Best Engine for Superformance MkIII??

Rainmaker · #1 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 04:15 AM

Hello friends. I must admit I have been snake-bit and am presently researching Cobra options. Following a thrilling test drive last weekend, I am leaning towards the Superformance MkIII. However, the most confusing issue for me is which engine to go with? I intend to use the car for weekend pleasure driving. Can anyone help? Many thanks!

Excaliber · #2 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 04:51 AM

I'd go with a 351W. Recently that has more and more become the engine of choice for many. Typical to see a 460 in an SPF but I think it's over kill.

351W built right offers plenty h.p., excellent reliability, easy to get parts for, better fuel milege and light weight compared to a big block.

Ernie

blykins · #3 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 05:00 AM

All of this from a guy with "690hp 427 SO" in his profile.....hehehehe.....sorry Excal, had to do it....

rdorman · #4 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 05:34 AM

Welcome to our madness

What are you going to do with the car?

Rick

SnakeBitt · #5 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 05:39 AM

What's the best engine for a Superformance? Easy. What's the best engine for ANY of these Cobra replica's...............427SO.
Can't get to the spark plugs on a 460 based engine, and (I may get in to trouble here....) a 351W is........well.......a SMALL block. They belong in the 289 cars (IMHO), and don't have the low end TQ you get in a BB that makes cruising around town simple.....and FUN. NOT to say that you can't have fun in a 351 car! I have many friends that own them and thay are PLENTY of fun. If you do go with the Windsor, I'd stroke it out to about 408 or maybe even 418 (or you can stroke it nowadays to 427 without too much fear, and then at least your badges will be correct!). You can get plenty of HP / TQ out of a well built stroker. I've got a buddy with a 408 in his SPF w/ 500HP. Like I said........PLENTY of fun!
Good call on the Superformance roller. Great car for the money. Mine is a couple years old now, and I've never had a problem with the chassis. Well built cars with a beautiful paint job. Back when I bought mine, it was between SPF and ERA. The ERA is also a beautiful car, but a little more $$$ (at least with the options I wanted) and a much longer wait. If I were looking today it would probable be between the same 2 companies and I would have to throw the new Shelby S. Africa car in there as well (just for the name, if nothing else). I heard they had some trouble getting things going, at first, but things seem to be smoother now. Supposed to be a good car for the $$$, although I have yet to see one in person. I guess it depends on how long you're willing to wait for your car. Spring is right around the corner, although that probably isn't a factor with you being from Texas. Being from Chicago, timing was a BIG factor for me when I ordered mine, and SPF delivered when promised. Great bunch of guys to work with as well. Treat you like family.

BANDIT 1 · #6 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 06:13 AM

Don't buy into the brainwash of "the small block is plenty of power", yeh mabey for my riding lawnmower... The biggest mistake (most costly) is buying one of these cars and finding out you want more power. You end up having to spend money on a supercharger, rebuilding your existing engine, or flat out putting in a different engine. As far as the "original" 427 SO engine in a "non-original" Cobra, why spend more money on LESS horsepower and LESS reliability. 427 parts are very expensive and the 385 series (429/460/514) engines are better, period.

decooney · #7 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 07:04 AM

What to get also depends on what you are actually going to do with the car?. Some owners use their cars for 10 minute loops after work each day or just go to shows and never realize the differences between A, B, or C anyhow. Everyone likes what they have. FE parts are expensive, but the oooohhh is that a 427 question comes up - if thats important to you. 385 series are big/wide, heavy, powerful, good motors. Windsors are not big blocks, but you can wind them up and they help on the weight/handling side. Its all subjective... all are good motors and have individual characteristics, and it could depend on you and what you like or will do with your car. What is important to you?

rdorman · #8 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 07:23 AM

If you want to go the FE route a 390 or 428 are cheaper options. Torque is a wonderful thing and a joy on the street and the easiest way out is cubes. The 385 series does have its advantages but packaging isn't one of them!

As for the 'to much is just about right' camp, that does not work for everyone. There is such a thing as 'to much' for some folks. I know of several cars that where sold nearly new because the builder went for the gold in the motor department only to find out later than that was more than they where able and/or willing to handle. They just sold the cars. With that said, I do think that if you get what you consider to be 'enough', some where down the road you may end up wanting more. I guess that would put me in the 'more than you want initially is just about right' camp.

Rick

craigayl · #9 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 07:38 AM

Naaaa Spark plug removal is not a problem on the 460. You do have to remove the driver’s side rocker cover to easily get to the two rear plugs, but that is not a big deal.

The 460 is by far the $/HP or HP/LB leader. Check the numbers..

Engine.....351.......351.......392.......460...... .460.......514
HP...........385.......360.......430.......500.... ...550.......625
Car Wt.....2500.....2500.....2500.....2625.....2625... ..2625
FRPP #.....d351r....e351r....d392....g460.....f460..... .d514
Price.........5495.....5495.....6500.....5795..... 5895....7595

$/HP.........14.27.....15.26....15.12....11.59....10 .72...12.15
HP/LB........0.15.......0.14......0.17......0.19..... .0.21.....0.24

Craig

Lowell W · #10 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 10:35 AM

Rainmaker,

See where this is going? There is no right answer, as a lot depends on what you want to use the car for. Do you want a high "WOW" factor when you pull into a parking lot? You could have that with just about any motor. How about maximum "WOW" factor when you pull into a parking lot full of Cobras? That's possible, but you'll have a car you may not want to drive all day. Do you want to drag race? Road race? Take on weekend or longer trips? What's it worth to you to be able to get at stuff on the motor when you work on your car? How important is it to you to be able to go a couple hundred miles between fill-ups? Any motor will give you a fun car, but if you plan your car carefully, you can end up making as few sacrifices as possible.

All this stuff has been covered ad infinitum in previous posts. If you "search CC" under "big block", "small block" "best" "gas mileage" "horsepower", you'll begin to get a feel for how to find more of the information you're looking for.

Here's another hint: Take a look on Cobracountry at the used cars. See what car/motor combinations are for sale and how many miles they have on them.

flatliner · #11 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 10:47 AM

Craigayl, Where are you getting "your" numbers from? Whenever anyone brings up the smallblock vs big block topic you really have to look at it engine by engine. There are no absolute HP or TQ numbers out there. I have seen 351W's bored stroked ect that range from 300hp to 700hp. So, which 351w are we talking about here. The same is true for big blocks, you can build them "mild" to "wild". Snakebit said "you don't get the low-end TQ from a small block", again depends on the small block. Stroked 351W's commonly make around 500ft lbs. That is alot of torque in a car that weighs around 2500lbs!!! In mine you can start out in third gear and still break the tires loose! If you are building the car for yourself with no plans to sell put a stroked 351W in it and enjoy. If you are building and plan on racing at the strip or just gotta have 650HP or are planning on selling later, spend the money and get a FE or 427SO and enjoy! The big blocks usually will get more $ on the re-sell. Don't get caught up in the "numbers" game....every engine is different. See ya, Flatliner

Doug Axelrod · #12 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 11:08 AM

I believe we all agree.
Gasoline.

The Dreamer · #13 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 11:35 AM

Here is a slightly different take on the question. I looked at SPF and ERA (I even had a ERA on order) and both were great cars (I just couldn't pass up the Aluminum deal). What I noticed about ERA and SPF is the community will accept (think resale) a small block (351 or 351 stroker) in a SPF, but not really in a ERA or Shelby or Kirkham. I think this is an advantage to SPF because you can build a lighter weight engine with plenty of power out of a stroked 351. It will be cheaper and lighter than a reliable FE and lighter (about the same cost) than a 460/460 stroker and still produce 600HP. Oh, and before everyone starts talking about aluminum blocks, there are aluminum block 351s as well.

craigayl · #14 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 12:42 PM

Flatliner

What I provided was just as one example. The numbers are directly out of the 2004 Ford Racing catelog. I don’t have any FE numbers, but HP per $ of an FE would be way less than anything I provided… Good FE’s are going for twice the price of crate motors. That’s the price of originality and quality aftermarket parts.

There are of course many ways to go, but if you only look at HP per pound and $ per HP, you would be hard pressed to beat these numbers… Yes, you can push a 351 to 600+HP or a 460 to 800+HP, but the coast is going to go up fast.

Craig1265

Tony Aprile · #15 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 01:43 PM

I believe the small block guy's will have good reasons for there choice just like the big block guy's have there opinions. Since the MKIII is a 427 replica, I wanted a big block, and I have to admit the 427 was pricy so the 460 for me was the way to go.

Tony

flatliner · #16 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 04:20 PM

Craigayl, point well taken. As you said with big HP #'s comes big $ numbers as well. Speed costs money. How fast do you want to go? The best thing is Rainmaker is getting a Cobra! Lowell said it best.....with a little planning you will find the engine that is right for YOU. What is right for one person may be completely wrong for the next person. Chose wisely, have fun!

RedBarchetta · #17 (**permalink**) 03-25-2004, 04:43 PM

I have big hands (can palm a basketball). The thought of changing plugs on a big block was not inviting. Plus the cost of buying and maintaining a SB car was in my wallet's favor. My 392 is plenty torquey, loud, fun, etc. Perfect for bombing around town and on the occasional freeway dash, which describes 95% of my driving thus far. And I can see all 8 plugs without removing a valve cover.

In all honesty, had I found the right car with a big block, I would be a big block owner. But the right car had the SB, so I jumped on it. If I were to buy new and have it built, I would probably do more research and really figure out which one I would ultimately favor. I am very satisfied with my purchase, and you will be, too.

-Deano