Welcome to The Grid, R&T's quick roundup of the auto industry and motorsports news you should know this morning.
Cobra Jet Returns
The original Mustang Cobra Jet was released in 1968 and was a drag strip special, designed to dominate the quarter mile. This year is the 50th anniversary of that original package, and the name will once again appear on a Mustang, one that is set to be the quickest ever made.
Ford will make 68 2018 Cobra Jets, each with a supercharged 5.2 liter Coyote V8. While no power figures were given yet, the Cobra Jet is projected to run mid-eight seconds in the quarter mile at 150 mph. That's damn fast. It'll mark a return to a solid rear axle for the Mustang and be equipped with a roll cage and race seats. If you didn't guess, the Cobra Jet will not be street legal. More details will be released this summer.
In-Dash Fuel Pay
Have you ever been at the gas station and not wanted to get out of your car to pay? Well, now you might not have to.
Chevy and Shell are working together on an in-dash fuel pay app. After you fill up at your favorite Shell, the car will get charged for the gas and it'll be connected to a credit card in the app. Simple. Right now it's only available to drivers in Detroit, Houston, and Seattle, but will expand nationwide in the next few months.
Great Crowd
This weekend's Long Beach Grand Prix was a fun watch, particularly because of all the passing, particularly by Sebastien Bourdais. And the good news is that a huge crowd was on hand to see all of it.
The best attended LBGP since 2000, there were at least 185,000 people on site during the three day weekend. With all the positive news coming from IndyCar and the great racing, it could be another record next year.
Travis was an editor at Road & Track. He was previously the Editor-in-Chief of Jalopnik.com.
