Quote:
Originally Posted by RodKnock
All kidding and BS aside, your question is an old question. I'd be surprised if anyone here regrets their choice of engine and what your question boils down to is the age-old choice of whether one installs a small block versus and big block. And you're just going to find that each Cobra owner prefers the choice they made for the typical reasons of cost, "authenticity", value, maintenance, reliability, etc.  |
I'm sure that's exactly the answer to the question that has no definitive answer.
My car is a '93 hand beaten aluminium Autokraft Mk IV which still has the original Fox body 302/5.0 Efi. I don't know if it's common knowledge over there but these cars were sold as new cars only, manufactured under license from AC. Fitting the FE is unheard of over here, but we're not exactly a nation of hot rodders either. In fact any modification to an original car is considered heresy. Engineering wise it is major surgery making space between the 26" (too narrow) moulded fibreglass footboxes and have them looking factory afterwards. They can't be removed with the body on, so they need to be sawn out, then narrowed and then remade so they look original. A big job undertaking on a finished car, but not impossible. Plus there's extensive metalwork inside them (the pedal box frame) that needs remaking and that's just making space, let alone fitting requirements, The factory actually made 11 427 FE powered cars but didn't allow enough space and the engine/cockpit gets very hot as there's virtually no air gap. So it needs another inch each side, which means only a 10" wide pedal box.
Here in the UK, most of the 78 Mk IV owners do not use the cars much and many simply occupy pedestals in multi car collections, If somebody is set regarding tut, tut, modification, the expert recomendation is the bolt in 331/347, but personally that feels a bit of a cop out in the big 427 body.........and well it ain't exactly the legend is it? Also none of the s/b strokers seem to sound like their bigger brother, but have to say only ever heard them on YouTube.
I was hoping somebody would say don't do it, you're kidding yourself that its worth it, but that doesn't seem to be the case....