Thanks everyone, can't wait for spring either! The car is a Factory 5, it has a 347 (punched out 302), 450 HP Ford Racing engine with Fuel Injection w/Trick Flow Induction set up. 5 speed Tremec, 3:55 posi rear. Side pipes will probably go out some time next week, wheels in Late February. I was not a fan of the fuel injected Cobras however this one starts when you turn the key and runs smooth as glass, nice Cobra rumble. I saw a show on HD a few weeks ago where all the new Shelby Cobras (CSX) will be coming with Fords new engine (sorry I forget the name of it, Coyote maybe???) which has fuel injection. They site better fuel economy, reliability as the reasons. I'm sure if you wanted carb/s they'd accomodate you but FI definitely makes a difference. The two carburated Cobras I drove were harder to start and didn't run as smooth. Thanks for staying with me on this. I'll post updates as they come up.

 

Congrats on the purchase, Pat... I have always loved this model. The 347 is no joke, that thing will fly.

 

When I first started looking at these cars seriously last fall I told one of the Cobra guys at our weekly get together I was looking at a 521ci/600 hp cobra. He asked me why I thought I needed that much power and other than making a joke there really wasn't any reason I could think of. He said stick to a small block and you will be much happier. The small block cars are much easier to drive in my opinion and he was right at 450 hp this car is no slouch. It does fly. Wife and I took it out after dinner for a spin around the block and got into it a bit in second. I pushes you back in the seat. In 30 degree weather our ride didn't last too long.

 

that's more like it.....nice ride...first one I have seen with the FI. I like it. Should be a lot more reliable. Don't forget us now. Have fun.

 

Don't worry Doc I'm hard to get rid of!

 

Sweet!

Enjoy

 

He gave you some very good advice. A friend of mine has a monster beast Cobra in his car collection. He says it's not an easy car to drive on the street.

 

Couldn't agree with you more Joliet John and that is why I got what I got, small block. There is a learning curve in these cars, and you have to respect what you are driving. I didn't get it to prove how fast I can go. So I agree the advise is well taken. Mine has no power steering, some actually do, and although there are 4 wheel discs they are not power assisted, both things take getting used to. The shifter also takes a bit of getting used to. Its not too much different than a hot rod.
Believe me I respect the hell out of what this car can do. With it being 20 degrees outside my main objective is to get it looking a bit more traditional.
The polished fender guards are nice but they are not professionally done so they are coming off. there are quite a few things the guy did that I don't understand......little blue reflectors above the tail lights are now gone. Thank God he just used two way tape to attach these things.

 

Pat - Don't take this wrong, but I kind-of want to punch you in the head & steal your new car!!! Super jealous over here. If you want to send her down to winter in the land of beautiful weather I will make sure she is taken care of .... I won't even drive her (fingers crossed behind my back)!

Congrats on the new ride! We will still let you hang out with us. Are you ready to see what that baby will do at the Dragon?!?! I think I might have to trailer her down though......

 

Thanks Kim. Its 20 degrees up here. I was gonna take it up and get some gas but its just too darn cold. So I did some more "demolition". Those too in your face fender guards? Goo Be Gone and they Be Gone! Don't know about the dragon Kim, this car is scary fast, very responsive. Fink has been after me though. Send some warm air up here, NOW!

 

So I take it the seat heaters don't work on it just like our Crossfires? LOL! j/k Looks awesome!

 

Dan believe it or not they actually make seat heaters for these cars. One addition I will make, probably in the fall is a heater. They run about 350 bucks and I'm sure it'll be well worth it. That's the scary thing, there's a ton of aftermarket stuff and replica stuff for these cars and for the most part it's reasonably priced. Today I ordered the proper rear view mirror for the car, 19 bucks. The mirror that's on there will become the passenger side rear view mirror. Sad to see the Crossfire sitting outside at the dealership. That car has never sat outside in 5 and a half years. Hopefully it will find a good home.

 

My old Crossfire is now on Flemings video which they also run on You Tube. You have to go to inventory, then punch in Chrysler. The sale page comes up and if you scroll down just click on the video. They do this for all their cars. Its about a 6 minute video, a few things aren't correct but all in all I think it represents the car nicely. Sad to see it but you gotta do what you gotta do.

 

Very nice video. Here is the link: :: 2005 Chrysler Crossfire - Flemings Ultimate Garage

 

Great video! It would give me sellers remorse.

 

Trust me on this - if I could afford two toys I'd still own it. I think they did a pretty good job on the video. I spent about 20 minutes going over the car with the salesman so he'd know what he was selling, unfortunately very little made it into the video. The guy that does the video is Tony Fleming and he owns the business.
Still working on the Cobra. Got rid of the bullet rear view mirror, in its place a more traditional square mirror. I'll use the bullet mirror on the passenger side as it matches the one on the outside drivers side. Also gone are the rear fender guards, they just didn't look right on the car. I have to have the coolant issue addressed before I send out the pipes so that is on hold for the moment. Waiting for some decent weather to get the car back to Flemings so they can fix that, then I'll send out the pipes. The wheels should get done the end of next month if all goes well. This summer I'm going to try and add a heater and a tonneau cover and I'll be done for the time being. At least parts for this car are readily and plentifully available.

 

I would think parts would be plentiful for them. Nice project Pat. Can't wait to get a ride some day.

 

Anytime Doc. It is a project. I have spent the last couple of weeks removing stickers and changing a few things around. Gone are the silver rear fender guards. I've replaced the round rear view mirror with the standard issue Cobra rear view mirror. I also did a complete swirl and scratch treatment and then polished the car. Yesterday was killing me, sunny, much warmer so I wanted to see if it would start and it fired right up. I'm very pleased I got one with Fuel Injection. I sat there in the driveway and let it charge the battery for about 15 minutes and of course that's not easy, temptation crept in, a couple of spins around the block. Tomorrow the car will be going into the shop for a coolant leak, think its a manifold gasket and I don't think my cooling fan is working. Once that's done I should be in real good shape for the spring!

 

Congratulations, very sharp looking.

 

Thanks autumnmass - the car is now on the way to the Cobra specialist to get the coolant leak and fan issues fixed. I should have the car back for the weekend. I've never put a car on a flat bed before, much less a lowered car that had to be blocked. Very interesting experience. I know we had some big tires on the back of our Crossfires but the tires on the rear of the Cobra are pretty impresive - 315/35 zr17's. They are a foot wide. I also found out a few other goodies this weekend.The wheels I thought were American Torque Thurst 2's are actually custom made ET wheels. I spoke to ET (Team 3) yesterday, I wanted to get the offset, bolt pattern etc and they told me those wheels were 510$ each. I may keep them and paint them. They are killer wheels but the white doesn't cut it for me. The car also has Koni Coil overs and a 12 bolt Chevy rear? I was surprised at that one. Once I get the issue with the cooling/ coolant done I can send out the pipes for Ceramic coating.