

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 HPE700 by Hennessey
  • Engine/Motor: 5.0-liter V8 engine
  • Horsepower: 700 horsepower
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior and Interior

Aesthetically, Hennessey pretty much left the Ford Mustang Boss 302 alone. Actually, the whole exterior and interior set-up of the car is similar to the Boss 302 HPE650. There are the traditional carbon fiber door sill covers, the plethora of exterior Hennessey badging, a serial numbered dash and engine plaques, and of course, the premium floor mats. As added options, Hennessey will provide a special carbon fiber Laguna Seca splitter and the company's own wheel and tire package.

Performance

Without Hennessey putting a finger on the Mustang Boss 302, you already get an impressive powertrain that features a 5.0-liter V8 engine that produces 440 horsepower and 380 lb/ft of torque. But thanks to Hennessey's expertise on engine tuning - one that includes their new TVS2300 supercharger system - the Mustang Boss 302's output shoots up the charts to a beastly height of 700 horsepower.

The whole scope of Hennessey's performance improvements also come with a new air-to-water intercooler, a fuel system upgrade, a throttle body upgrade, a fuel injector upgrade, and a new strut tower brace.

Pricing

Hennessey's HPE700 package for the Mustang Boss 302 will burn a $19,995 hole in your pocket. Add that to the $40,995 cost of the car itself and you're looking at shelling out over $60,000.

Competition

It's like the Ali versus Frazier of American muscle cars. The Ford Mustang versus the Chevrolet Camaro. While you certainly won't go wrong in picking one over the other, you have to take into account the fact that this particular Mustang is a Boss 302, which is one of the most revered Mustang variants in history. The fact that only 302 models were released in 1969 and wasn't heard from again until this year speaks to the Bossman's place in the hearts of muscle car enthusiasts.

So while we're inclined to say that everybody wins with either a Hennessey-tuned Mustang or Camaro, when the Mustang is a Boss 302, we're going to lean towards that direction.