[steelcomp]

God almighty, I wish you could hear yourselves. Next thing you're going to say is that the buggy whip is still a "got to have".
The SOHC motr didn't make it simply because it ouldn't hack it. First, it damn near takes two guys to degree the cams on one, second, they were very tempermental and hyper sensative to cam timing, and third, they were terribly un reliable. That 6' of timing chain could, and did let go at any time. They were great in drag racing, once you got 'em running right...everything'd a grenade there...pull the pin and hope for the best! But indurance? Forget it.
The FE used to be king, that is true, but get over it! It hasn't been for a LONG time, and is old technology, no matter how you re machine it or what color you anodise it!
What works best, lasts. It's simple. It's as much survival of the fittest in our material world as it is in the wild.
If only Ford had...If only Chrysler had...If grandma had balls she'd be grampa. The FE is an outdated, old school platform, that, no matter how big you make one, will always be just that. The ONLY way those motors are making any near the horse power that is being claimed is because of more cubes. Maybe a little better cam technology, maybe a little better head, but not enough to bring 'em out of the dark ages.
I am a tried and true, blue in my veins, die hard Ford lover. I defend the blue oval to rediculousness. My first car was a 69 Ranchero with a factory installed 428 SCJ with an H servo'd C6 and a 3.89 limited slip. With GoodYear Bluestreaks, that car ran 11's with factory exhaust. I've been doing this since before I was old enough to drive, and I know this...you guys are goofy! Now to be loyal to an era (not E.R.A.) is cool. The Cobra is, and will always be timeless. There will never be another car that will have the impact on the motorsports world than it has, and frankly, always will have. It will forever be a benchmark that modern performance will be compared to, but the facts are the facts. If it was a better car, if it was a safer car, if it wasn't so hard to drive in it's 427 (428, mostly) trim, or wasn't the true piece of rattleing fire ball that it was, someone would have long ago, picked up on the platform and mass (I mean MASS) produced it. So many millions of dollars have been spent by those with that vision. I know for a fact that Steve Arntz went to ford with a version of his car that met the complete requirement for DOT crash and impact testing, proposing a production run. There's companies out there combined that haven't thrown as much money or dedication into trying to make the Cobra practical, as he. It didn't fly. For various reasons, but it didn't. And the classic FE sits right between it's front fenders...as a metaphor.