Used kit purchases

[creedwait]

I am brand new here. I am looking at a couple of partially built Shelby kits. What are the pitfalls and buyer beware issues? All advice is welcome.

[John Dol]

Donor or new parts
Build quality especially electrical
Completeness of available parts
Is the car registered already
Is the MCO there

Sure other will chime in with more

John

[Garry Bopp]

creedwait,

If you post your location, present builder/owners may invite you to stop by for a visit and you can get some first hand advice on specific items to look for.

Garry

[jetheft]

I bought an unfinished kit. My biggest challenge was that the previous owner had dumped all the nuts bolts and fasteners into a single box. That has been a nightmare, I spend hours looking for the bolt fasteners etc. has absolutely made my build take twice a long. Will not buy a partially finished or unfinished kit again. Also the previous owner did not assemble the small amount that was done following the build manual and I had to remove aluminum panels and parts to get other parts on. PITA!

Joel

[AC Bill]

Shelby kits, can vary dramatically from one another, in terms of difficulty of the build, and quality in the end result. Thus the replica make, is an important factor.

There are many Cobra replica manufactures no longer in business, so you won't be able to get any support from them, instruction, or parts wise. It could be part of the reason why the car is unfinished. Builder support, in the way of forums like this, and FFCars, can make a huge difference in the success of completing a quality build. Do some research on the make beforehand, to see if that kind of support is available.

[creedwait]

Thanks!
Is the MCO the serial number?
How do I find out if it is registered?
How much difference is there, year to year, in the kits?
At what point does the car become registered?
Is there some combination of body, engine or frame that gets registered?

[creedwait]

Thanks. I am only looking at Fast Five kits.

[creedwait]

Good suggestion. Trying to update my profile. Until then, Fort Worth, Texas.

[Ducky2009]

I am brand new here. I am looking at a couple of partially built Shelby kits. What are the pitfalls and buyer beware issues? All advice is welcome.

Kits come in two forms, a base kit and a complete kit. Look at the Factory Five website and review what you would receive with each kit. Both require you to purchase engine, trans (bell housing, clutch/pressure plate), rear end, wheels and tires in addition to the kit. A partial kit requires a "Donor car". You'll need to use it's wiring harness, ECU (computer), engine, trans, front suspension and many other USED parts. A base kit and donor car can be a less expensive way to buy your car, if you have or can find a low mileage donor. Donor cars would have to be a 1987-2004 Mustang. A complete kit includes the front suspension and many other parts the base kit omits.... And you still need a engine, trans, rear end, tires/wheels. If you choose the partial kit/donor car route, I'd suggest you buy the PDF manual (on-line) and read it first, so see what is required. Cost $10. When you purchase a kit you'll get a paper manual with it.

NOTE: I had planned to go the donor car route until I read the manual and had trouble finding a car with less that 150,000 miles on it.

So now, as you look at purchasing a used/partial built kit, you have an idea what it takes to build a car. How far has the original owner gotten with the built. Questions to ask: Why are they selling? If the build is over their head and they gave up, strip it down and start over. How many things have they done wrong?

MCO - Manufacturers Certificate of Origin. Car chassis must be manufactured by a certified manufacturer. This is needed to register the car. I was given to the original purchaser, in their name, and is needed to register the car when complete. What state do you live in? Each state has different requirements to register a car. Review your states requirements on-line. If it's not complete, it's not yet registered. Several people have purchased used kits, so it's not impossible. When you're close to that point, ask and someone will chime in and help.

Different kits, based on year of manufacture. Today FFR is selling a MK 4. Parts are available from FFR. Older kits could be a MK 3, or MK 2. Not sure about part availability. You can use almost any engine/trans. Some run a donoe engine, or a new Coyote 5.0 liter, some run a Chevy engine, it's up to you. When you read that someone has a 427 CI, it's not the old big block Ford, it's a Ford 351 CI bored and stroked. The rear end can be a solid axle (fox body mustang to get the correct width) or Independent Rear Suspension. Question is, how was the kit ordered - set-up to use? Not sure what you'd need to do if you wanted to make a change from original order set-up.
Hope this helps.

[John Dol]

Thanks!
Is the MCO the serial number?
How do I find out if it is registered?
How much difference is there, year to year, in the kits?
At what point does the car become registered?
Is there some combination of body, engine or frame that gets registered?

MCO is the manufacturers certificate of origin. Should come with the kit and is needed for registration.
As far as the registration ask the seller
Get at least a black or red bodied coupe
You have to go through your local DMV to get it registered
The car gets registered as a whole.

I got mine second hand but the kit was not yet started. I looked over the inventory sheet that was done and everything was there.

Also you want to see if it is set up for street or track, and make sure that it strokes with your goals

John

[Big Blocker]

Quote: "When you read that someone has a 427 CI, it's not the old big block Ford, it's a Ford 351 CI bored and stroked."

Careful, Ducky2009, you might be insulting quite a few of the FE guys on both this and the other forum . . . FE's are alive and well in many F5 cars.

Doc

[michael everson]

I have been buying them for years. In MA as long as you have a paper trail back to the original owner then thee is no problem.
Mike

[CraigS]

I would check w/ your state first. I have seen some threads where the state will not allow an MCO in the original buyer's name to be used by the second buyer.

[mikeinatlanta]

I'd stick to a MKIV either new or used before buying a used MKi, II, or III. Nothing wrong with earlier kits but the MKIV will be easier to build into a nice car and have more Factory Five support. I'd leave the older kits to the guys who specialize in building or have considerably more experience. There are unfinished MKIVs out there, just fewer of them.

[edwardb]

Kits come in two forms, a base kit and a complete kit. Look at the Factory Five website and review what you would receive with each kit... A partial kit requires a "Donor car"...

This was the original Factory Five concept starting 20+ years ago, and was the case for many years. But more and more, as builds went higher end plus donors became less available or too expensive, builds didn't use a donor. Factory Five introduced the complete kit as a result. Granted, Factory Five gives you the donor build manual when you order the base kit. But many non-donor builds are also built with the base kit. Two of my three builds were base kits, and I haven't used a single donor part for any. I've posted about this a number of times, and lots of other builders have chimed in and said the same thing. Probably not for everyone, especially inexperienced builders maybe. But it's just another choice. Could be a way to save cost a little. But mainly the attraction is you are able to pick all your own parts and not have a bunch of leftover parts compared to buying the complete kit and then not using some of the parts. Factory Five also used to have a 50/50 sale, and I've seen some pretty amazing deals guys were able to put together buying the base kit and buying the rest of what they wanted at the 50% discount. But I've also heard where Factory Five says they won't have another 50/50 sale. Too bad.

[nkw8181]

Welcome! I'm located in the Dallas area, built an 818 and about to start on a 65 coupe.

[creedwait]

Thank you, gentlemen. You have saved me from a great many headaches. It turns out that I was looking at an original MKI and I will pass on this particular kit. I will keep looking.

[JoeT]

It may be a moot point. For Black Friday you can pick up a base kit for $9999

hard to touch that even in the used/unfinished market

EDIT: I see that $9999 is Roadster kit and this it the coupe forum. sorry