Considering purchase of a Shell Valley Cobra
 

I'm considering the purchase of a Shell Valley Cobra in San Francisco.

The listing shows;
- 1967 Shelby Cobra, 100 miles on all new drivetrain with 450 HP
- originally a Shell Valley Cobra, was completely overhauled with an all new professional paint job and drivetrain
- new X342 GT-40 engine (1 year warranty on engine purchased from Ford Racing Department)
- new Ford Racing aluminum heads
- new T-5 manual transmission
- new Ford Racing cam
- new Holly carb
- MSD ignition
- new braking system
- new clutch
- Superformance stainless coated headers
- and much more

- professional black paint with white stripes, less than a year old
- new stainless coated side exhaust & stainless coated to match roll bar
- new side and rear view mirrors
- front and rear bumper guards
- new dash
- new Cobra steering wheel
- new Stewart Warner gauges
- rare Cobra mag wheels
- comes with car cover
- always garaged and babied
- over $50k invested

- must sell
- will sacrifice, asking $31,500

Pics;

http://xs132.xs.to/xs132/08421/cobra1643.jpg

http://xs432.xs.to/xs432/08421/cobra2573.jpg

http://xs432.xs.to/xs432/08421/cobraengine429.jpg

http://xs432.xs.to/xs432/08421/cobrainside924.jpg

http://xs232.xs.to/xs232/08421/cobraside410.jpg

Any opinions on the X342 GT-40 engine in a Cobra?

Any other opinions and/or observations on this Cobra?

I'm also considering the purchase of a 2002 Unique 427 with a 331 roller/stroker motor, which as advertised here on ClubCobra - 2002 Unique 427 Cobra

Any contrasting opinions between these two Cobras?

Thanks for any and all input!
Jim M

Shell Valley out of business.
 

I don't think anyone will be buying very many kit car stuff from them anymore.
They have a car i hired them to complete and they couldn't finish it.

Based on what's been buzzing around here, they pulled the plug. I would move on.
The question will be "who's next?" and "who do I go with?". We're seeing tough times for all of them.

thats a nice looking car,what year was it sold it looks like an older car prior to 2007 thats when they went to the Gen 2 which was a Shell Valley frame with the much roomier Midstates body ,the price dont sound out of line there top of the line kits sold in the high 20s and just because they closed the doors dosent mean the cars no good any more.

Guys,

Jim's original post is from October of 2008 regarding a car he was looking at.

Over time there have been a number of manufacturers that have ceased operations. That doesn't preclude completed cars from being sold and/or improved over time. It takes someone with the skill to fabricate parts (when needed) and modify parts from other existing manufacturers if possible.

Cobra sell price.
 

Over $50,000.00 invested and will sacrifice for $31,500.00.
Someone spends $127,000.00 on one of theses Kirkham Cars and sells it
for$88,000.00.I couldn't see spending that amount on these especially
$127,000.00 just to turn around and instantly turn $127,000.00 into $88,000.00 or $50,000.00 into $31,500.00.Kinda shows there isn't any value there or is a bad investment to some extent.But regardless of anyones
input about it being the economy or vehicle depreciation or what have
you i think $20,000 or $30,000.00 dollar difference is big between the amount invested in the thing and what someone gives you for it or you sell
it for.Either way whether it is whatever people say the reason is the economy,depreciation etc i don't see these things as something very good to spend a BUNCH of money on.I don't really see $50,000.00 or more in one of these let alone $127,000.00.I dumped out around a total of $30,000.00
and that was it for me and it wasn't even completely done to where you could drive it.

Compaq, you just don't get it.
1. Cars, for the most part, are a depreciating asset. I think it's very typical that a new car will lose 15% to 20% of it's value just driving it off the lot. Not sure if your Kirkham numbers are accurate, but I could easily see and understand someone paying north of $100,000 for a new Kirkham and it being worth in the $90,000 range after a year or two.
2. Whether you build a car from a kit or merely drop a powertrain into a turn key minus car, I don't think any of us are naive enough to think we can sell it for more than we paid. Anyone thinking their blood and sweat equity has a value, is foolsih.
When I started my build, I fully understood that I'd have more into it than I could have bought a finshed cobra. I didn't build my car to save money - I built it for the fun of it, for the experience and the "proud" factor.

Matt

Compaq....take a look at the picture of my $30.k investment that i did most of the work myself except paint and body . If you do most of the work yourself instead of paying someone else to do it you can build one for a reasonable price .

compaq,

From your logic then it would make perfect sense in your case to buy a finished used Cobra as the original owner will take the financial loss and then you can enjoy not only the car, but a bargain as well.

Let us know what you end up buying.

Compaq,
It appears you are quite distraught over your cobra investment venture. You have lost almost $20K, that's not fun and I'm not going to kick you while you are down. Two questions for you: 1. Have you looked at what your yield would have been had you done some "real" investing?and 2. Who told you a cobra replica was an investment?

Let's take a big company like Microsoft (http://www.google.com/finance?q=NASDAQ%3AMSFT) as an example: Your $50k would have bought you 1640 shares a year ago. Those same 1640 shares are now worth $33.6K. Nearly the same return you got in your cobra investment.

I wonder how the MS Investment forum members would respond to your complaining? Do you think they would compliment you on your investment savvy or give you a swift kick in the rear for your moaning and groaning?

Most that bought MSFT high are waiting for the market to rebound. Most cobra owners that want to sell are also holding, waiting for the economy to turn around.

Can you hop in a stock certificate and get the rush you could in a cobra? You see Compaq, a cobra is not an investment, it's a "balls to the wall" hobby that pays back with fun, friends and copious injections of adrenaline.

So why such sour grapes. You act like you are the only one who has lost money during this recession. Get over it, bro.

I have a different perspective.

If any cobra manufacture goes out of business, most of the parts on our cobras are the same and you can buy elsewhere. The only potential problem is if you total the body and Shell Valley no longer has one.
So, why not buy it ?

You asked about the motor. It's a good engine and everyone has their own taste, "too each it's own" I say. I prefer a "FE" in mine. I have a 428 I'm selling to build a 427 side oiler. Just don't put a Hemi in it ! :eek:

Buying a Cobra Kit Car
 

Since you mentioned that you are probably right or that basically factors in
because according to this the car is basically new and is drivable and completely finished with paint etc. and other things like the stainless steel sidepipes or they are coated or whatever but since the car has things
that you probably couldn't have for $30,000.00 and it finished and drivable
at this price versus investing another several thousand over the $30,000.00
to arrive at having this then yes it would make more sense to look at it like
that.Even if you do the work yourself you are still probably going to invest
more then $30,000.00 to make the car like this if you just start with a frame and build it up or even what they call a pallet kit.

Cobra Kit Car
 

I didn't lose anywhere near that.I was just referring to how much of a loss
this person that is selling this particular car is or was etc.along with the other guy that someone said sold a car for $88,000.00 and had $127,000.00
in it.Basically referring to how common it is that theses are sold for alot less then people have in them at losing SEVERAL thousand like twenty to forty
thousand versus a few thousand like around $7500.00 in my case.
You don't always have to take what someone offers but i would keep the car
before i would ever end up selling it for $20,000.00 to $40,000.00 less then
what i had in it.I would get my use out of it or get my money back by driving it before that would happen or finishing it and driving it etc.whatever the
case is or was but in some cases you could be better off just selling the car
instead of spending more money to finish it and let someone else finish it
and spend $50,000.00 or another $20,000.00 to complete it totaling out
to $50,000.00 by the time it is done and maybe more.You probably would spend less money by buying one that is already completed or that is redy to drive versus building it from nothing yourself.

Cobra Kit Car
 

You probably save in the neighborhood of about $6000.00 to $7000.00 by
doing the work yourself.I did start doing it myself or intended on doing that
but all of the things involved in doing it i thought was to much work by the time
i thought about it.It seemed like you had to do to many things like installing the emergency brake and all of that other stuff.I had problem neighbors where i had it and a problem with Greenwood,Indiana etc. as a whole so i just decided to have someone finish it because of the work and moving it from that location
because i got rid of the house.What i found out after talking to someone at
this Unique Motorcars was that even though it was assembled that it would most likely have to be disassembled to be painted meaning more money
and from the way Dana Dankert was talking that it could be put together
and then painted regardless of having the windshield and everything installed.
They could just tape around everything i always thought or he said the same
if i remember right.Just seems like alot of work and more and more money
involved in these so that is why i sold what i had and let someone else deal with it.

It looks like the people on here are different then most internet
websites like Youtube.That has to be the WORSE place there is
for a forum or website where people interact.Some people on here seemed to be rude but don't seem to be real bad about it.

Compaq
You need to move on and stop bringing up old threads to bash the companies or building a car, or for that matter buying one that's already built.

His original questions are below. Why don't you be constructive and give him honest straightforward answers to them. He didn't ask if Shell Valley was a good company, or if he'd loose value and not get his money back. He asked for opinions on the motor, "this" particular car, and what we thought about the difference between this car and another one advertised here.

Get a grip Compaq....... Besides, Shell Valley is back in business.


Any opinions on the X342 GT-40 engine in a Cobra?

Any other opinions and/or observations on this Cobra?

I'm also considering the purchase of a 2002 Unique 427 with a 331 roller/stroker motor, which as advertised here on ClubCobra - 2002 Unique 427 Cobra

Any contrasting opinions between these two Cobras?

Thanks for any and all input!
Jim M

Dan, good attempt in trying to get this thread back on track. However, the questions were from 6 months ago. I suspect the poster has either bought the car, moved on, passed on or just lost interest by now.:D
Matt

Cobra Kit Car
 

I was talking about the people taking a loss on the car because they had
invested over $50,000.00 in it and was selling it for $31,500.00 that was the only thing that i was talking about and it wasn't anything to do with this
guys question about the two cars but merely the fact that the car was being sold for less then it took to do everything to it.That was the only reason i
posted anything about it and had nothing to do with what this guy posted.

Compaq...I didnt take my body off the frame to paint just removed the windshield and other small stuff and my body man did the rest he had painted several midstates cars for Bob K before so there was not a trust issue there.I had a problem with Shell Valley too i ordered my hard top in september and didnt get it until december(3 mounths?)and when i got it it had a used rear glass that took another 6 mounths to get replaced i was mad at who i was dealing with but i was done with the car and got over it.

Shell Valley
 

You are the only one that has said that you had problems.I know i did.
I am just stating what is true and people seem to think i am purposefully
bashing them.I really don't care what anyone thinks i am trying to do.
I know that i wouldn't buy anymore from them most likely even if they are back in business and anyone who had the dealings that i had would probably would be the same way evidently these people didn't have any of the problems that i seem to have had but i know that you don't insult people or the customers that are buying from you such as Dana seemed to do and the person named Ann Dales along with them taking a long time on your stuff doing anything which is
evidently true since other people had the same issue as me with not having anything completed.