Greetings, another ac cobra ordered!!
 

Hello, my name is Ryan, and myself and my good friend Chris have just ordered the Cobra kit from Sonny at Antiques and will be here mid Sept. Gonna be alot of sleepless nights I'm sure, cant wait till it's here. Just wanted to get some feedback and/or imput on what everyone has thought about their car so far, and maybe some tricks, or sollutions to anything you might have run into with your build that we should look for maybe? One question I do have right off the bat was what people thought of the drivers side foot box, and how much room you have with a clutch? I have heard alot of complaints from factory five owners that there was not nearly the room needed to be able to shift comfortably? So was playing with the idea of throwing in an automatic. We are both 6 feet tall, so room is always a concideraton. Any and all help is appreiciated. I also am an ASE mechanic of 10 years so if you have any mechanical questions that I can help with, feel free to shoot me an email. Happy motorin, Ryan and Chris.

Welcome to the madness! Have fun with your car.
I don't have any trouble shifting my FFR, but I'm only 5' 9".

Here's my build site http://www.priveye.com/cobra.htm

Also, a friend made some more room by dropping the footbox.

Roscoe

welcome to CC and good luck on your build.................

Thanks, can't wait.

WOW, Great work on all of your photos and info on your page!! Can't wait to get started. Alot of great info, you can really tell you spent alot of time on it. Could I ask how long the build took you? I am taking the month of October to try to get our build as far along as possible, Already have the complete motor (sbf 5.0 h.o converted to carb with aluminum trickflow heads, and a ford motorsport e303 cam, holley dominator) just trying to figure out what tranny, I have a T5 5 speed, and a c4 fully manual auto with 2500 stall, Just trying to decide???? I think were going to go with the 3.55 gears if we do the T5, or else probably 3.73 with an automatic. What gears did you go with, and are you happy with it, or would you have chosen something different if you could go back and do it again? We are really aiming for a DRIVEABLE car that we could hit the highway for a weekend trip to the beach. Any help is great. Thanks again, and hello to all who have already replied.

Ryan and Chris:
Great decision to go with A & C, What color did you go with or are you going to paint it?
I know when I bought my ride from Sonny back in 2000, I wish I had known about this web site. There is a lot of good information on the A & C build and its problems and cures right here. Everyone is very helpful. I asked Brent to create the Antique & Collectibles site after I was almost done with my build. Roscoe was a great help.

As far as the foot box is concerned, yup! it sure is narrow! Not much room between the pedals. This is a wierd question but how big are your Feet! Yes, I did say feet. If they are wide you might have trouble. You may want to go Auto. But! If you are only putting a small block and a T5 in it, I would modify the tunnel width. Joe made this body able to fit up to the 460 so the tunnel is very wide. If you are good with fiberglass or you know someone who is, I would look at making the tunnel wider and at the same time look into dropping the foot box a bit. My feet are size 9 B width and when I drive I am very concerned with the width of the shoes I have on. Lands end summer wear, Piloti driving shoes, etc. Big clunky sport tennis shoes don't work, no room, you start hitting the gas pedal when you brake with your other foot on the clutch.
Also, don't forget your feet are off at an angle to the left, they are not straight ahead like a normal passenger car.
Good luck with the build and don't be afraid to ask questions.
Jim

the 3.55's will work with both trannies........

Agree with rusty.....3.73 with the C4 would be very buzzy on the highway.

Welcome Ryan and Chris
I have a lot of pictures in my gallery. If you need anything eles let me know.
I would say the clutch/brake pedal box to be the most challenging part of the build. Not difficult but some choices have to be made. Go with the 5 speed. Its a cobra not a caddy. Nothing like going through the gears on a winding road.
Foot box is long not wide. skinny shoes are a must. (I put the High beam switch on the firewall on the floor and can't reach it with my toes. I'm 5'10")
I have a 3.55 gears in mine. Good for city not so good highway. 65mph about 2900 rpm on 15" rims. If I did it again 3.25 range.
Have fun. We need pictures once it arrives.
Ron

Hey Ryan and Chris...You said you'd be getting your kit in mid September...How about an update? Would love to see some photos!

Bob

Congratulations guys. Get ready, the build to me is the fun part. I am approaching completion and I am excited and sad at the same time. The build has been a kick in the pants. Just finding time to work on it is a challange sometimes. I have a friend with a Factory 5 and although a very nice car I believe I made the best decision going with AC. The body doesn't come close to the AC. Go five speed guys, you have a classic sports car now. This site is a great guide, RDC767 has a great gallery that helped me alot, along with others. Any question is a good question and the people here are eager to help.

Have fun.
Joey