AC/Ford/Shelby Cobra replicas... any interest in these?

[Guest bastaad525]

I just recieved an information package from Factory Five Racing. They sell kit cars, mostly the 65 Shelby replicas, and a few of their own design. I've dreamed of building one of these cars for a long time now... as it turns out, it's much cheaper than I've ever imagined. You can build their street version, using one '87-'93 5.0 Mustang donor car (supposedly EVERYTHING you need will either be in the kit, or can be taken from the mustang... only other thing you need is tools and a place to work), for less than $19k. Or... so they claim.. hehe I know that price will probably double the same way a Hybrid Z budget always does but on paper it seems feasible and doable. They say they actually put one together for this price... that was including body work and paint. O

 

ne thing I wonder about these kits... they are made to accept the entire 5.0 drivetrain and rear end suspension, it all just bolts right in... now, I can't speak for the rear end, but I'm thinking... if a mustang drivetrain can easily be fit into a 240z... shouldn't a 240z drivetrain (or actually, an L28 Turbo setup) fit easily into space where a mustang setup would go? The only thing I would think could cause a problem would be the length of the L28 vs. the V8... not sure how much room there is in the replica but it looks to have some. The tranny is already taken care of... the replica is set up to accept the Borg Warner T-5 from the getgo!! I never made the connection that the mustang and zxt used the same tranny....

 

These cars are quoted to run low 13's to high 12's and 0-60 of sub 5 seconds with the STOCK 5.0 engine the car weighs about 2,200 lbs, not much less than an early 240, and the stock mustang engine only has 225hp at the fly... a bit healthier on the torque though at 300ft lbs but still... numbers easily reachable with an L28et. Those numbers kind of confuse me though, I mean, 225hp is EASY to reach a bone stock L28et just by raising the boost, and in a 240 there are a couple hundred extra pounds (where 100lbs is worth about .1 second, right?), sure, but to be able to run a low 13, on just raising the boost alone, is really a stretch (unless you are Jersey!!). I would expect to run no less than a 14 flat with my car just the way it is now. Well... I guess it goes to show that torque really is the more important number, huh?

 

Anyways just a thought, probably not worth the extra $$$ or hassle to try to put a Z engine in one of these cars.... 5.0's are easy to come by and really cheap, would just be easier to put the parts in the car that it was designed for.

 

So... anyone here built or planning on building one of these? With the money I've spent on my 240 I would be just shy of having one now... DOH. This is probably the only car I would enjoy more than a super fast 240. Now that I know just how much they cost, it doesn't seem like some out of reach dream anymore. I mean... the cost is lower than your typical new honda... for the price of an economy car you can build you're own streetable race car... crazy. It's out of my reach for now only because I dont have a garage to build it in... that should be changing soon. Then I just gotta convince the little woman....