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O/T AC Cobra replica Graham Douglas

B

Bill from Scotland

Member
Local guy has a damaged AC Cobra replica for sale with a Chevy v8 engine (small block I think about 5ltr), he says it was producing around 500+bhp. Front damage to wheel, suspention, wing, bonnet etc. He also says there are new replacemt parts which come with the car. Rear axle and prop shaft are missing (he says this was based on a TVR). Hope to get some pictures from him torrow. What do you guys think, could this be a worthwhile project? What would 500 bhp do on the road regarding 0-60 etc, I am not interested in top speed but do like something that"s fast off the line.
Thanks
Bill
 
could be a money pit.. could be a windfall.

not much of a replica if chevy engine. so its just a "mutt" so bid accordingly.
 
Gotta admit I'm a little biased, but I wouldn't walk across a very thin line to look at a Cobra kit with a Chebbie in it- I actually have a friend with one of those rolling abortions, one of the worst-built kits out there, but then I've spent a lot of time in and around originals, a buddy had 3 different original 427 cars and both a small block MkI and big block MKII original GT40's, and I have 10 427 Ford engines at present. The whole idea of putting a Chebbie in one just makes it ridiculously fake and "wannabee"
As far as a fun car to drive, a Cobra with any kind of power is actually one of the more difficult cars to drive fast, very short wheelbase, light weight, and high power makesw 'em a bit twitchy- and there's no room for your feet, your legs "fit" in a little tunnel twisted to the left, with tiny, close-together pedals, and there's a fair amount of heat that comes to visit you. If you were to want one to drive, the Factory Five cars are the best option, using Mustangs for donor cars, very light and fast, well built, and much easier to drive, while being as fast or faster than the originals
 
Early ones had a 260 Ford small block, soon replaced by the 289. Later, they built the Ford 427-powered models.
 
Probably depends on which kit it is. Some of them are pretty good, some are not. And if the rear end is based on a TVR, consider how tough it's gonna be to get parts for that. When's the last time you actually saw a TVR on the street?
 
If it were me an you had the Euro I"d put in the Ford 4.6 litre DOHC engine in it reducing the weight and giving it the kick!
 
The Cobra is the most copied kit car on the planet. Some kits are good and some aren't worth a darn. A couple years ago there was a discussion on here about how much HP you could get out of a small block Chev. I think the consensus was that over 400 HP would require quite a bit of work. I think just about any decent V-8 would have good acceleration in a Cobra and have heard the small block Cobra's handle better. The original 427 Cobra(500 HP approx.) set the the 0 to 60 record for a production car that lasted for many years. It was finally beat by another Shelby car, the Dodge Viper. I think if remember, the Cobra could from 0 to 100 MPH and back to 0 in 10 seconds. It might have only been 0-60-0. They had one of the highest HP to weight ratings of any car ever built. Unless you were on a dragstrip with racing slicks and traction compound, a 500 HP Cobra would just burn the tires off in short order trying to see how fast it would accelerate. I bet half that HP would be more than enough. Dave
 
Might as well go for the biggest bang which was the Shelby Cobra Super Snake. Used the 427 with twin Paxton superchargers; 800 hp. Believe Shelby only made three, one for himself, one for Bill Cosby and someone else. Bill was a bit fearful of the immense power and returned his which was later sold to someone that soon wrapped the car and himself around a tree.
 
500 horsepower seems a bit optimistic for a streetable five liter small block, but it's certainly good for an honest 350 HP and gobs of torque. Of course getting that power to the ground is a problem. If you locate a replacement axle, can it handle the torque? A limited slip differential is a must in a light car with a big engine.
 
500 hp is quite optimistic as others have said, especially from a 5.0L, unless there is a turbo or supercharger involved.

0-60 should be in the high 3"s if you can get traction. I had a classic roadsters AC Cobra and it was heavy 2700lbs, could only pull 13.7 in the 1/4 with a 300hp 351W.

If you can get it cheap maybe, sounds like a fair amount of fiberglass damage plus all the chassis parts. I"ve never heard of a TVR kit, maybe its a European company.

In the US most "collectors" of replicas "fake" tend to want a Ford engine from my experience. The chevy powertrains sell for considerably less. But if you are the one driving it, who cares, its yours.

Last I checked $25K US could get you into a very nice replica, I"d keep that in mind as you put together your parts/labor list.

Oh and if your interested in an engine, this ones for sale, it dynoed at 666hp, and if you"re nuts enough there"s also the 600hp Pro-fogger nitrous just below the carbs.

Just be careful, I"ve seen to many "easy fixes" end up costing more than a nice turn-key car, plus you didn"t lose two years of your spare time in labor.

Rick
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Bill,
Also don't take offense to me calling an AC replica a "fake" in my post below.

What I meant was, people are buying a replica (not a real AC) yet they seem to want a Ford engine in it for authenticity. Why? the car is not "original" anyway.

I owed a fake for years, with a real Ford engine in it... even though AC's never came with 351 windsors.

Post some pix if you get a chance.
Rick
 
Hi Rick
Great looking machine, wish we had this over here in Scotland. The guy just sent me pictures of the AC but it looks much worse than I had been led to beleive so will probable pass on it. The TVR rear axle mentiond was from a specialist car manufacturer here in the UK, they build high performance cars on similar tracks to the AC. My brother had one for a few years but sold it recently due to ill health. Look up TVR Cerbia for some nice pictures.
Bill
Thanks
Bill
 
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