Cobra 427 vs. Griffith 400

HealeyRick · #1 (**permalink**) 11-04-2015, 06:04 PM

Contemporary tests said CSX 3167 did 0-60 in 4.2 and 0-100 in 10.3 and held the fastest acceleration records into the '80s. Today, I saw a claimed time for a Griffith 400 as 0-60 in under 3.5 and 0-100-0 in less than a 427 Cobra. http://saacnw.org/newsletters/july02news.pdf Anyone know which one was really quicker?

cycleguy55 · #2 (**permalink**) 11-04-2015, 07:34 PM

Car and Driver Magazine has tested Cobras (originals and replicas) many times over the past 50+ years. Some of their tests, showing 0-60 times:

Shelby Cobra 427, 1965, 4.3 secs
Shelby Cobra 289, 1970, 5.2 secs
Autokraft Ltd. AC Mark IV (replica), 1984, 4.4 secs
Shelby Cobra 427 S/C, 1998, 3.6 secs

I could find no details on the '1998 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C' that ran a 0-60 time of 3.6 secs - perhaps someone can fill those in.

Source: Rocket Sleds: The Best Performers from 50 Years of Car and Driver Testing - Car Comparison - Feature Article - Page 2

BTW, this page (1965 Griffith 400 full range specs) shows the Griffith @ 6.6 secs - obviously well off a 3.5 sec pace.

Also worth noting is the Griffith had a wheelbase of 87.4" and was apparently plagued by torque steer and handling was described as 'quirky'. 1966 Griffith

Griffith apparently claimed a 0-60 time of 3.8 secs with a 289 HP - but I've found no instrumented tests.

YouTube video shows a 500 HP nitrous Griffith 500 with a sub-4 second 0-60. Video here: [ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hd_WTr8PJV4[/ame]

HealeyRick · #3 (**permalink**) 11-04-2015, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cycleguy55

Griffith apparently claimed a 0-60 time of 3.8 secs with a 289 HP - but I've found no instrumented tests.

This is what I found, too. Nothing to back up the 3.8 claimed time from Griffith. I could buy the Griffith besting a 289 Cobra, but not a 427.

xb-60 · #4 (**permalink**) 11-04-2015, 08:27 PM

I have John Christy's original Sports Car Graphic road test no. 21/62 for a 260 Cobra with 0-60mph recorded in 4.1 sec, 0-100 in 10.8 and standing quarter in 12.9 at 114mph. Top speed (ave.) was 152

Cheers,
Glen

griffin289trips · #5 (**permalink**) 11-05-2015, 02:04 PM

I driven a few hipo griffiths, 200 Series & 400 Series. Yes, very fast cars, if set up properly. They can get twichy at very high speeds. The real Cobras I had rides in were also very fast. 289 and 427 cobras also need a lot of attention while driving at high speeds.
I don't take a lot of stock in original tests as they are very in consistent, some absurdly slow or unbelievably fast. As to which one is faster, who knows. I feel a decent hipo Griffith is good for a sub 5 sec. 0 to 60 mph run.
I think maybe there needs to be a contest, an original 289 or 427 Cobra VS a 289 hipo Griffith.
As the old saying goes the B.S. stops when the green flag drops!

JimH · #6 (**permalink**) 11-05-2015, 03:12 PM

I owned a Griffith 400 w/ 271 HP 289 engine from 1966--1968. It came with 185-15" Dunlop SP tires which were as wide as possible without rubbing the body or suspension upright. Way too narrow for the engine power. I won quite a number of 2nd and 3rd place autocross trophies, but never got a 1st place because of spinning out. The car came with high 3.08 Salisbury diff gearing, which resulted in a slower take off launch. With a 7000 rpm redline, I saw 70 mph in 1st, 93 in 2nd, 115 in 3rd and 135 in 4th, before chickening out. The front end was pushed way down from air flow pressure and the rear end was VERY light and was becoming unstable. Never went that fast again in a car without a rollbar!

SUNBEAMTIGER65 · #7 (**permalink**) 10-18-2021, 10:40 AM

Come along for a ride in a 1965 Griffith 200

https://youtu.be/pGs6Yi9E2NI

https://youtu.be/PJRLWkWy-bw

Harpoon PV2 · #8 (**permalink**) 10-18-2021, 10:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xb-60

I have John Christy's original Sports Car Graphic road test no. 21/62 for a 260 Cobra with 0-60mph recorded in 4.1 sec, 0-100 in 10.8 and standing quarter in 12.9 at 114mph. Top speed (ave.) was 152

Cheers,
Glen

All hale John Christy, the man Carrol called the Godfather of the Cobra! He was at Dean Moons shop during the engine install in CSX2000 and it was Dean and John that actually went Corvette hunting. In farness Shelby had to run after a short test drive, because he was still trying to sell the Cobra, to Ford, Tasca and Ed Hugus! John went way overboard in his praise of the Cobra. Those figures for even a well tuned 260, need to be taken with several Texas size grains of salt!

strictlypersonl · #9 (**permalink**) 10-19-2021, 05:09 AM

I suspect that the first 260 cid cars had blueprinted engines (and maybe even tweaked a little), anticipating that they would be the subject of magazine road tests. Once the production cars were tested, performance fell off quite a bit.

Blue66 · #10 (**permalink**) 10-19-2021, 06:20 AM

Always had a soft spot for Griffiths

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PDUB · #11 (**permalink**) 10-23-2021, 11:27 AM

My car's tranny came out of a Griffith!