This is a reach, I understand….

[Fisherj14]

I’ll continue my newbieness here and ask a question that I’m 99.9% sure I know the answer, but for the sake of my wife, I’ll ask:

Has anyone solved the problem of smelling like the engine after going for a ride in your Cobra?

My wife loves the look of the car (hasn’t yet decided if she likes riding in it with as rough as it rides), but her main complaint is she has to take a shower again after getting out because she smells like gas and engine oil. I realize it’s open underneath the dash to the engine bay but didn’t know if someone had closed that off or figured out another way to help her out. Doesn’t bother me as when I smell it, I think of the car and it gives me happy thoughts. But, I would like for her to enjoy riding in it.

Also, if anyone has any suggestions for shocks to help it ride a little smoother, that would help as well.

[Ducky2009]

Did you install the foam between the engine compartment and the cockpit?

[Jeff Kleiner]

The smell is a byproduct of the lack of emission controls as well as the engines state of tune. Given what you have told us in earlier posts about how it doesn't run especially well when cold the state of tune could be improved and probably reduce the smell but it isn't ever going to be as "clean" as a modern vehicle. As for the ride, these cars aren't ever going to feel like a Cadillac BUT a Cadillac will never handle or corner like one of these cars! Shocks won't change the ride but springs will, however with softer springs comes reduced cornering capability and increased body roll. It's all a compromise...


Jeff

[JJK]

I realize it’s open underneath the dash to the engine bay but didn’t know if someone had closed that off

I am a bit confused as there is no path from the cabin to the engine bay in my Mk4.

[Fisherj14]

Thanks for all of the replies guys and I’ll try and answer all of it in this post:

1) This isn’t my build (I wish I were handy enough to trust something I would build). This is a MK2 that I recently bought.
2) When I look above the foot pedals, it is open to the engine bay (at least on the driver’s side…haven’t looked at the passengers). I felt like there had to be something that would go there but wasn’t sure since it was technically a race car.
3) I took it to 7k RPMs in first gear the other day and slammed it down into 2nd and the front wheels completely left the ground. I about put her in a ditch and it gave me enough perspective to know this car can get out from under you n a heartbeat. The steering is so “squishy” that I don’t trust at any rate of speed in a turn anyway. My wife just comments each time that she gets out that she feels like she’s been in a fight. I want her to enjoy the car as well and want to ride so I’m trying to make some changes that help her out.

[cv2065]

My wife just comments each time that she gets out that she feels like she’s been in a fight. I want her to enjoy the car as well and want to ride so I’m trying to make some changes that help her out.

My wife has quoted the same in the past and that is simply just the nature of these cars. You can only "tame" them to a certain degree. You have a hand-built race car that is street legal. I'm usually ready to hang up the keys after a weekend of riding, as its off the scale in the fun category, but joyfully exhausting, especially on a very sunny, hot day. Only to find myself reaching for them again the following Friday to do it all over again. Enjoy it for what it is and as with everything, in moderation. :)

[Al_C]

1. Drive faster. (the smell will be behind you)
2. Tell her that you love her, irrespective of exhaust aromas.

[facultyofmusic]

2) When I look above the foot pedals, it is open to the engine bay (at least on the driver’s side…haven’t looked at the passengers). I felt like there had to be something that would go there but wasn’t sure since it was technically a race car.

Don't think I've seen that before... got a pic?

[GoDadGo]

1. Drive faster. (the smell will be behind you)
2. Tell her that you love her, irrespective of exhaust aromas.

Amen Al_C, Amen!

[Jeff Kleiner]

…I took it to 7k RPMs in first gear the other day and slammed it down into 2nd and the front wheels completely left the ground...

Oh really…

:rolleyes:

Jeff

[mrmustang]

Oh rea


lly…

:rolleyes:

Jeff

I smell something else besides gas/oil here.

Bill S.

PS: As for the OP's original question, both a professional tune of the motor (sounds as if it is running lean), and some spray foam in 1 gallon freezer bags should eliminate the issue of the smells. Not sure if anything will eliminate the secondary follow up post.

[Fisherj14]

I’m surprised at the fact that some of you guys are calling BS at the fact that the wheels left the ground. I would have expected this to be pretty common place if it happened to me. I’m not saying the wheels left the ground fast and furious style, but that when I slammed her down into 2nd gear, the back tires bit down and the wheels jumped up. I was involved in a wreck about 3 years ago when a buddy of mine that owns a modified Challenger actually did the same thing. For a split second they left the ground when he hit second and I had flashbacks of the wreck when it happened to me. No one was seriously injured in the Challenger accident as we ended up in a ditch. I kind of expected to hear “yeah, you have to be careful” instead of BS. I will say that after it happened and the having the original owner warn me about the power, I contacted him to tell him I was a believer now….he said something similar happened to him on the local drag strip in FL when he took it the one and only time to see exactly how fast it was. He said he lined up beside a modified Corvette and when he slammed it down to second, the car’s front end jumped just enough off the ground to send him sideways when it returned and he almost slammed into the corvette beside him. He reminded me of how light the cars are and with new tires, it makes them even scarier some times.

But, back to the issue at hand. Thanks for the suggestions of the spray foam. It’s actually at the shop where the guy with the original Cobra has…it’s in the process of a couple of things he found wrong with the car:

1) Needs Tune Up…he said the carburetor isn’t calibrated correctly on the car.
2) He said it needs…I’m going to say this and I may sound like an idiot but I’m pretty sure this is what he said….power brake booster…something like that…he is scared of brake failure on it right now with the state of the brakes…new brakes.
3) Emergency brake needs to be updated.
4) A couple of other minor things.

He said that the car was bordering on a death trap the way I brought it in. The guy before me apparently didn’t take great care of it. Now that I think about it, regarding the above, when I told him the story of the front end leaving the ground, he told me a story of watching a Backdraft replica do that leaving a car show once and the guy ran it into a telephone pole and was killed. He said these cars will do that. He said it was at a car show in GA about 6-7 years ago if anyone remembers this.

[CraigS]

Hopefully your new friend can get the engine running better. So a couple of other things come to mind.1- Sealing off that area above the pedals is #1 on the list. The foam in a bag can work but be careful as it keeps getting larger for longer than you expect and could cause a problem. 2- Along that line look at the vertical square tube that the door hinges are attached to. Between that tube and the fiberglass fender there is a space maybe 1.5in x 12 inches that is open to the wheel well/engine compartment. Stuff something in there but be sure you don't push the fender out and cause the door to hit it when opening. 3- The vent for the gas tank is usually just an open ended hose. Most people bring the hose off the fitting on top of the tank, across the tank to the filler neck behind the wheel, up and back down 5-6 inches to leave it open but so nothing can drop into the hose. Quite a few people have made up a charcoal filter from fish tank charcoal and some pieces of pvc pipe. 4- Regarding ride. Assuming you have coil overs, get some 200-250# springs for the rears from Summit. That will give you a much nicer ride. If the coil overs are Konis, when you have them off to do springs, make sure they are set to the softest setting. 5- Brakes is a whole other subject. Find out exactly what is on there first and get back to us.

[mrmustang]

I’m surprised at the fact that some of you guys are calling BS at the fact that the wheels left the ground.

Given your cars specs:


1965 FFR Shelby Cobra.347 ci blue print with world class, 5 speed transmission, disc brake in the front and drums on back.
15” tires 225/60 R15 in the front and 275/50/R15 in the rear.
Tires brand is BF Good Rich.
1990 Mustang differential and fuel tank, electronic fuel pump, manual electric fan,
1990 Mustang radiator, double pumper Holley carburetor, 4 point raising seat belt,

No offense, but yes, I'll happily call BS on you getting the front wheels to life off the ground. In all my time dealing with Cobras, and racing (drag racing and road racing), I've only seen two Cobras actually lift the front wheels off the ground, both time the cars were set up for drag racing (90/10 shocks on front, slicks out back, pre run burnout done), with more power than your "347" stroker. From the sound of it, you are not only unsure about the car and it's specs, but how the car operates. Here, on this forum, you'll get called out for such nonsense, why, simple, we know the capabilities of these cars, both on the street, and on the track. My only advice other than the tune and the trick for sealing any engine heat leak issues between the body and the firewall, is to stop, look, and listen. 7,000rpms, you'll be spending a lot more time at your engine shop as you bend your valve train (anything over 6,500rpms, and even that, is a ticking time bomb, especially with an unknown engine), drop a valve, break a rocker, or blow a head gasket. Couple that with your 4 link rear end (coil overs, or quad shocks??), the rock hard "TA's" and again, you are an accident waiting to happen. Your car is not for racing on the street, but a nice cruiser, you want to race, take it to a track.

Bill S.

[edwardb]

I've done two carb'd builds. Likely they will never run quite as clean as a fuel injected engine, but there's no reason that properly tuned you have to smell like gas and exhaust after driving/riding. I typically would push them out of the garage before starting just because when cold and the choke closed they did have a much stronger smell. But once warmed up, no big deal. But that's all assuming you close up whatever openings you have been the engine compartment and the cockpit. You'll never eliminate the issue when it's like you've described. Not just smell but also heat. My experiences are Mk3 and Mk4 and properly built and sealed, no openings from the firewall. But the gap between the body and the footboxes has to be closed up as already discussed. My last builds have been factory EFI and there's virtually no exhaust odor. Even without cats. It's just never an issue and my wife (who has very sensitive smelling :rolleyes:) never mentions it.

As for your driving, lifting the front tires, etc., unless you're a professional driver you may want to tone it down a bit. These cars can bite quickly. I was at a track day watching a buddy get instruction in challenge Roadster. Even the pros said the car can be a handful when pushed hard. Enough said.

[Fisherj14]

Thanks and yes, I won’t ever be pushing it to that extreme again. I learned my lesson. With only fiberglass around me, the idea of hitting anything harder than a couple miles per hour is not something I want to experience. It was definitely eye opening. I called up to talk with the garage manager this morning and mentioned the cockpit issue and he said he is going to look into it today and agreed that you shouldn’t smell like gas/engine after driving it outside of maybe a small hint. He said something is off if that is the case. Thanks for all the advice guys.

[facultyofmusic]

Haha, welcome to the forum Fisher (if that's your real name)!

I haven't been on this forum for nearly as long as the FFR veterans here but I completely understand the need to curb any kind of "look I did this dangerous thing" mentality. I'm not suggesting you have or there's anything wrong with your post. I simply hope you don't get turned off my the obvious bias away from "cool! you almost died!" and towards "keep the BS off the road".

There've been enough deaths in this hobby and believe me when I say the "kit cobra" crowd is shrinking. I personally haven't seen a single kit cobra builder younger than me. We can't afford to lose another. :)

Stay alive and well brother!

[rich grsc]

Haha, welcome to the forum Fisher (if that's your real name)!

I haven't been on this forum for nearly as long as the FFR veterans here but I completely understand the need to curb any kind of "look I did this dangerous thing" mentality. I'm not suggesting you have or there's anything wrong with your post. I simply hope you don't get turned off my the obvious bias away from "cool! you almost died!" and towards "keep the BS off the road".

There've been enough deaths in this hobby and believe me when I say the "kit cobra" crowd is shrinking. I personally haven't seen a single kit cobra builder younger than me. We can't afford to lose another. :)

Stay alive and well brother!

100%. That and the BS about these cars that we know doesn't happen. NO 347 cobra on BF Goodrich tires can come close to lifting the front end. Been around these cars for 20 yrs, and right now I know of 1 that will pull the wheels off the ground. It's a full on drag setup, running twin turbo's and BIG drag slicks, making more than a 1000hp.

[Norm B]

If you’re running the Mustang rear springs and four link suspension, I can understand how you might think the front end has lifted. I had that setup for awhile and the back end would drop quickly as the weight transferred. It was great for straight line acceleration but had some “interesting” cornering characteristics. The upgrade to coil overs made the car much safer to drive twisty country roads. Here’s a picture taken when I took my sister in law for a ride. This is from a rolling start and I didn’t even get on it hard. The rear suspension was just that soft.
As others have said, a good tune will help with the smell but won’t completely get rid of it. Fuel injection and catalytic converters will have greatest benefit but you’re in an open car with the exhaust exiting right beside you.
As far as there being an opening to the engine compartment, something is wrong or missing. It’s called a firewall, not a fire window.

Norm

[nucjd19]

My setup is a 347 CI BPE and I have no gas smell. Just normal exhaust smell when idling. It is a MKIV so maybe different setup regarding the engine compartment but have no smell in the cockpit at all. Good idea getting it checked out and tuned. Agree with Norm I bet its "squatted" when you hit the gas and felt that way. My front wheels lift off the ground ALL of the time..... In my 1978 fj40 Rock crawler LOL!
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=162567&d=1644892887

[Fisherj14]

Update:

I now have a firewall between the feet pedals and the engine bay. Mechanic said it looks like something actually ripped it out as there was some metal left in some screws where it should have been. Said it was actually pretty dangerous in case I would have run over something and it got up into that bay. They replaced with black carpet.

Carburetor needed to be tuned. He said there was some hesitation he noticed when he took it out. He also put some racing fuel in it which he said would help. He wants me to run a tank with racing fuel about once every 10 tanks. He also said don’t let it sit for a long time as the 93 octane I run in it can go bad.

Overall he said the engine was in pretty good shape.

Regarding the car getting off the ground, I told him there were people calling BS on here. He said it absolutely can happen if you are popping the clutch between gears. He used to race vintage cars (I’ll come back to this) and he said he has a 67 Mustang with a 427 racing engine that he about wrecked at VRI (don’t know what that is) from the front end barely leaving the ground on a restart. He also reminded me of the backdraft wreck that happened. I said you guys were pretty convinced. He said that you guys may be thinking it left the ground Dom Turetto style from Fast and Furious but he is talking about 1/4-1/2 inch which he said is just enough to lose control.

I appreciate all of the comments and recommendations guys!

[Alan_C]

Well you know everything is suspect without an attached video.

[MB750]

My wife just comments each time that she gets out that she feels like she’s been in a fight.

You need her to watch the Throttle House video where they reviewed a Cobra:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81OVZnHWd2A

[Fisherj14]

What are you looking for a video of?

[Fisherj14]

You need her to watch the Throttle House video where they reviewed a Cobra:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81OVZnHWd2A

I did that see that a few weeks back. Those guys were pretty spot on.

I will say that I’ve never gotten as many waves, thumbs up, “can I take a picture of your car”, “nice car!” as I have driving this car.

[Fisherj14]

Oh, I meant to come back to the guy that worked on it. He took me back to show me his collection of cars when I got there today. He has two 66 original Cobras, two 67 mustang “R code”, 2 sixty something “K code” 2 66 Hertz mustangs, forgot the year of the Corvette stingray, two Boss mustangs, 2 Packard cars (believe they were 34 and 48 or something like that) station wagons, a mustang Florida state trooper car from the 90s, a 42 military Jeep with an actual machine gun on the top, a something Tiger convertible, an original VW bus camper, two 2013 Shelby mustangs and a few other things I can’t remember. His two brothers also have 2 original Cobras. His dad collected them when they were cheap and never got rid of them. I asked about what his collection of cars were worth and he said somewhere around $10-$15M. It was crazy.

[Nigel Allen]

2 of everything. Is his nickname Noah?

Cheers,

Nigel

[Fisherj14]

Maybe. ��

[mrmustang]

Update:

I now have a firewall between the feet pedals and the engine bay. Mechanic said it looks like something actually ripped it out as there was some metal left in some screws where it should have been. Said it was actually pretty dangerous in case I would have run over something and it got up into that bay. They replaced with black carpet.

Carburetor needed to be tuned. He said there was some hesitation he noticed when he took it out. He also put some racing fuel in it which he said would help. He wants me to run a tank with racing fuel about once every 10 tanks. He also said don’t let it sit for a long time as the 93 octane I run in it can go bad.

Overall he said the engine was in pretty good shape.

Regarding the car getting off the ground, I told him there were people calling BS on here. He said it absolutely can happen if you are popping the clutch between gears. He used to race vintage cars (I’ll come back to this) and he said he has a 67 Mustang with a 427 racing engine that he about wrecked at VRI (don’t know what that is) from the front end barely leaving the ground on a restart. He also reminded me of the backdraft wreck that happened. I said you guys were pretty convinced. He said that you guys may be thinking it left the ground Dom Turetto style from Fast and Furious but he is talking about 1/4-1/2 inch which he said is just enough to lose control.

I appreciate all of the comments and recommendations guys!

Again, no offense for what I'm about to post, I find being blunt to be a better way to get through to some people.

Get yourself another mechanic:
A: You don't need race fuel at all with a 347 stroker
B: There is nothing to "rip out" of the firewall, footbox, or floor pan that would not have been noticeable as soon as you got in the car.
C: No, your front end did not lift off the ground, sorry, no

Once again, get yourself another mechanic, one who can be honest with you and not tell you what you want to hear.

Finally, stop trolling the forum and it's members, you won't get a rise out of us by posting or acting stupid (do you own a Cobra replica, do you even have a drivers license yet, your posts read like a 14-16 year old). You will however lose any respect from those who do not buy in to your baloney.

Bill S.

[Ford & Jeep Fan]

Thanks for all of the replies guys and I’ll try and answer all of it in this post:

........ I felt like there had to be something that would go there but wasn’t sure since it was technically a race car.
3) I took it to 7k RPMs in first gear the other day and slammed it down into 2nd and the front wheels completely left the ground. I about put her in a ditch and it gave me enough perspective to know this car can get out from under you n a heartbeat. The steering is so “squishy” that I don’t trust at any rate of speed in a turn anyway. My wife just comments each time that she gets out that she feels like she’s been in a fight. I want her to enjoy the car as well and want to ride so I’m trying to make some changes that help her out.

This whole conversation reminds of early scene in Ford Vs Ferrari that ends with ken miles character telling his garage customer "Maybe you would like a Plymouth?" or something like that.


First I would absolutely fix the open air cockpit with is firewall opening. and get the engine tuned to run cleaner. A PCV valve does NOT hurt performance. Yes you can fix the steering being squishy with maybe just proper Alignment settings. It sounds like you car was only completed for sale but Not finished for enjoyable motoring.

[Fisherj14]

Again, no offense for what I'm about to post, I find being blunt to be a better way to get through to some people.

Get yourself another mechanic:
A: You don't need race fuel at all with a 347 stroker
B: There is nothing to "rip out" of the firewall, footbox, or floor pan that would not have been noticeable as soon as you got in the car.
C: No, your front end did not lift off the ground, sorry, no

Once again, get yourself another mechanic, one who can be honest with you and not tell you what you want to hear.

Finally, stop trolling the forum and it's members, you won't get a rise out of us by posting or acting stupid (do you own a Cobra replica, do you even have a drivers license yet, your posts read like a 14-16 year old). You will however lose any respect from those who do not buy in to your baloney.

Bill S.

I appreciate it Bill. I tend to think of myself as a pretty enjoyable person. But, since you like to be blunt, I’ll be the same…it seems like you are just a mad person in life. I’ll just leave it at that. Not trolling and trying to learn more about the car as idrive it and more about engines as I start to learn. I have spent my life up to this point on a golf course so I’m trying to catch up on a lot of this knowledge.

[JR-FFR5011]

I smell something else besides gas/oil here.

Bill S.

PS: As for the OP's original question, both a professional tune of the motor (sounds as if it is running lean), and some spray foam in 1 gallon freezer bags should eliminate the issue of the smells. Not sure if anything will eliminate the secondary follow up post.

Tightening up the nut behind the wheel will help a bit, but then again, we are all a bit nutty!

[mrmustang]

I appreciate it Bill. I tend to think of myself as a pretty enjoyable person. But, since you like to be blunt, I’ll be the same…it seems like you are just a mad person in life. I’ll just leave it at that. Not trolling and trying to learn more about the car as idrive it and more about engines as I start to learn. I have spent my life up to this point on a golf course so I’m trying to catch up on a lot of this knowledge.

Angry, not hardly, I've been helping Cobra owners, real and replica, make there cars road worthy for over 30 years. Been an owner since the early days, and been on forums like this since the beginning of the internet. I just call it like I (and others) see it. Not getting personal, but keeping it real just the same. My sig line is my way of thinking, always has been, always will be. So, once again, my sound advice is to lay off the bull, or perhaps what you just don't know or understand, stop making excuses, and get yourself another mechanic.

Bill S.

[CraigS]

I recommend that you keep asking questions here. We were all new to this once and slowly but surely learned. Do whatever you can to keep your wife happy. It sure is a much more fun hobby w/ her involved. Not right now, but research a soft top and heat for next winter. Having that means you extend your driving maybe 4-6 weeks in fall and spring. When it's 60-65 deg you can take it to lunch w/ a bit of a heavy coat and hat. But having heat means you can take it to dinner too even if it's going to drop to 50deg on your way home. Search your area for a cobra club or a general special interest car club. Search 'cruise in'. There may be a place where each Sat AM, or Sat PM, or Sun AM, etc a bunch of cars just show up. Go to every event you can find. I found that, once my wife got to know a few other people, both drivers and mates, she had more fun and so did I.

[ggunter]

My wife didn't like the smell either and said she wasn't going to ride in it anymore..........I said REALLY.....:)

[Fisherj14]

I recommend that you keep asking questions here. We were all new to this once and slowly but surely learned. Do whatever you can to keep your wife happy. It sure is a much more fun hobby w/ her involved. Not right now, but research a soft top and heat for next winter. Having that means you extend your driving maybe 4-6 weeks in fall and spring. When it's 60-65 deg you can take it to lunch w/ a bit of a heavy coat and hat. But having heat means you can take it to dinner too even if it's going to drop to 50deg on your way home. Search your area for a cobra club or a general special interest car club. Search 'cruise in'. There may be a place where each Sat AM, or Sat PM, or Sun AM, etc a bunch of cars just show up. Go to every event you can find. I found that, once my wife got to know a few other people, both drivers and mates, she had more fun and so did I.

Thanks…I am slowly learning. It’s definitely like taking it all in and through a fire hose with what everyone is telling me. I’m determined to get there. My wife enjoyed the ride today as a lot of people either waved or gave a thumbs up. We took it to our trunk or treat get together at our church and a lot of people wanted their kids picture with the car or sitting in it. She’s coming around. I want to learn a little more about the engine before going to cruise in’s as I don’t want to look like an idiot. I will definitely get more involved once I feel comfortable. Thanks for all of the advice.

[mt10flyer]

Well, I know this isn't appropriate here, but I drive a 1959 Triumph TR3 and my wife and I smell like gas, exhaust, oil, bugs, and strangely fish and chips every time we get anywhere. I also have greasy fingers from having to first find the part that fell off and then reattach it. And last week the front wheels left the ground...with an assist from an hydraulic jack and jack stands. So take that Cobra guys.

[Fisherj14]

Well, I know this isn't appropriate here, but I drive a 1959 Triumph TR3 and my wife and I smell like gas, exhaust, oil, bugs, and strangely fish and chips every time we get anywhere. I also have greasy fingers from having to first find the part that fell off and then reattach it. And last week the front wheels left the ground...with an assist from an hydraulic jack and jack stands. So take that Cobra guys.

�� haha

[mburger]

In my sig you’ll see what I’m driving. One big difference between our 347’s is I’m running port fuel injection versus carburetor. I have absolutely no sensation of a gas or oil smell after driving my car. It is hard for me to imagine a carburetor so out of tune that a passenger would reek of gas and oil so bad as to need a shower after being in an open cockpit car. Don’t misunderstand, I am not saying I don’t believe you. I’m only saying that it must have been a really really bad tune. The only area I can think of that could be, “open “between the pedal box and the engine compartment would be the aluminum that covers the clutch quadrant area. Perhaps the previous owner opened up that area to change or otherwise work on the clutch quadrant, simply left it open. In any event, I would absolutely love to see pictures and lots of them of your engine compartment and inside the cockpit. You mentioned the mechanic replacing the area where the aluminum appeared to have been, “ripped” out with carpeting. I’m not sure I’m following you there but as they say, pictures speak a thousand words.
My Blueprint 347 has never seen 7K and I hope it never does. I have my rev limiter set to 5500. Many may say that is too low but honestly, what the heck am I doing with that additional thousand RPM in this car? I am not at a track. I don’t have the traction or the safety equipment and most importantly the skill set to properly use that extra thousand RPM. I am very adept at being able to kill myself at engine speeds much lower than that. lol
Please post pictures. One, who doesn’t like to look at pictures and two, it would at least give me a better understanding of your car’s build.
One last thing, search the forum for a thread titled, “remember that toy, sit and spin?”

EDIT: Sorry, I forgot that I took that video down sometime ago.

[Fisherj14]

191782191782

Hopefully this pic shows up. Was talking with the manager at the shop again today as the speedometer stopped working halfway through driving yesterday. Told him I wished I would have gotten a pic of the foot well before he started fixing it. He said he had one from when he was explaining to the mechanic working on it how to fix the last hole. This is hard to explain but that whole bottom piece (about 1 ft by 1 ft) was missing below it if that makes sense. He replaced the metal and put carpet over the inside that he got from a local car restoration shop.

[Fisherj14]

191783

Also, someone had asked for a pic of the engine.

[mrmustang]

Hopefully this pic shows up. Was talking with the manager at the shop again today as the speedometer stopped working halfway through driving yesterday. Told him I wished I would have gotten a pic of the foot well before he started fixing it. He said he had one from when he was explaining to the mechanic working on it how to fix the last hole. This is hard to explain but that whole bottom piece (about 1 ft by 1 ft) was missing below it if that makes sense. He replaced the metal and put carpet over the inside that he got from a local car restoration shop.

Typically there should not be a hole there are all. However, a small piece of aluminum, cut to shape, held in with 4 pop rivets and some sealer takes care of that.
191784
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=191784

In addition, on the upper left and right hand side, under the dash area, where the body meets the aluminum firewall panel, you'll find a small gap, this is where you want to use a small ziplock style baggie and the expansion foam in a can, as this is the typical area where the heat from the engine gets in the drivers and passengers footwell area. Finally, you need to pull back a portion of carpet and see if their is any heat retardant material underneath. If not, I highly recommend DEI "Reflect-a-cool".

Bill S.

[john42]

Good enough for FF!


191785

[CraigS]

I 'think' that hole is there to pass the wiring harness through from under the dash to the engine compartment. It is often filled w/ a rubber grommet and harness. Or covered w/ a piece of aluminum like Bill says and like I suspect yours is now.

[Jeff Kleiner]

Typically there should not be a hole there are all.
191784
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=191784



Actually, as Craig said that half moon hole is supposed to be there and is intended as a pass through point for the leg of the harness that runs from behind the dash to the rear of the car. When alternative routing is used it can be closed up with a small patch as Bill mentioned.

Jeff

[mrmustang]

I 'think' that hole is there to pass the wiring harness through from under the dash to the engine compartment. It is often filled w/ a rubber grommet and harness. Or covered w/ a piece of aluminum like Bill says and like I suspect yours is now.

All the early FFR's I owned and worked on, I cannot remember seeing that pass through,all of those I built or rebuilt had the harness come up through the passenger side, maybe a personal choice on my part, oh well, the mind falters with age I guess.


Bill S.

[Jeff Kleiner]

All the early FFR's I owned and worked on, I cannot remember seeing that pass through...
Bill S.

"Early" being the key word in that sentence. All Mk3 and Mk4\ roadsters have it.

Jeff

[mrmustang]

"Early" being the key word in that sentence. All Mk3 and Mk4\ roadsters have it.

Jeff

OP's car, as reported by him, is a MK II


Bill S.

[Fisherj14]

That hole was made by the mechanic. He then patched it with a small piece of metal. When I inquired about it, the mechanic said that he had that piece of aluminum handy at the time and had a small piece of aluminum also to make the patch.

[mburger]

Perhaps it’s just my curiosity getting the best of me, but I would love to see this car in person and on a lift. It definitely sounds like a car with character. This coming from a Mk1 owner. :D