SpeedRul says:

turbocharger adds a lot of weight to a small civic, best to stay light – so a fairly large spray of nitrous to a well prepared engine ….like here would be more economic, plus keeps it streetablehttp://www.dragtimes.com/Honda-Civic-Tim…
if you did turbo the civic, have to run exceptionally high boost – therefore engine would require more prep….like here to get into low 11’s…but its running 23 p.s.i from the turbo….less boost would be much slower…..and ck the gasoline its running – thats 114 octane (race gas), its doesn’t add power but it helps the engine deal with heat management….this engine is about on the edge of its limits.http://www.dragtimes.com/Honda-Civic-Tim…
also to compensate for weight of the turbocharger installation going to have to lighten the car considerably (passenger seat, etc etc), becomes of questionable driveability on the street.
the problem is sooner or later you run out of “muscle” the engine has limitations because of its size.
when you say 06 cobra, i assume you mean the last cobras (terminator series) that were produced in 03 / 04. these cars came from the factory with hand assembled engines, complete with forged internals and race components.
by swapping in a smaller upper pulley/bigger lower pulley and better exhaust (all in about 1/10th the cost to prepare a civic) its easy to run a cobra really low 11’s..http://www.dragtimes.com/Ford-Mustang-Ti…
and ck the gas he’s using, its street gas, means the engine does not need excessive heat management (to prevent pre-ignition).
swap in a bigger supercharger and its easy to get a cobra in to the 9’s & 10’shttp://www.dragtimes.com/Ford-Mustang-Ti…
….so an expensively modified civic running on the edge (of engine failure) could beat a stock cobra….but against a lightly modified cobra…unlikely.
additionally to get to those low times the civic would be basically a small stripped down race rat – rough with unlikely streetability.
a cobra running seriously low times 10’s & better will remain streetable (2 seats, aircon/heater etc.)…great for long distance roadtripping
cheers 04 cobra (whipple blower at 15 p.s.i., dyno’d at 575rwHP)

Chris T says:

Are you saying a turbo, i.e. modded Civic to a stock 06 Cobra?
It really depends on how modded the Civic was, i.e. what kind of turbo, how much boost, LSD, stripped interior, etc. You’re not even giving the model of Civic – Si, DX, nor specifically what kind of motor (B16A, B18C, etc). If you’re talking about a small turbo like a Greddy on stock motor and boost, than probably not. If you’re talking about a built up B16A with big turbo and boost, pushing like 300whp+, then I think it could.
Moreover than car setup though, it comes down to the carbon unit, i.e. the driver. You can have a fast car, but if you don’t know how to drive your car (eg. launch control, shifting, etc), you’ll beat no one. I’ve won many races against others who’s cars should beat me (if looking at specs on paper).