This thread really makes me feel close to you guys. I bought my Arntz body and frame in '81, spent 6 years building it and 33 years improving it. I have done all the things you have talked about here. I keep working on it to run road rally's and go to car shows. At 72, it's getting harder to get in and out of it, especially with the hard top on. So, I bought a Mazda 3 to drive when I just don't have enough energy to handle the Cobra.
Ron Butler sold me the last hard top he built in 2000 and I ran a Starlite rally to Las Vegas in December, in the rain, that year. I found a 21 gallon Oldsmobile gas tank that fits great in the trunk and gets me about 250 miles on the freeway. I have replaced the front suspension with a Classic Conversions Engineering unit with Wilwood Brakes. Spent a year tuning a Holley Sniper EFI to run well.
With the Covid situation, most rallies are cancelled in Southern California except for the San Diego SCCA Club. They have an event scheduled for February 13. You do all the registration on line and print out your own instructions. There is no social interaction at all. Just show up at the start line and leave on time and hit GPS checkpoints which show your score on your smart phone. There is no gathering at the finish, just go home and get your scores on line.
I have been trying to stop
oil leaks from my engine since I bought a cheap racing pan. I have decided to cut apart two different pans and braze them together to make a 6 quart pan with a kickout that is only 7" deep so it does not extend below the frame. I think it may work if I can fix all the leaks in my brazed seam.
Working on my car is good exercise and helps me stay healthy and that leads amazing driving experiences. The 2018 Targa California rally took us on parade laps of 3 race tracks. I will never forget the joy of coming down the Corkscrew at Leguna Seca!
A replica Cobra is just the best toy in the world for us wrench turners. I'm on my 3rd engine (408 SBC with AFR heads), 3rd transmission (5 speed TKO) and third Jag diff (3.73 gears with LS). That one is getting pretty noisy and I don't thinks it's happy with 500 ft lbs of torque coming through. I am thinking about replacing it with a Heidts Pro G unit. Any advice about that will be very welcome!
