Bat

[redmt]

Read over some of the past sales on BAT. An old Ford pickup will go for more than your hand built, custom Cobra. Their writers are not car guys. They are pretty much clueless so read and approve your ad copy very carefully.

[Gpfarrell]

Originally Posted by redmt

Read over some of the past sales on BAT. An old Ford pickup will go for more than your hand built, custom Cobra. Their writers are not car guys. They are pretty much clueless so read and approve your ad copy very carefully.

It’s 2023. The ad writers are 1) Constrained by corporate attorneys and 2) can’t reasonably be expected to be marque experts on every obscure offering.

The Peanut Gallery is where the expertise comes from and anyone that has read a few series of comments knows a large slice of BaT’s value comes from the endorsement or criticism offered by fellow enthusiasts.

So yeah, a well-done old Ford pickup can easily get a more gracious bid than a cobbled together Cobra with a SBC and an automatic.

[55312]

Thanks for all of the input.

I asked them about lead times and they said ~4 weeks. They proposed what they call a reserve of $52,000. I have maintained this car for 17 years. I worked at 2 Ford dealers for 7 years and worked on an original small block COB Cobra with RH drive during that time as well as a number of 390, 427 and 428 Mustangs, Galaxies and Fairlane's. I think BAT is low for a Keith Craft built 427 with 11,000 miles on the engine..... but I'm quite biased.

I've got some thinking to do.

Thanks again

Tim

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by 55312

I think BAT is low for a Keith Craft built 427 with 11,000 miles on the engine..... but I'm quite biased.

I've got some thinking to do.

Yes, you have some thinking to do. Remember that Craft had a rather unfortunate flame-out in to bankruptcy court. There were numerous threads on the Ford forums about parts being left for work, shuddered up facilities with itty-bitty signs, "talk to our lawyers" stuff, and the like. There is a still a bad taste in the mouths of of many FE/Cobra/GT40 guys, like this post from Chris just a few weeks ago (along with pics). How you deal with that particular perception is tricky, but perhaps an "older" KC engine can be clearly differentiated from one of the newer ones. I don't know. Mr. M. is pretty good at that sort of thing so maybe he'll give you some suggestions.

https://www.gt40s.com/threads/is-cra...usiness.56394/

[twobjshelbys]

Originally Posted by 55312

Thanks for all of the input.

I asked them about lead times and they said ~4 weeks. They proposed what they call a reserve of $52,000. I have maintained this car for 17 years. I worked at 2 Ford dealers for 7 years and worked on an original small block COB Cobra with RH drive during that time as well as a number of 390, 427 and 428 Mustangs, Galaxies and Fairlane's. I think BAT is low for a Keith Craft built 427 with 11,000 miles on the engine..... but I'm quite biased.

I've got some thinking to do.

Thanks again

Tim

BAT is no different than all the other auction places when it comes to Cobras. No matter what, they bucketize them:

1st tier: Shelby, Superformance, Kirkham

2nd tier: Backdraft, Factory Five, ERA (although ERA might be 1.5)

3rd tier: All the rest

[And if you look at BJ and Mecum lately BD and FF are pushing numbers that Shelby/SPF did a couple of years ago. I think this has to do more with availability and wait times than anything.]

Just look at where and when BJ and Mecum slot them.

Your credentials to them just minimize risk but don't make it worth more and aren't likely to even appear in the description.

You can add all this stuff as an owner comment and it might help move things along.

I think you'll do better on Cobra Country with a realistic price somewhere between their low and your wish. But who knows, BAT has had quite a few surprises of way over reserve. As with all auctions it only takes two or three that really want it to get things moving.

Good luck.

[Gpfarrell]

Originally Posted by redmt

Read over some of the past sales on BAT. An old Ford pickup will go for more than your hand built, custom Cobra. Their writers are not car guys. They are pretty much clueless so read and approve your ad copy very carefully.

It’s 2023. The ad writers are 1) Constrained by corporate attorneys and 2) can’t reasonably be expected to be marque experts on every obscure offering.

The Peanut Gallery is where the expertise comes from and anyone that has read a few series of comments knows a large slice of BaT’s value comes from the endorsement or criticism offered by fellow enthusiasts.

So yeah, a well-done old Ford pickup can easily get a more gracious bid than a cobbled together Cobra with a SBC and an automatic.