The ‘Carwow’ team created a nice ensemble of three cars with very different dynamics. First up, there’s the Porsche Cayman GT4 that features a naturally aspirated flat-six and a manual gearbox. Then there’s a Cayman 718 with a smaller turbocharged four-cylinder mill, but paired to an automatic gearbox. And, then there’s a powerful naturally-but-heavy aspirated V-8 from the Ford Mustang Mach 1, also with a manual gearbox. Which car do you think has the higher chances of winning here?

The Mustang Is The Most Powerful, But Also The Heaviest

A six-speed manual gearbox drives the rear wheels exclusively. It weighs 3,131 pounds (1,420 kilos).

A seven-speed PDK drives the wheels here. It tips the scales at 3,009 pounds (1,365 kilos).

A six-speed manual drives the rear wheels here as well.

It is the heaviest of the lot, standing in at 3,984 pounds (1,807 kilos). This makes it roughly 850 pounds heavier than the GT4 and almost 1,000 pounds heavier than the 718.

In the first drag race, the 718 shot off the line. Although it makes the least power, it has a turbocharged engine, is the lightest, and the only one of the three to have an automatic gearbox, that too the PDK that offers lightning-quick shifts. But, once the cars picked up speeds, it was only a matter of time before the GT4 and its 420 horses made short work of 718 and its 300-horsepower output. The Mustang is the most powerful car here, but it is the heaviest as well. So, the final result was the GT4 winning the race, the 718 coming seconds, and the muscle car taking the last spot.

For the second race, Mat in the GT4 launched it in a different manner. He didn’t sidestep the clutch, but it didn’t help the cause. In fact, it gave the 718 ample time to gain a sizeable lead that it kept till the very end and didn’t let the GT4 get past it. In the end, the 718 won this race, completing the race in 12.7 seconds. The GT4 came second with a 12.9-second time, whereas the Mach 1 came last with a time of 13.7 seconds.

The next round was the rolling race from 30 mph with the cars in second gear. The GT4 had the best kickdown and it managed to edge both its rivals. The difference in power helped it keep the 718 at bay. Even the Mustang did well this time and stayed almost on par with the 718. However, the latter had its nose ahead the whole time to make sure it didn’t slip to the third position.

They took part in another rolling race, this time from 50 mph and in third gear. This time, the 718 Cayman had the best kickdown. But, after a few seconds, the GT4 got past it, and at the same time, the Mustang also overtook the 718. The GT4 just flew after that, leaving both its rivals in the dust. But, the highlight was the Mustang trumping the 718 here.

Lastly, there was the brake test from 100 mph. Both the Porsches stopped in a short distance, with the lighter 718 stopping a little shorter than the GT4. The Mustang took a little more time and distance to come to a halt, but it wasn’t too bad.

Watch these three take on each other below and share your thoughts with us in our comments section