I want a cobra, how and why

[letsboogie351]

Jon, re Cobra ride....PM sent

Doug

[xb-60]

Originally Posted by Hoity

Ever since dad rocked home in the early 1980s with a scalextrix set and his car was the ford cobra, I could have any other car except that one. I have often thought about owning one. As life unfolds the reality of actually doing it gets a bit closer, I am at the point now where I want explore the possibility and would like to understand some of the reasons behind why people have gone down the path they have. Ie, chev motors in ford cars, why they chose the kit they did, how have the kits available today evolved, are donor cars no longer the way to go?

I have started my journey by talking to two kit suppliers, both appear very knowledgable and are very passionate about what they do. Read a whole lot on this forum, and I must say some of the detail some forum members go to is simply amazing. Whilst this is great see photos and read along as they ply their craft, it can be a little intimidating, then their are others who have stunning cars to look at and plenty of bling but not quite the extra 20% some of the artisans go to, which gives me belief I can do this.

So my first question for the forum, would be why you chose the kit you did?

Appreciate any and all comments

Cheers jon

Jon,

Firstly, welcome to the forum. We need more members and we need good build threads.
As you can see from my avatar, there's a Scalextrix Cobra in my past as well, so yes, I've always wanted one but only in recent years realised that it was within reach.
The Scalextric car is a 289FIA, so naturally that's the one that I've always wanted to build. None available here in Australia, so I had a deposit down with ERA for one of their wonderful 289FIAs, but soon realised that it would be a long hard road bringing in a car and having to have much more individual 'engineering' done to enable registration.
That was the point that I started talking with Craig White (Absolute Pace) and made a visit to the factory. Craig was enthusiastic about my idea of building an FIA replica here in Australia....so we talked about it on and off over a couple of years and then I finally decided to jump in and get moving with it.
....so, my car is - as far as I know - the first 289FIA in Australia (anybody - please correct me if I'm wrong). My car is of course the prototype for AP, so it's really a project that's developing as the car's being built. There are no surprises so far; I'm 2000km from the factory, so I get update pictures every week.
Here's my build thread if you're interested:
AP2289 build log

So, Ford vs Chev? It's a personal thing, and for me the originals had a 289 SBF so mine absolutely had to have an SBF as well. Yes, it's a little different to the original, but at least it is still the same engine family.
There are a few of us around the place with Ford engines in our cars. We're probably the quieter ones, because we don't have to make excuses

Some advice - don't jump into it too quickly; if you see pictures of cars or features on cars, or colours etc. take copies and put them in a folder for reference. That way, you will narrow down on what you want, and you'll also become aware of what you don't want. More advice - use this forum; ask questions ...there's a lot of experience and knowledge here.

Cheers,
Glen

[spookypt]

I started out a long time ago wanting a Ford motor with a 9 inch but I ended up with a Lexus motor and Skyline rear end. Sometimes it just works out that way.

The cobra community is evolving. At the end of the day its your dream and you do whatever you desire. My Toyota powered V8 8TB car was great but not for the purists. I owned a 1/2 share in a turbo'd Lexus which was great too but a long way from todays offerings. I've got a 351w in my track cobra and I've also got an LS2 in a Daytona. Do I have a preference, no. They both have their strengths and weaknesses and go like ASOS but I'm not overly concerned as to their power plant provenance.

There are some outstanding cars out there. All different types of configurations. Drb, Harrison, RMC, Superformance, Classic Revival, Robnell, Pace, Factory 5 PLus many more etc etc etc
There are less manufacturers out there now than 10 years ago but the quality of the ones remaining is very good and improving.

Look at Aussie Mikes car, The B Club crews Classic Revival cars, Leroys rebuild, Brads AP. There's so many options and avenues the list is never ending.

Last year, I wanted another car. Sought out an RCR GT40 and looked into a FIA Cobra and I tried a few suppliers for options and in the end opted out for a 2nd hand car rather than having a new one built or shipped in from OS. And the Daytona I bought was not on my radar at all.

It was simply the end result having tried to achieve different things from the marketplace with varied success. You may very well achieve a different outcome.

The biggest thing imo is to have a realistic expectation and talk to people about cars and their experiences. Then halve your expectation and double the time frame and budget and you'll be in the zone. Find a seller or manufacturer that you're on the same page with in relation to expectation and the delivery of that expectation. I found with my cobra purchase from an OS supplier that their keenness to talk to me reduced a fair bit once I'd sent the funds. That's how I felt about it anyway, they may disagree. The level of communication became a bit lopsided. Which was very suckful! No one wants to $hitcan the brand of car they've just forked out wads of coin for but I can tell you there is nothing more frustrating when the dialogue and promises all dry up once the funds have been sent or deal done. You're then at their mercy which is real bugbear of mine and I try to avoid that. Which is why after my OS experience and forming a collective on the local market that I simply found a car I liked and bought it privately. It wasn't about the $'s it was about the qualified angst I'd endure which in this life I can simply do without.

Just do your research, talk to cobra people, go for a drive in a few and then talk to some more people. The decision is yours. There is lots of great information out there, the cobra community is a special one and we are all pretty lucky to be a part of it. Welcome aboard and see you at the Nats.

Regards Spookypt

[Hoity]

Originally Posted by xb-60

Jon,

There are a few of us around the place with Ford engines in our cars. We're probably the quieter ones, because we don't have to make excuses

Some advice - don't jump into it too quickly; if you see pictures of cars or features on cars, or colours etc. take copies and put them in a folder for reference. That way, you will narrow down on what you want, and you'll also become aware of what you don't want. More advice - use this forum; ask questions ...there's a lot of experience and knowledge here.

Cheers,
Glen

thanks glen, i wonder if our old mans new the influence they had. appreciate the advise, some good points in there.

[xb-60]

Originally Posted by Hoity

thanks glen, i wonder if our old mans new the influence they had. appreciate the advise, some good points in there.

Can blame a couple of Scalextric GT40s for a lifelong admiration for GT40s as well
....but got to say, I still have the Cobra but I don't have either of the GT40s (regrettably)

Cheers,
Glen

[Hoity]

Originally Posted by letsboogie351

Jon, re Cobra ride....PM sent

Doug

Thanks doug, sent you one back
cheers
Jon