Carefully groping my way along here

[Chuckr]

Hello,

I'm in the process of negotiating the purchase of a Factory Five Mark 3 and would appreciate some feedback with questions I have.

This car has no wipers or top so I'm a bit put off at having to invest in "ancillary components" out of the gate. I hate the thought of planning trips around bank drive through's or gas stations.

I'm a moderately well aged wrencher/body man who's not afraid to get it done, it's just the added expense and time before I could even get it inspected!

Overall, the car is in great shape and appears not to have been abused. No cracks, leaks or weird body lines.

Quick list of options: Milled 302 (fuel injected), side pipes, 4-spd, power steering, 373 gearing.

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Chuck

[ram_g]

Not sure what your questions are? It's very common for these cars to have neither tops nor wipers. Tops are a bit of an afterthought anyway (the originals were not convertibles, they were roadsters) and wipers are not that effective. I have wipers (no top) but more for registration purposes than anything else. If your state mandates wipers for registration, you should be able to add them or worst case use a clip-on wiper solely for registration.

The bigger issue is that these cars are not great in adverse weather, no matter how they're outfitted. If you will be driving often in rain or snow, you're better off looking elsewhere...or maybe for a Daytona Coupe replica.

[mrmustang]

Originally Posted by Chuckr

Hello,

I'm in the process of negotiating the purchase of a Factory Five Mark 3 and would appreciate some feedback with questions I have.

This car has no wipers or top so I'm a bit put off at having to invest in "ancillary components" out of the gate. I hate the thought of planning trips around bank drive through's or gas stations.

I'm a moderately well aged wrencher/body man who's not afraid to get it done, it's just the added expense and time before I could even get it inspected!

Overall, the car is in great shape and appears not to have been abused. No cracks, leaks or weird body lines.

Quick list of options: Milled 302 (fuel injected), side pipes, 4-spd, power steering, 373 gearing.

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Chuck

What state are you in?

Some require wipers in order to pass inspection.

Some also require side pipe covers at a defroster.

How is the car titled (there have been some creatively titled cars here recently that have caused new owners much grief).

More details on the car are required for just about anything else, as your description was vague at best.

Bill S.

[Chuckr]

Sorry for the foggy post, I'll try to elaborate further.

This car is registered as a 65 and as far as I know there isn't any issues with either the title or registration.

All I've seen to date are pictures. The one on one meeting is tonight and I'm trying to get my ducks in a row before so I can go in as "informed" as possible.

To answer your questions, I live in Upstate New York I'm pretty sure that wipers ARE required equipment. How far back that law goes I don't know. Hopefully there is someone from Upstate NY who can assist with this answer. I have a call into DMV as well.

I'm not going to make a practice of driving the car in inclement weather, but given the law of averages for my area, showers and thunderstorms are quite common place, so I'll be in the market for a top as the car doesn't have one. In other words, it's not going to be a garage queen and I'll be taking extended trips well beyond the local ice cream stand. Guess I was looking more for support as to the availability and quality of tops out there as I'd be installing both the wipers and top myself.

To me these are two sticky issues.

Guy wants $24,900.00 out of the gate so I'm testing the waters as to a general value of the car. In cruising the web, it seems that prices are all over the place for these cars.

Are there any hot spots on a Factory Five that I should look at?

I really appreciate your input, Chuck

[Ron61]

If you haven't looked already go to the Factory Five website and look on the Forum Page and at the cars for sale they have listed in their sale section. I lived in far upstate New York when I was young and I know what you mean about the weather. If you get a top, make sure it fits as many of the canvass ones just tend to funnel in any rain more than really stop it.

Ron

[mrmustang]

First off, we are not trying to give you a hard time, just trying to get enough information to properly assist you one way or the other.

Originally Posted by Chuckr

Guess I was looking more for support as to the availability and quality of tops out there as I'd be installing both the wipers and top myself.

To me these are two sticky issues.

Guy wants $24,900.00 out of the gate so I'm testing the waters as to a general value of the car. In cruising the web, it seems that prices are all over the place for these cars.

Are there any hot spots on a Factory Five that I should look at?

I really appreciate your input, Chuck

Whitby Motors offers a nice quality top, as does Factory Five, installing it yourself, my only advice would be to take your time.

Wipers are easy to install.

Price wise, yes, since the cars are all hand built, the pricing would indeed be all over the place, so the more details you offer us to work with (color combination, options, suspension details, brakes, tires, wheels, options, etc will go a long way to allow us to assist you.

Without the basic details, there really is no way to respond.

Bill S.

[cycleguy55]

Originally Posted by Chuckr

Guy wants $24,900.00 out of the gate so I'm testing the waters as to a general value of the car. In cruising the web, it seems that prices are all over the place for these cars.

Some makes (e.g. Shelby, Kirkham, Superformance) are essentially factory built cars, lacking only an engine and transmission (a.k.a. 'turnkey minus' or 'rollers'), while others are shipped as kits. Clearly, FFR cars are in the latter category and, as such, not only are there numerous choices made by the owners / assemblers as to components, but also a wide range of attitudes and skills.

There are many superb FFR cars out there with high end components assembled by true craftsmen with loving care, incredible attention to detail and a high regard for safety and durability. At the opposite end of the spectrum are those with shoddy assembly by people who have little or no idea what they're doing, using nearly worn out components thrown together with only enough effort to pass safety inspection, get licensed and on the road.

As I'm sure you appreciate, the 'all over the place' price range for FFR cars is a result of the 'all over the place' quality of the cars. Their may be absolutely nothing wrong with the car you're looking at, with the price merely reflective of the components used in building it. Regardless, it would be prudent to have it thoroughly checked out by someone qualified to perform such an inspection.

BTW, a FFR wiper kit is $499 (Vintage Wiper Kit - Roadster - Factory Five Parts Catalog) and their top is $3399 (Premium Mk3 Convertible Soft Top - Factory Five Parts Catalog).

[Chuckr]

Thanks for the responses guys I appreciate it. Believe me your not giving me a hard time. I understand right where your coming from. There are one or two gents on the National Corvette Restorers Society discussion board who take particular delight in hammering the novice or honest uninformed questions. It's just that I really don't know what I'm going to be up against when I look it over. I know running gear and body work so I know I can handle myself from that perspective. I'm just attempting to fill in a couple of voids that worry me that's all. Either way, if and when I do the deal I'll fill in all the blanks. What I DO know is that it's a blue printed 302 that's been ported and polished, a T-5 tranny, an 8.8 rear end with 3.73 gears, Ultralite guages, Simpson 4 point harnesses and a 4" tube frame. Now you know what I know. Got rained out so no test drive tonight. Maybe tomorrow.

[mrmustang]

disk brakes on the rear or drum brakes?
Which rear suspension set up (mustang coils, coil over shocks, 3 link, 4 link, IRS)?
302 engine with ported znd polished heads, which heads, what type of intake, etc?

You need to bring along someone who knows what they are looking at, as not all cobra kits are built the same.

Or, you can stop beating around the bush and post a link to the ad here so we can look at the specs and the pictures and advise you from there.

Bill S.

[Chuckr]

Thanks to everyone who was good enough to respond to my questions. Chuck

[1795]

You will need the windshield wipers for NY. Is the car currently titled in NY? Sometimes NY accepts out of state tittles, and sometimes depending on ow they are titled, they may make you go throughout the custom build route. If you have to go the custom build route you will need a defroster and backup lights too. A soft-top will definitely extend your driving season. Check with the NY State cobra group here on this site and find somebody close to you to meet with and talk. That way you can look at various cars and options.

[Hrdayz]

Wipers are required for NY as are things like a padded dash, padded sun visors and a Window defroster. Do a search on the NY DMV site for the VS-100 program for registering a custom vehicle. IMO it can be a PITA since it requires you obtaining a NY VIN as a part of the process. Padded dash - I used .75" foam pipe insulation around the front edge of the dash. Sun visor was wrapped in .25" foam and reinstalled. Defroster came from the local harbor freight store and was velcroed to the dash. My car is a backdraft and came with four way flashers, wipers, and dot numbers on the headlights, brake lights and turn signals. The last thing I would suggest is getting ALL receipts associated with the build. NY wants to know where all the parts came from. I hope this helps you.

[Chuckr]

Thanks 1795 and Hrdayz this is good "gremlin" type information I can ask when I look at the car. It's going to be hard enough keeping focused as it is. I've craved this car since I was 13 That was 47 years ago....... you do the math Thanks one and all for your insights. Time to round out my pre-inspection homework. Chuck