That's not defense, that's offense. I'm glad we cleared this up. ;)

I forgot who's who,,,,,,, I guess that the best defense IS a good offense. Me on the other hand have learned to duck quickly.:eek:

Out of respect for the OP's intent, which is to get into a replica as inexpensively as possible, I thought I ought to point out that there are companies who will sell their kits in "stages". Stage one might be the frame only, stage two the suspension/steering, stage three the body, stage four the interior, stage five the items needed to complete the build, like gas tank, radiator, wiring harness, etc. While I may have gotten certain groups of equipment in wrong stages, you get the idea.

I think Street Beasts does this, don't they? Does anyone know of any other manufacturers who do this?

For someone on a limited budget, that might be the route to choose. I fear that in the end buying a kit in stages would be more expensive than purchasing the entire kit at one time, but for someone with more time and ambition than money it might be the difference between eventually driving a replica and driving a Yugo.

Cheers from Dugly :cool:

I just got a brochure from Antique & Collectible Autos. They seem to have a kit sold in stages. It looks like their stage 1 and 2 kit is on sale for $10995.00 I don't know anything about them or their product. Just passing on the info.

ACT FAST by forgetting about this one...and lose the link.

It's a hokey rebodied MG...not your dream. :rolleyes:

True, and sometimes they run out of money and never get finished.

I'm of the opinion that these are toys and it's usually better to have sufficient disposable income to comfortably purchase such a toy without undue financial stress. If you can't afford it, save up until you can.

Now, where's that soapbox icon?? ;)

Agreed, Dallas!

When I bought my replica, I bought one that I felt comfortable using on a daily basis. I bought one at a reasonable price ($18,200 and drove it home from Dallas, TX), one that I felt would run and run without needing constant attention (the drivetrain is reported to be out of a 1989 Mustang GT, I think it's box-stock except for the intake manifold and carb), and one that I could work on if needed (I just crawled out from under it 2 hours ago, having replaced ALL the urethane bushings on the parallel 4-bar rear suspension).

I paid cash for it so that I would not have a bank telling me I had to carry full coverage insurance. I insure it for liability only and when in traffic I drive it like a grandpa (well, I am, sorta, my step-kids both have children :LOL: ).

I'm about to undertake a change of the intake/carb system....going with cash for that, too.

These ARE toys, regardless of how much we think we'll use them, and as such they should not be a financial burden on the family. It's important to keep the priorities straight, no?

Cheers from Dugly :cool:

So you let a salesman guide you, then choose to accept his ignorant attitude, sheesh, what a maroon.:rolleyes:


Bill S.

PS: Deals are out there, last year I bought a poorly built, but well painted FFR for $14,000.....Spent a few weeks going through the bad parts, then sold it to a used car dealer in southern,NJ who then kept it for his summer toy.......Yes, I made profit :D

No Bill, what Bugs said was "what an Ultra Maroon"!!!!!

One of my FAVORITE Looney Tunes......

there's a FFR Mk2 on denver's craigslist.
http://denver.craigslist.org/cto/2272545528.html
It's barely started and he has it listed for $11,000. you may get it for 10K and find a junk yard mustang for cheap donor parts.

Assuming you're real handy, and stick firm to a budget, have an available 400 or so hours free, and do everything yourself (including body and paint) you could, in theory, be driving a complete car for under 15K

On the other side of things, you just missed a complete, well built FFR for $12,000 http://www.ffcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266803

as you can see from the ad, it needed welding and either a rebody (Mr Bruce has an outstanding option) or a lot of body work. At $12,000 that was a deal!!! but it gives you an idea of how close you can come with your budget.

or you could sell a kidney and increase your budget

It would be an interesting challenge to see just how inexpensively someone could build a FFR or some other make - fully documented. I've seen people mention here and there how little they spend but never saw the details. I have found more deals on Craigslist than I can count for just about anything. There are Craigslist search tools out there which allow you to quickly search various Craigslist areas and display the results automatically. A friend blew up his 302 in his Panoz and picked up a complete 5.0 motor for $500. Things like that can make for an extremely economical cobra build. When you save that kind of money it can make the lack of HP seem just fine.

i can build a cobra for around $10k, but i have a slight advantage, i have the molds to make the bodys, and jigs to make the frames, plus i'm a junk picker and hit most of the swap meets up here during the summer and find deals all the time. Maybe after i get Jim's car out of here i'll give it a go, keep track of the cash spent, with pichers

The Sacramento Craigs List has a Cobra body listed for $3,000.00 bucks.....
it looks to be complete but does not say who manufactured it....

I found a driver last Sept. for 11,000. Am having to put a few thousand in detailing it out. The drive line is sound. Had to jump on this deal, people were pulling in the driveway after me. They are out there.

Differences of opinion always wind up in conversation and when it comes to these cars a lot of the kits are sold with mention of using donor mustangs to get them on the road the least expensive way possible.
Bought my kit in 93 for 10k minus drivetrain,finished number was in the 45k area,except for the top, tonneau and upholstery did everything myself.Even using mustang underpinnings doubt very much if car could be done cheap especially having to pay someone to build it.
Whatever path you choose good luck and above all have fun.The first time you fire up your own car the effort will be worth all the frustration and time spent.

I am building a non-donor FFR here in Australia. I do not have the vehicle availability to start with an old mustang, hence the non-donor route.

That said, I am not sure my car will have any mustang parts in it at all. Every part in my build is brand new.

The kit car industry started out using doner cars as a way to get into the hobby fairly inexpensive. Then people then started using all/most non-doner parts or after market parts. Now if you build a doner kit you are called cheap or they think that you have an inferior car somehow. There is nothing wrong with building a "doner" car. Using a doner car or aftermarket parts is basicly the same thing with the exception of the miles on the doner car parts.

The car mentioned previously in the "owner built on a buget" thread IS a doner car. Ray did not go out and buy new or aftermarket parts. His motor probably has 60K miles or more on it. He is using stock suspension parts. He bought a partially put together kit that someone lost interest in for $8500 on Craigslist and then finished it himself. The thing is, Ray has been building cars for a long time. You should see some of the cars that he has built or restored.

Now I am not saying that all of the guys doing a non-doner build have thier nose up in the air and think that it is unthinkable to build a donor car. Some do not have the choice and some do have the choice.

For me, it was my choice to build a non-doner kit. I spent probably twice as much as someone building a donor build. Again, that was my choice.

There are quite a few people on here that have twice as much or more just in their engines than other have in thier whole car. Again, that was THEIR choice.

There is one more side to donor builds.

Like others I started a scratch build with donor parts. Doing my own chassis work I had not to tape or protect any donor parts during the build. All parts have been for new ones replaced.

If I had kept and used the donor parts, the build would be about 30% of the amount what I have in it now.

It is really hard to tell if the donor or non donor route is more/less expensive.

My opinion: If someone is on such strict budget - maybe the Cobra is not their car to approach.
It is important to have a smile on your face while you are working on a project like that - right? (even middle in the wiring:LOL:)

http://photos.imageevent.com/germanp...m_DSC08082.jpg

The other way to look at is, if you build a donor car, you might break even or loose less when and if you decide to sell it:LOL:.

Ciao A tutti sono nuovo appena registrato
non trovo nel forum un'area di benvenuto
un grande saluto a tutti da un grande appassionato di cobra
purtroppo sono abito lontanissimo
italia
ciao robbi