The Adventure Begins: 30th Anniversary CF Coupe Build Thread
Hello all! I’m excited to share my journey as I tackle the build of a Type 65 coupe. I was dragging my feet on having Cunningham Transport deliver my kit, in hopes that the carbon fiber body would arrive at F5 and could be included with the package. Lo and behold, with a pick up date mid January a cf body arrived and my name was placed on it! So, yesterday Mark at Cunningham called from PA and said he was planning delivery for Sunday after stops in NC and GA. Hopefully, he can stay ahead of the storm!
My planned build will be Coyote based, using one half of our two car garage. Tight quarters, but I’ll set up a rolling dolly to move the job around while I pull the cars outside. Fortunately, Florida weather should facilitate this plan going forward. I’ve been following/reading other build threads for months now and I’m excited to jump in the fray. For those “rookies” contemplating this project, follow me, as I lead the way of “learn as you go” experiences!
Congratulations! I can't wait to see one of the CF bodied kits come together outside of the FFR facilities. I was on the list for a 30th anniversary kit and waffled based on my build plan, not to mention the unknown cost of the CF body at the time. As much as I would love to have one, it just wasn't in my budget, but I can live vicariously through those that are building them.
I’m in Fernandina Beach. I’ll be looking to share experiences with you as we move forward! I saw the CF body at F5 during their open house unveiling and really liked it. Additionally, in discussions with some local “gearheads” in the Jacksonville area, it didn’t seem like there were any paint/body shops that had the expertise to tackle the coupe. After crunching some numbers with transport, etc, I opted for the cf route. I’m still thinking of stripe(s) and clear coat but hopefully the cf body will help me avoid the extensive work on the prep side. (?)
Welcome aboard, Sea Hut! I'm also interested to see the CF body on a build. This will be fun. Good choice on the Coyote. Are you going with the Gen 4X?
Chris Coupe complete kit.Index. Delivered: 4/22/24. Build Thread. Coyote Gen 4X. T-56. IRS w/3.55. Wilwoods. PS. HVAC. Side windows. MK4 Complete kit. Build Thread Index. Delivered: 10/15/2020. Legal: 7/25/23. Coyote Gen3. TKO600 (0.64 OD). IRS w/3.55. PS. Wilwoods. Sway bars. This build is dedicated to my son, Benjamin. Build Thread.
Good Morning Craig …. I’m right here in Folkston Georgia ….. I’m building coupe #686 ….. my wife and I go to Yulee Florida every other week to do our grocery shopping which is pretty close to Fernandina …. If you need any help pm me here thanks …..and welcome to the party ….. congrats hope to see your coupe driving around town soon !
Can anyone tell me whether this is the A/C drier mount bracket (60651) or the drier frame bracket (60652)? My inventory has one but not the other. And hopefully, my attempt at uploading the picture has worked….
Well, only a week after my delivery, I’ve finally cracked the case on how to upload photos! Here are some shots of the arrival. You can see that the cf body is wrapped up well and unfortunately, takes up extra space on the truck (=$). I’ve completed my inventory and moved boxes that won’t be needed immediately over to the storage container. This included the coupe body, after unwrapping and re-wrapping it. I will say that, with the exception of a couple pin size holes near the hood opening, there were no flaws at all! Not sure who does these but excellent work! I’m excited to begin the build!
Doing my CF build with Henry Renaud up the way from Naples wrenching (already replied). His 74th FFR build, this being his 14th Daytona Coupe. And the 1st CF for both of us! Some riddles to solve - especially the rear tail lights if not going retro/classic…and some work on the limited-terrain dash. I swapped the small gauges for dual to save real estate. When I say swapped…I mean bought more…eventually will have some mint Speedhut gauges (as well as FFR side pipes) to sell. Just enjoying the depth of upgrades…
Last edited by Astrong16103; 02-02-2026 at 08:52 PM.
No, close though. The top spring retainer needs to be c- clipped to the top. Looks like the c-clip is there but needs to be clipped around the top. I’ll take a pic in a bit when I get out to the shop.
Progress! After painting my LCA’s with 2 coats of POR, I set them up on the chassis. That step meant running to Lowe’s for a bench top grinder, as the forward bushing was a smidge (technical measurement) too long and needed some love. Next step was the shocks. With the anniversary edition, we get the silver shocks which, unfortunately have little info/pics other than to mount them “upside down” (body down, vs the red ones). As I was setting up the shocks with springs, i realized that, hey mister, there are different front and rear shocks! (Rookie builder) I also realized that I had three fronts and one rear shock. Note to those doing inventory: the inventory sheet says 4 shocks, which I saw 4 boxes, and dutifully checked off as ‘good to go’. Oops. Good news is that I have the fronts and the need for both rears is further down the road. As I mounted the shocks I found that despite the bottom spacers, I still have a 1/8’ gap. So the question is, do i disassemble and add a washer or two to sandwich the shock or let it loose with some movement within the frame mounts? Or, simply remove and break out the bfh to hammer the mount in a bit ?
And, I’ve been talking to Mike Forte about my desire to put an Aluminator 5.2 in but voicing my concerns about height. He had both the Coyote and Aluminator in his shop and did some measurements. Basically, a little over 3 inches higher. I’m thinking it is too close for comfort. I know edwardb did this, as well as the Snap On car. I have to believe that the carbon body is the same mold so am I just over thinking it?
Just a quick observation regarding the shocks. It still doesn't look like the snap ring is capturing the top shock mount.
Refer back to Henry's photo and you'll see that the flange of the top mount is seated down into the "hat". The snap ring should be on top of that flange.
Hopefully that makes sense, but maybe someone else can explain this better.
Thanks for your advice 65 Cobra dude and JTG! I think I finally got the snap ring location and zip ties in the right place. Onto my next challenge. Using the manual specified 2.75” bolt and .40 spacers on the lower LCA shock mounts, I not only have about 1/8” gap between the shock and mount with the spacers, but the 2.75” bolt is also too short. I measured the distance between the outer edges of the LCA hole the bolt goes through and found 2.25”. That leaves about 1/2” for the washer and nut. This gives me only a few threads on the nut after tightening things. So, off to Ace hardware for 3.25” bolts and larger spacers. Not sure if this is something with the newer anniversary A arms?
Working on the front suspension and after setting up my tie rods for 53”, I find that my driver’s side spindle is pointed slightly left while my passenger side (spindle not yet installed) is pointed even more left. I have the same number of threads out on each tie rod. With the jam nut backed off, I measure just over 1” of threads to the tie rod. Am I missing something or will it magically straighten itself after alignment or when it’s on the ground?
Working on the front suspension and after setting up my tie rods for 53”, I find that my driver’s side spindle is pointed slightly left while my passenger side (spindle not yet installed) is pointed even more left. I have the same number of threads out on each tie rod. With the jam nut backed off, I measure just over 1” of threads to the tie rod. Am I missing something or will it magically straighten itself after alignment or when it’s on the ground?
It might be the picture, but I believe your steering arms on your spindles have to be swapped side to side. They should come forward and up when they are mounted correctly. Passenger side on the drivers and driver side on the passengers.
Higgy
Last edited by Higgybulin; 02-22-2026 at 06:29 AM.
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Hey sea hut … I think you have your steering arms (what connects to the spindle ) reversed….. like higgy said they should face forward and up … see attached photoIMG_0239.jpg
Last edited by Lugnut Mark; 02-22-2026 at 06:56 AM.
Thank you Higgy and Mark! I switched them over yesterday to the correct sides. I swear, if a part can be mounted upside down or on the wrong side, I can do it! Much appreciated!
Stumped again with these stupid tie rods. Here’s what I have. ‘A’ arms leveled off on jack stands. Shocks opened up to allow this. Tie rod mounting arms pointed up and out. I have my tie rods threaded in about 1.5 inches, jam nut backed all the way out. Passenger side looks pretty good regarding a sight line with the hub parallel to the frame. Driver’s side, disaster. As seen in picture, I’ve got a tie rod that is about 3” too far over. It’s threaded in 1.5 inches like the P/S side. I loosened the inner boot and cranked away on the inner tie rod shaft that connects the rack to the outer tie rod (righty/tighty?) but can’t see any tie rod movement pulling it closer to the spindle hole. Research shows discussions of centering the rack but it seems that would not correct just one side. It seems like my inner tie rod is way out compared to the other side but everything is new! Have others experienced this imbalance? So, do I pull the inner tie rod boot off/slide it down (if possible) to get a better look or am I simply turning it the wrong way and instead turn it left?
The fact that the boot is stretched out on the LH side and compressed on the RH side makes me think that you didn't center the rack before attaching the tie rods. Have you?
There's nothing inside the boots that turns for adjustment. The only adjustments are the threads on the outside where the tie rod ends are installed. Agree with Jeff. Did you center the rack? Means turning the input shaft all the way to the stop in one direction. Then counting the turns to the stop the other direction. Then turn back to 1/2 the amount. There are more detailed explanations than that. But that's the idea. Easiest with the steering shaft installed and using the steering wheel. But you could do a sanity check by turning the input shaft directly.
Last edited by edwardb; 02-24-2026 at 11:28 PM.
Build 1: Mk3 Roadster #5125. Sold 11/08/2014. Build 2: Mk4 Roadster #7750. Sold 04/10/2017. Build 3: Mk4 Roadster 20th Anniversary #8674. Sold 09/07/2020. Build Thread and Video. Build 4: Gen 3 Type 65 Coupe #59. Gen 3 Coyote. Legal 03/04/2020. Build Thread. Build 5: 35 Hot Rod Truck #138. Build Thread. Sold 11/9/2023. Build 6: Mk5 Roadster 30th Anniversary #11,258. Build Thread.
Thank you Jeff and Edwardb for your recommendations. No, I didn’t center the rack. That will be my next step. Based on the assembly manual it seemed that I wouldn’t be doing anything steering-wise (shafts, etc) until further down the road -no pun intended! I’m learning every step of the way and continue to rely on experts like you guys for your experience and knowledge. Thanks again.
Chris Coupe complete kit.Index. Delivered: 4/22/24. Build Thread. Coyote Gen 4X. T-56. IRS w/3.55. Wilwoods. PS. HVAC. Side windows. MK4 Complete kit. Build Thread Index. Delivered: 10/15/2020. Legal: 7/25/23. Coyote Gen3. TKO600 (0.64 OD). IRS w/3.55. PS. Wilwoods. Sway bars. This build is dedicated to my son, Benjamin. Build Thread.
Made some progress by centering my rack and was able to get things / tie rods looking like they should! Thanks for your advice! Next stumble. Moving along with front Wilwood brake installation. Plugged along until I tried to mount the calipers over the rotor/hat. The caliper mounting brackets seem to be right in line with the caliper mounting holes. It seems that the brackets should be shimmed in about an inch but this would put them very close to the rotors. The pics are of the passenger side looking to the rear with me holding the caliper where is would center on the rotor. I’ve looked at every Wilwood video and anything else I could find but no luck. What have I assembled backward/upside down/wrong side (or a combination of any!)?IMG_4668.jpgIMG_4667.jpgIMG_4669.jpg
I do not have any pics of my Wilwood calipers, but it seems the hat to rotor bolts and safety wire were recessed in relation to the rotor, not sticking out as yours are pictured.
I will dig around for some pics, while we wait on someone with a better memory or pics.
20th Anniversary Mk IV, A50XS Coyote, TKO 600, Trunk Drop Box, Trunk Battery Box, Cubby Hole, Seat Heaters, Radiator hanger and shroud.
You have the rotors on backwards. Should look like this with the bolts and safety wires on the inside. This video from Factory Five also shows the correct orientation: https://youtu.be/iT_YYcffxTY?t=50
Last edited by edwardb; 03-06-2026 at 02:19 PM.
Build 1: Mk3 Roadster #5125. Sold 11/08/2014. Build 2: Mk4 Roadster #7750. Sold 04/10/2017. Build 3: Mk4 Roadster 20th Anniversary #8674. Sold 09/07/2020. Build Thread and Video. Build 4: Gen 3 Type 65 Coupe #59. Gen 3 Coyote. Legal 03/04/2020. Build Thread. Build 5: 35 Hot Rod Truck #138. Build Thread. Sold 11/9/2023. Build 6: Mk5 Roadster 30th Anniversary #11,258. Build Thread.
Well…. Now that I have risen from my fetal position, hysterically sobbing, I see my error. Here I was concerned that I had incorrectly fastened my caliper mounting brackets and would have to remove four, red loctite screws, I am now blessed with having to unwire and remove 24 of them! I’m clocking out for the day… one consolation: I didn’t do the back ones yet.
Signed, Calamity Craig
Keep at it, you've got this! But I completely respect needing to step away for a minute to collect your thoughts.
Also, I highly recommend referencing Paul's (edwardb) build thread as you're working through this. He did a great job of documenting everything and it may save you a headache or two in the future.
Some photos. Actually not sure if they post since clueless about how this site works. Trying to go with a retro or CF mirror instead of the Brock one is a toughie. We are wondering if the CF Coyote cover will fit under the hood. FFR says no…but we shall see! Also a sneak peek at the carbon fiber paint mockup. Someone let me know how you attach photos if they don’t show (14 of them!). IMG_3466.jpgIMG_3452.jpgIMG_3238.jpegIMG_3109.png79279222159__E87E631A-A8DA-4182-A117-AB6897B37E38.jpgNot sure I am a fan of this interface just yet
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Are you going with the Gen 4X?
Originally Posted by Sea Hut
