the main reason for no IRS in drag is cause of wheel hop. and the DeDion rear end is about the best rear end desighn around. although not for drag racing. i love solid axle, i never argued anything agaist it. its great for drifting. i drifted a 96-98 cobra with the 4 cam 4.6 and solid axle and it felt like a big ae86 to me! lots of fun, and the sound of a v8 at 7k rpm was awsome.

and as far as american and japanese build quality is the same per year your full of shit, and i'm not talking about the damn interior, i'm talking about metalurgy, desighn and execution. both of which was very lacking in american cars, and still is in some cases. i.e cadillac,saturn,chrysler,jeep,etc.