I was looking at BDR for a new build but someone convinced me to seriously consider Superformance as well (or instead of) as well as Factory Five.
Short history to explain why I'm here asking:
Cobra V1 - I purchased my first EM Cobra about 2 years ago with a blown motor and tranny. I had a local rod shop put a 347 stroker motor with a large street cam and a Demon carb. It has an AOD trans. Motor and Trans have about 1k miles on them since install. Car looks great and has a tan soft top for it. It's been dressed up a good bit. Per a request from the wife I'm part way through adding AC via the Vintage Air Front Runner System. Engine bay part is done. Just need to install the cabin side. Here's some pics:
https://mightytext.net/zFYtS3
It gets tons of attention. I love it but with the solid rear 9" axle and not enough HP it didn't have the performance on the track I was looking for.
Cobra V2 - I ended up picking me up another EM Cobra that I had planned on autocrossing and road tracking. This one I put a new paint job on it but otherwise is pretty much as I got it. It has a 410 stroker motor with a Richmond 5 speed. This one however has the Corvette suspension on both front and rear so it has good power and great handling. Here's some pics of it:
https://mightytext.net/zPhP6l
So now that I've owned and driven two very different cobras I've learned what I like and don't like so my plan is to sell both and have a BDR made with the best of both worlds exactly as I want it. I don't want to spend the time or money to make all of the mods I'd want to do to get either of the EM Cobras to be my "perfect" version of the car I'm looking for.
So I'm considering having a car built "professionally" for me by either the factory or a builder/dealer. One person told me about Olthoff Racing in NC but I'm open to hear of others as well that folks would recommend. Since I live in South Carolina east of the Mississippi would be preferred.
I'll probably go with a custom color and I have some very specific interior design ideas that I'd like to incorporate (i.e. - not the standard look).
I'm planning on having a car (when it's finished) that's a bit more towards a show car status like the V1 but with a more powerful powerplant, better suspension, better transmission. While we love to show the car we also want one that is great for LONG drives (so reliable), comfortable in the cabin (so soft and hard tops), but still has the racing capability to keep me entertained.
Having both a soft and hard top is for the wife. If she's happy we'll be driving it more. :-) Same with the headrests, twin roll bars, A/C and heat.
As far as reliability and power it sounds like a Coyote engine is the best bet, or at least a stroked out small block with fuel injection. How much HP in reality can the Cobras handle without being almost useless? I'm not going to "professionally" race the car but I do want to do autox and track days so I want as much as it can reasonably handle.
What are the major pros/cons over the Coyote vs a SBF with fuel injection (assuming both are well built from scratch - not donors)?
I realize this is a SPF thread but what are your feelings about the SPF vs. FFR or BDR? Please, no bashing, just your honest comparison if you've got experience with more than just SPF.
So besides the above questiosn, the only other one I'm trying to figure out is which engine and tranny package I should go with:
* I want it to look good
* I want it to be 500+ hp
* I want it to be reliable
The last question is from the guys that have SPFs, what options do you wish you had gotten and/or wish you had not gotten in your cars?
Looking forward to your thoughts,
Thanks, Brian