Opinions on a 1998 Cobra

[blk96gt]

Found a 1998 Cobra through a friend. Car is a long ways off from being a CMC/AI car, but it's a really clean car. Car has 82,000 miles and the engine is stock other then a cold air intake. I'm not sure how many of the suspension mods can be moved over to CMC either. Even if I just used it for an HPDE car I think it would do pretty well. He wants $9,000 for it, which I think is a little high. Maybe some of you guys could tell me what you think. Here is the list of mods.

ENGINE
STEEDA Ultra Cool Aluminum Radiator
CANTON 7qt Road Race Oil Pan
PROTHANE Urethane Motor Mounts
DR. GAS Side Exit Exhaust (Eleanor)

TRANSMISSION
FMS 03 Clutch W/Aluminum Flywheel
MGW Shifter w/Cobra Shifter Knob
MM Clutch Pedal Height, Quad and Firewall Adjuster

CHASSIS
FMS Strut Tower Brace
KB Double Cross Super Subframe Connectors W/Extreme Matrix Brace and Jacking Rails
KB Rear Shock Tower Brace

BRAKES
BREMBO Front Calipers
HAWK Plus Front & Rear Brake Pads
RUSSELL Front Braided Brake Lines
RPW Front Brake Cooling Ducts
SPEED BLEEDERS Front & Rear

FRONT SUSPENSION
MM Coil-Over
BILSTEIN Struts Race Valved
HYPERCOIL Springs 400 LB/IN Front
STEEDA 35 mm Tubular Front Swaybar
MM Caster/Camber Plates
MM Lower Control Arms Forward Offset W/Delrin Bushings
MM Adjustable Tie Rod Ends
Urethane Steering Rack Bushings

REAR SUSPENSION
MM Coil-Over
BILSTEIN Shocks Race Valved
HYPERCOIL Springs 275 LB/IN Rear
MM Lower Control Arms W/3-Piece Urethane Bushings & Teflon-lined Spherical Bearings
MM Torque-Arm, Panhard Bar, Adjustable Swaybar
ENERGY Bump-Stop Bushing

INTERIOR
COBRA Daytona Sport Seats
AUTOPOWER Road Race Roll Bar
CROW Harness Belts
YMR Rear Seat Delete Kit
AUTOMETER Gauges
TAYLOR Battery Relocate

Exterior
Street / FMS 95 Cobra R 17X9 W/NITTO 555 255/45-17 front and 285/40-17 Rear
Track / AFS Replica 2000 Cobra R 17x9 W/NITTO RII 275/40-17
ARP Wheel Studs
ABC Front Chin Spoiler
SALEEN S281 Rear Wing
PRO-FIT Linear Fuel Door
LRS Ultra Clear Headlights W/Ultra Clear Diamond Sidemarkers

[Wade]

I think there is a '95 Cobra for sale up north that is the same price and is complete with log-book. This car that you are posting has many nice parts, but many of them are not CMC legal. Up to you whether or not you want to try to re-sell them to get some money back, or not pay for them in the first place. My experience with the Autopower cages is that they fit VERY poorly as they are often designed to keep the doors/door panels and dash 100% intact. In my opinion, you want the door bars out much wider and a dash bar for strength. There are lots of pros to the car, but lots of question marks too. Again, just a personal thing, but I'd stay away from 4.6 motors. Too much complexity for little to no weight savings on the front of the car. NEED PICS!

[blk96gt]

I had the same thoughts as well, but wasn't sure how much value the mods added to the car. It's been a while since I've messed with Mustangs. Here's some pics.
img2310jp9.jpg
img2299xz4.jpg
img23371wa7.jpg

[Crumpacker]

Everything Wade said, especially the part about bringing back down to spec. Price seems high, even with all those goodies.

Plus that's WAY too nice to be a CMC car... Wirtz may disagree.

[jdlingle]

Gotta agree that it would be too much work to bring the suspension back to CMC spec. Nice looking car though. Shop around and you'll be able to get a nice CMC car for that same money. (Now if I only I had been smart enough to take my own advice I'd be headed to Hallett.)

[blk96gt]

http://www.camaromustangchallenge.co...pic.php?t=4011

This car seems to be pretty well built, but is more expensive than most of the CMC cars I've seen. Anyone have any first hand knowledge of this car? Any opinions?

[Al Fernandez]

No personal experience with that car, but I've heard from reputable sources in Ca that its very nice, built well, etc. Its also very expensive!

[cobra132]

That is my exact car. My 96 may have looked even better right before I gutted it and converted it into what it is now. Mine only had 28k miles and was owned by an 80 year old man. Its a great car but if you are going to run CMC I would let it pass. This one is set up for AI with a proper cage. FMR

[Adam Ginsberg]

http://www.camaromustangchallenge.co...pic.php?t=4011

This car seems to be pretty well built, but is more expensive than most of the CMC cars I've seen. Anyone have any first hand knowledge of this car? Any opinions?

I've raced against this car, as well as raced this car. I also know the shop that built it.

Yes, it's expensive. It only needs the front bumper cover replaced with a stock GT cover (one of the most asinine, ridiculous, stupid f'n rule changes - ever), and, possibly, a new set of belts (they are likely outdated). Completely fresh motor, new StopTechs, and a host of goodies.

If you want more information, feel free to contact me offline.

[edrock96GT]

What Frank said. That's about how my GT was set up right before I moved to AI. I even had the same cage (it definitely needs to go, bolts to the floorpan and will punch straight through if you land on it hard enough). As for the motor, it's complex if you haven't worked with them much, and they are heavy. The 4V with an aluminum block is only 9lbs lighter that a 2V with an iron block.

That would be a better AI car than trying to downgrade it for CMC. The 4V will make the power if you don't mind the weight.