Can a Cobra hang with Z06, GTR, GT3 on Track?

[Jamo]

I've lived with two Vettes in autocrossing and track, and run Z06s (C5 and C6) at Spring Mountain. I've run the Kirkham with all manner of other cars (and most other Cobra makes), and I really think the best mfg to start with for a dedicated track Cobra (within reason) is JBL. I could not hold the line John was taking during two events at Fernley (I'm not a bad driver, and John ain't as good as he thinks he is )...though the straights started balancing things out.

...and let's be honest, most folks aren't hitting 150mph for any period of time at club events, etc., so the dreaded high speed concerns in a Cobra simply don't coming into play all that often. Even at Willow Springs, still known as the fastest West Coast road racing course, you've only got two places where you might get a bit nervous (depending on the cross winds). On a tight track, Vettes start getting real damn big...even the physically smaller C6.

I don't know how many times I've watched Archer and Smith reel in GT40s at the Historics. Our Cobras are a damn sight closer in performance to original Cobras (hell...exceeding them in most instances) than Z06s, etc. are to full-on endurance racers. Cobras do have one great advantage...outward visibility. When you're actually driving in some traffic in curves, it becomes as important as anything else.

A damn good driver and a moderately tight track...a well-turned out Cobra will do just fine.

[SimonSays]

Here's my buddy Phil in his Cobra at Spa Francorchamps. Will beat Z06es with one hand

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZrZw74rkC4
Near the end you can see him use a handle near the gearlever, that's a lockout to prevent shifting down into the wrong gear

And just to show the car is street legal:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPD1yCzO5lM





At Spa, they run an open exhaust... It's errrrr loud

[Ant]

I dont know whether this argument is balanced, as it depends on how the Cobra or Corvette is prepared for track work, in my opinion the road going Corvette Z06 is one helluva car as far as top speed, fuel economy, handling etc, BUT they are heavy and on a tight track where top speed isnt so important it doesnt surprise me that Scott and Morris can beat them, and some of the Thundersports UK cobra cars would decimate a corvette unless it was a track prepared Le Mans ZO6 like the Aston DB9R it races against and no Cobra is going to even come close to either of those cars due to their aerodynamics speed etc, as displayed on Top Gear with the DB9R doing 1.08 lap compared to the best production supercar at around 1.18 second lap, and I think the 505BHP Corvette did something like 1.22 second lap so I guess if you develop them into a race car anything can happen!!!!!!

As far as road versions go I found this comparison between a 430BHP Cobra and the latest 630bhp Corvette.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDUTRTd7SMU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YP3WLoZ4Wuo

[SimonSays]

Ant has a point there, it's apples and pears really... If you'd spend a few 100K building whatever race car, it might be quicker than anything else on the track, but to what expense, and furthermore, will it still be road legal?

If the topic opener wants to know if it's possible to build a road legal Cobra that will keep up with other cars like a Z06 or Exige, yes it's possible. Will there be faster cars around the track? More than likely...

I've done lots of trackdays in the past, and i'd suggest to get something with similar performance to your buddies, so you can keep up, have lots of fun, and learn. Because that's what a trackday is all about

[1ntCobra]

Originally Posted by SimonSays

Here's my buddy Phil in his Cobra at Spa Francorchamps. Will beat Z06es with one hand

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZrZw74rkC4
Near the end you can see him use a handle near the gearlever, that's a lockout to prevent shifting down into the wrong gear

And just to show the car is street legal:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPD1yCzO5lM





At Spa, they run an open exhaust... It's errrrr loud

If that seat was back any further, he'd be in the trunk (or boot for those on the other side of the pond).

[Ant]

This is an interesting topic as when I first built my FE390 cobra 20 years ago I thought I was going to beat almost everyone and what a pig this car was it didnt handle due to the flex in the ladder frame chassis, it cooked the brakes and I was p***ed off, so I went and purchased the car now owned by Bevan Wright (NZ) which is an Almac New Zealand produced car with hilborn injected LS7 454, Seanz race box, 9" IRS Locked which was not nice, this car was made of Kevlar and weighed 1100kg wet would keep up with most cars in a straight line, it was a brutal motor car but twisted axles really needed a good LSD instead of the spooled diff.

With the benefit of experience I have sort of done it again and built what I think is going to be a very quick track car, but I am under no illusion that this car will take sorting to make it quick and that involves hard work time and money.
If I was going to just do track driving and wanted a car that was great to drive and real quick Lotus have just built a car called the (eleven) with 250bhp apparently this car is fantastic to drive at around £40,000 this car would see off most road cars on some tracks and be a real joy to drive with race car handling already built in.

Also if I lunched the Yates engine I would seriously look at what Scott has done and fit a modern LS7 505BHP engine and have probably almost as good lap times with a possible 30mpg on the road.