[Buzz]

I've gone over 130 in the Cobra a few times and probably touched 140. If you know or can imagine what the roads are like on a small Caribbean island, you'll understand what a rush that would be. It feels like the adrenaline stays in my blood for hours afterwards! I would say that the hair on the back of my neck prickles up just thinking about it, but that would be a rotten lie since I have no hair there at all.

I doubt that I will do it again, though - even with no traffic around and very early in the morning, there's just too much to worry about at that speed other than keeping the car on the road. 100mph is easy though, and the car gets up there in no time. There's a stretch of semi-straight road just before I enter my neighborhood and I routinely blast up around 100 or so in 4th gear on my way home when conditions permit.

The Cobra is stable enough at speed and exhibits no bad manners when I brake or lift off in 4th gear. Lifting in 5th is not even an issue, as engine braking is minimal with a .68 gear ratio. I do have hood louvers - installed to vent underhood heat - but they are purported to counteract front end lift by venting pressure. The real problem is the uneven road surface - it ensures maximum pucker factor during high speed passes.

When I lived in Canada, I hit 250kph (155mph +-) in both of my 'vettes several times and on the big, wide, empty highways of Northern Alberta that was a yawn and a cakewalk compared to going fast in a Cobra down here.