[ccomt]

Just my $.02 -- and that's probably all that it's worth.

I read all of your posts and I didn't see the reasons listed on WHY your girlfriend wants the Cobra. Is it because she wants a very high performance car or is it because she likes the looks? Or both? Not trying to be sexist but it didn't seem that those details were mentioned.

Most cobras can be a handful and tend to be very unforgiving.

One possibility;

1. Purchase a used, running Cobra (There are several very nice cars for sale on cobracountry listed in the low $30K range)
2. Negotiate the price down to the $20K range but make sure the car will pass MVA regs in your state (It's a buyer's market)
3. Yank the high performance engine and store it temporarily
4. Purchase a 5.0L from a junked Mustang (Crown Vic, Grand Marquis, Town Car, etc.)
5. You and your girlfriend can clean up the 5.0 and install it in the Cobra (This is a very quick way of getting a drivable car)
6. You and she will have had the enjoyment of working on the car together and you both will know how to work on parts of it. She will have a nice cobra that is "relatively" safe to drive
7. Sometime in the future, after sufficient learning time, reinstall the original engine or sell everything if the fun wears off

I had an acquaintance who gave his 17 year old son a Corvette and the outcome was very, very sad. A low-powered Cobra can still be a lot of fun and will provide an upgrade path at a very attractive cost.