Looking for honest opinions
 

I'm planning on building from a kit and would rather not make the mistake of buying the wrong one for me. I'm looking for a daily driver and I'm on a budget. Probably going the doner car route. Knowledge is power, so before I drop a dime. I need to become as powerful as possible. Thanks for your help and opinions in advance.

Not a great daily driver vehicle from a safety, reliability, efficiency standpoint.

You can buy a used kit for much less than it will cost you to build.

As already stated above, not the best vehicle to user as a daily driver. However, if you have your heart set on it, then you need to at least tell us what your realistic budget is like so we can assist you in choosing a kit (or finished car) that will best suit your wants, needs, and wallet size.


Bill S.

this
 

absolutely

hammer1, I spent 4 years researching before I bought. As has been stated, these really aren't daily drivers, though some people do. Also there are many options out there, be careful letting price alone be the driver. Spend some time on CobraCountry.com as well as the for sale area of this site to see what's out there. I too thought about building but decided that given the market in recent years, buying used already built was the better decision. I still feel that way after 18 months.

Are you sure you can find a good donor?
 

When you say donor, what car is to be the donor? I immediately assume Factory Five, but there are others. There used to be a ton of good, low mile Fox Mustangs out there to use as donors. That was 10 years ago. Try to find a nice one now. And the Mustang guys will kill ya for stripping a nice one. They're collectible now, ya know. You probably will be either using questionable, worn out parts, or buying new ones 'cause you can't find good used. I echo the other responses - buy an already-built one and save a bunch of money. If you are considering a kit because you want to build it yourself, believe this - there are always projects to do on a Cobra. You can always tear it apart once you buy it and rebuild from the ground up. Repaint it, add missing options you'd like, etc. Just as satisfying, makes it "yours", and a lot less $$$$$ in this economy.

Fortunatly, you have a number of good choices for you to choose from. Lone Star, Factory Five, and Backdraft are excellent choices, and can be built (or bought) for a reasonable price.

For me, Factory Five comes to mind, for obvious reasons. Especially when you say "donor". A nice, powerfull, relaible, FFR can be built for <$20K. For a donor, you can use any Mustang from '87-'03. With their kit and a rolled mustang, you have every single part you need except paint. Every part, bolt, screw, sensor, and wire. If it's not in the kit or on the Mustang, you don't need it.

Imagine a nice roadster with a bone stock 4.6L V8 and a T45 6 speed. Powerfull, fun, great looking, and will easily get 20+mpg for 100K miles or more. And if you want more power or better handeling, just open a catalog. Does it get any better than that?

The Backdraft and Lonestar can be built to the same level, for about the same money. But it's a smidgen more difficult, because you have to source more parts from a variety of sources. They're still excellent options, though.

As said above, the real bargains these days is to buy one already built. But where's the fun of that? It's hard to decide what is more fun, building, driving, or racing my FFR. I'd love to build another car. But I wouldn't want to be without the car for 2-3 years while I build another one.

Besides, do you trust a guy you don't know to build your car? :)

Thanks guys! this is exactly the kind of feedback that I was looking for. I'm only trying to spend 20 to 25K When I said daily driver, I guess I should of said more like 2nd car. I live only 5 miles from work and a Cobra would be a lot of fun for weekend drives. Also I live N.E of Atlanta about 10 miles from Road Atlanta and know a few people that can get me some track time at no cost. I'm in no big hurry to buy and all options are on the table. What I really need to do is go for a test drive and see how deep the hook sinks.

True words of wisdom
As said above, the real bargains these days is to buy one already built. But where's the fun of that? It's hard to decide what is more fun, building, driving, or racing my FFR. I'd love to build another car. But I wouldn't want to be without the car for 2-3 years while I build another one.
Besides, do you trust a guy you don't know to build your car?

Go down to Southern Automotive in McDonough and talk with Bill Parham. He is a wealth of knowledge about these things. I did that back in 08 and it proved to be time well spent. Also, as others have said, you'll get plenty of time to work on your car regardless of what you get!

Get together with some local owners and look at, possibly drive, a couple cars. You'll get a good idea of the different manufacturers that way.
Larry