Debuting in early 2002, the 2003 Cobra, codenamed "Terminator" by the SVT development crew, which quickly fell into common usage for the 2003/04 Cobra, came with a supercharged 4.6 L DOHC engine. Numerous improvements were made to the powertrain and driveline to handle the increase from the previous model year. A cast iron block was used instead of aluminum, with stronger internals, including forged Zolner pistons and Manley H-beam connecting rods that were modified with a wrist pin oiling hole by the SVT engine builders. These upgrades were critical in order to support the 8 psi (0.55 bar) of boost delivered from the stock Eaton M112 roots supercharger. Other improvements include the use of an aluminum flywheel connected to a Tremec T-56 six-speed transmission, 3.55:1 rear axle ratio and stronger 31 spline half shafts with revised upper and lower control arms. These modifications launched the Cobra from 0-60 mph in 4.5 seconds and the quarter mile in the mid to high 12's at over 110 MPH
The new Cobra also had exterior differences: It featured a new front bumper with integrated spoiler, a new rear bumper with a black insert, visually integrating the exhaust pipes, a hood with functional dual scoops, newly designed side scoops and fold back mirrors painted in the body color. Compared to the 99-02 Cobras, which had the taillights taken from the Canadian Mustang, featuring a yellow turn signal, the 03-04 Cobra used the standard Mustang taillights which were all red, eliminating the distinctive yellow blinker. SVT also introduced new 17" rims on the 03-04 model. Finally, the 03-04 Cobra sported a new decklid spoiler with an integrated LED brake light, as opposed to the wings seen on the older Cobras and the standard Mustangs.
For 2003, SVT offered a limited-edition Tenth Anniversary Cobra to celebrate 10 years since the introduction of the first Cobra in 1993. It featured split seven spoke Dark Argent 17"x9" alloy wheels, red inserts in the door panels, red painted brake calipers, red leather inserts in the seats, and special Tenth Anniversary badging on the decklid and floor mats. SVT produced 2,003 units of the Anniversary model, 1,000 convertible and 1,003 coupe models. Anniversary models were only available in Black (775 models), Torch Red (734 models), and Silver Metallic (494 models).
The 2004 Cobra was much the same as the 2003 Cobra with a few minor updates, including new paint color options (Screaming Yellow, Competition Orange and Mystichrome, a slightly updated exhaust system, which helped to eliminate the Gas Guzzler Tax that the 2003 suffered, as well as some minor interior changes.
Production Numbers:
2003- Coupe = 8,394
Convertibles = 5,082
Total = 13,476
2004 - Coupe = 3,768
Convertibles = 1,896
Total = 5,664
Total for both years are:
19,140