Easiest way to build a Cobra!

[the5]

Hey guys!
Im pretty new to the whole building cars thing.
I was wondering what would be the easiest way to build a Cobra?
Should I get the base kit and a Donor car or???
Also what donor car should I get? I would like to be around $25k to build

[Mesa Mike]

A good donor with a strong engine will get you to where you want to be. Be advised that the biggest ticket might be the paint/body work unless you can do that yourself. Paint/body can run $4000-$6000 for a quality job. Be careful not to do a lot of upgrades on your initial build. You can always change most items down the line after you are on the road for a few years. Motors/transmissions/rear ends/wheels/tires/exhaust can always be upgraded later in life. Happy building.

[the5]

What would be a good easy donor car? How many Miles should it have?

[kiki231]

I dont want to contradict Mike above, but for pure ease, a complete kit is the way to go-- no dissasembly, damaged parts, cleaning/prep, etc..
However, for 25k , i think the donor is the only way to go.

[SStrong]

I started with a donor (94 GT) and base kit with 3k upgrades. Used the transmission, brake calipers, spindles, computer, Ebrake handle, and a few other parts. Upgraded most everything else that could have come out of the donor. Wire harnesses were too much trouble. After pulling the motor and taking if 450 miles to rebuild, found a great deal on a 306 short block (half price) for what it would have cost to send the 5.0 through a machine shop. Long story short, don't expect the build to go the way you expect. I have spent over 35k and am almost to paint. Complete kit will make things go much faster. The rear end on the SN 95 (94 and 95 Mustang) is tool wide. The rear end on the Fox body is 4 lug and uses drum brakes on the rear. The spindles on the Sn 95 are 5 lug and work best on the Roadster. Study up on the forums before deciding which route to go. Most of the donor parts can be purchased at junkyards. Good donors are getting harder to find. I really have no regrets now, and building this car has been one of the best experiences of my life (just turned 60). I expect to have it running in a couple of days (fixing a leaking oil level sender in the oil pan). Good luck! Oh yeah, go to the build school, before you make your decision if possible. Money well spent.
Steve

[bil1024]

Start with base kit and 87-93 donor, you can always upgrade later. Look for something under 125k milesand manual trans for donor. I suggest getting the manual from FF5 to start. good luck and welcome to the site

[Mesa Mike]

It's pretty cheap to "refresh" , say a, '91 5.0. That is, if you can do the work yourself. Most of the cost is labor (disassemble/assemble). To have the block and heads refreshed by a machine shop might cost you $300??? The rest would just be the re-build parts cost. A 5.0 rebuilt kit from summit will run $339.95 and has pretty much everything you'll need except a new water pump. Drop that in and drive it for a few years and then up grade. The 302 short block is pretty strong. Add some alumn. heads, new intake and cam and you can easily get about 350-400hp. Consider putting upgrades in now that you can't easily get to later.........like heater, brake booster, rear end gears, 3 or 4 link, IRS, etc. I don't have power steering but if that comes with the donor, put it in and try it. It's a lot cheaper than a Flaming River manual. You can always change it out later. I recently drove a FFR with power steering and it felt great. Power brakes and steering might be a nice feature. You could always remove both if it doesn't fit your driving needs.

I have a MKI and pretty much followed the standard build with a "donor pallet" from Cypress Auto Dismantlers in OAK, CA. I cleaned, painted and upgraded (water and oil pumps/clutch kit) and put it on the road. I'm on my 3rd engine and have upgraded brakes, rear end gears, electronic ignition, wheels, tires, etc. 12 years on the road and made some upgrades this week. New seat belts (original now out of date for track) and grab bar for my wife. Grab bar for wife???? Yep, she likes to track with me and it gives her a place to secure herself while we are in some fast turns. I'm waiting for my t-5 tranny to give out before adding a TKO. The t-5 is the only original drive train component left from my build. Probably has about 130,000 miles one it by now. I know I have put about 30,000 on it. I blew out a Ford Racing King Cobra clutch on the track but the tranny is like a Timex. "Keeps on ticking"

I think the best advice I can give you is to not go crazy. It's very tempting to add 800hp but why? For your $25K target be conservative. Up grade after you get your big tax refund each year. Good luck.

[jlfernan]

I agree with Kiki231, I built a complete kit and never looked back. All you have to do is look at the postings on this site and the "other", and you repeatedly see people having all kinds of issues with parts that don't fit or work. Sourcing parts from different locations and finding they're wrong is a huge hassle. I've had friends go the donor route all said if they were to do it again, they would go with the complete kit. Everything is engineered for the car. Everything is new. No refurbishing, cleaning, modifying. It's really nice after the engine and tranny are in, to take the new, already shortened drive shaft out of it's box and slide it right in. Nice, clean shiny fuel tank. Wiring harness with instructions. It just makes life easier. Once my car was done I enjoyed driving it and tinkering with it. I don't believe it makes sense to build it knowing you need to upgrade a lot of items. Doesn't make sense financially or labor wise. I also don't get why people would put old rusty parts into their new car? I know for many it's a money thing, but in the end, to me, ease of build and piece of mind are worth much more. Just my two cent's.

[trublue]

As you are, I was, in 2006. I used a working 2000 Mustang GT for a donor, went to the Mott College weekend school, and got the paint and body done by a professional. I spent around 30K with FFR discounts for their front and rear suspensions. I REALLY learned a lot from the donor disassembly, which enabled me to build a truly great car the first time. Whatever you decide, take your time and enjoy every minute of it. There is plenty of help on the forum and from an excellent tech staff at FFR.
Good luck!

[CapeCoralCobra]

I support what Mesa Mike said if you want to stay around $25K and you have the mechanical abilities to do almost all the work yourself. $25K is impossible with a complete kit when you have to add the engine, tranny, rear end, wheels/tires, and body work/paint. I started with a base kit & '88 GT donor, rebuilt the 5.0, used a fair number of donor parts (all of which I rebuilt/refurbished, no rusty parts here), but did add a few upgrades, and did 99% the work myself, including paint. My original finished cost was just under $23K. I enjoy working on the car - to me, the build was more satisfying than driving it - so I've built and installed a more potent engine, replaced some of the donor parts, and upgraded other things, and I'm still at the higher $20s.

I'm not against the complete kit, I'm planning another build and am contemplating the complete kit, but the budget will be closer to $35K - planning a bigger engine/tranny combo so a donor build is impractical. And that's with me doing everything myself again.

Your original question and qualifiers leave you with a conundrum: Easiest? Complete kit. $25K? Donor/base kit. Add $10K to include a 302 based crate motor/tranny and other new parts/paint, you're back to the complete kit.

Edit: Don't know where you are, but you have to figure in shipping, too. Was over $1K to my house.

[Someday I Suppose]

25K complete is going to be a really tough number to hit even with a donor, but I agree with Cape Coral no way you would hit that with a complete kit.

Not trying to be a downer, but kit your going to be around $14-15K depending on options, $5000 for a donor car and $5000 for paint? It will be tight for sure.

Scott

[the5]

25K complete is going to be a really tough number to hit even with a donor, but I agree with Cape Coral no way you would hit that with a complete kit.

Not trying to be a downer, but kit your going to be around $14-15K depending on options, $5000 for a donor car and $5000 for paint? It will be tight for sure.

Scott

Okay so I will go complete kit.
So where would I get all the parts to finish the build?

[68GT500MAN]

Lot's of possibilities. Check with the forum vendors like Forte, Breeze, Levy. They all will carry the parts you need.

[Someday I Suppose]

Complete kit is a great option if you can swing the cash, to the original question I THINK it is the easiest way to go.

Cost wise your looking at $20K or so for the kit going that route, still need the drive train, even if you went straight used 5.0 stuff without rebuilding you would be looking at 2-3K, but more realistic for parts that have been serviced, rebuilt, and are ready to run I would say $7K is a doable number. Paints still looking at $5K easy. I guess my point being its real tough to build one of these for less then $30K, and I would guess the average is closer to $40K these days.

Scott

[DaleG]

Look arpond on eBay for a donor car; you may get lucky; remember, you are not looking for a great body, just the good parts.

Where are you located? A few posts down Mike Forte has a donor for sale in MA.

[AC Bill]

Good luck with a 25K cap if your in Canada.(no indication of your location).

With the deleted parts having to be purchased separately, and many others needing to be imported from the US, your just getting started at 25K..And.. you can't even import a complete kit to start with..

[CraigS]

I think the donor concept is pretty dead by now. Do you really want to put 20 yrs old parts on your cobra? Especially the wiring harness? It may be a little cheaper if you get real lucky but it will be a lot more work. I think you would be much better off w/ a complete kit. If you start looking around your area, and especially join any cobra clubs there, you will be able to find an engine and trans for little money. 302s are a dime a dozen from mustangs and explorers.T-5 s are cheap too because many upgrade to something else. I would get the complete kit,plan on a carb 302, and just start looking, putting out feelers for an engine,trans and rear axle. Find a rear axle first so you can work on the rear suspension and build the car. The engine and trans are the last things to be installed.Hook up w/ mustang people too. A local friend just got a 302 and T-5 for $500 because a previous owner had put it in a 69 mustang. The current owner wanted it out of there so he could go more original.

[Jeff Kleiner]

I think the donor concept is pretty dead by now...

In the case of 5.0 Fox body donors I agree with you to a certain extent Craig. Useable examples are getting hard to find; they are either thrashed out and in need of a thorough rehab or priced beyond "donor" range. The other option, and one that Ron E. (FFinisher), Thierry (mydream) and others have made me a believer in is the 4.6 in either 2 or 4 valve configuration. While slightly more complex than a 5.0 they are smooth, reliable, easy to include hydroboost and ABS if desired and a pleasure to drive. I've not done a mod motor car (yet) but for someone looking to build a roadster on a moderate budget sticking to the original donor concept of removing and freshening components (rather than completely rebuilding &/or replacing them) I think the 4.6 Mustang donor is the obvious answer.

Base kit+4.6 Mustang donor+reasonable upgrades+self performed or bargain body & paint=<$25K.

Jeff

[bil1024]

I just found a 88 donor for 500.00, 79k in miles. They are out there still, if you can get lucky, donor is the way to go on a budget

[willy]

you will have to go with a donor, I built a coupe and am at about 25-28K but did all work in my garage (paint etc...) and all I can say is always look for the deal and be prepared to change plans to save money, like I did flat black pipes to save on ceramic coating.

[CraigS]

To add to Willy's thought, as long as you make the basic engine,trans, and rear suspension decision up front,and don't change, you can build a real basic car and upgrade later as $ allow. IE to change from 302 to 315 requires new intake and headers. Certainly a change to a mod moter has different requirements. I bought my car as a very basic build barely driveable car in 07. I have been upgrading slowly but surely ever since. That is a process i really enjoy. BTW, that brings up another option. Buy a completed car. Do tons of reading here and on the other forum,meet as many FFR owners as you can, so you have an idea what you want, and jump when it comes up. BTW, I know it's money but...if you could find a way to attend the London Ohio cobra meet and stay for 3-4 days, you could learn more in that time than in a year. HTH

[tcoon]

I hate to say it cause I love the build process...but the easiest way to build a cobra is buy one already done! Check out Tony Buffomonte's 3 time national championship car in the classifieds for $28k! Bought my first one for $22.5 k and never looked back. I have since built 2 ffr's, a hot rod and a coupe, and I have way more money, time, and effort in each of those. If you're looking cheap, buy one already done. If you're looking for a fun build...dream big, have fun, and don't cheap it out! In my experience you will be most happy with moderate power, good reliability, and driver friendliness. Avoid wild cams, manual steering, and extremely loud pipes. They all wear very thin after about an hour of driving. A great part of this hobby is the community, and most of us spend a lot of time on cruises, club runs, parades, etc...tough to do with a 550 hp 427 screaming in your left ear for 4-5 hours...ask me how I know!

[willy]

I think the general idea in this community is if you spend 50K or 25K all these car are one of a kind even a low budget build like mine is respected as much as one twice as much you cannot loses if you don't break rule #1 that is Have FUN with it.

[dallas_]

I hate to say it cause I love the build process...but the easiest way to build a cobra is buy one already done!

Agreed. Especially for your price range. Then you can always upgrade it as you wish.

[Avalanche325]

The easiest way and the cheapest way are two ends of the spectrum. $25K is pretty much the cheapest end of the spectrum, so will be far from the easiest. A complete kit and a crate engine / trans combo / professional paint is the easy way. I can't imagine that for under $35k.

For $25k you will need to put in the work. You basically can't pay for any labor with that budget. The first bit of work, and it could be several months worth, will be finding a good donor.

[skullandbones]

Complete kit is a great option if you can swing the cash, to the original question I THINK it is the easiest way to go.

Cost wise your looking at $20K or so for the kit going that route, still need the drive train, even if you went straight used 5.0 stuff without rebuilding you would be looking at 2-3K, but more realistic for parts that have been serviced, rebuilt, and are ready to run I would say $7K is a doable number. Paints still looking at $5K easy. I guess my point being its real tough to build one of these for less then $30K, and I would guess the average is closer to $40K these days.

Scott

I agree that 25k is a hard number to hit with a completely finished (paint and body work) car. Another thing is "easy" is probably the wrong word to use in the same sentence with "kit". FFR makes it clear that the build manual is not straight instructions for assembly of the kit but a guide. I can't tell you how many times I have adjusted or tweeked the part to be installed (almost every time) with a drill in hand or grinder or step bit, etc. It p**** me off when someone talks about how easy it is. There used to be a guy on the FFR video that was like that. It's like going to the dentist for a filling and then after the fact saying, "oh yeah, that wasn't so bad"! The more sweat equity you put in the build, the more you save but easy usually equates to more money (especially the body work and paint). If your heart is in it, you won't mind the little issues that come up now and then. Good luck, WEK.

Note: Go to build school if you can.