[olddog]

For auto-cross the tires and chassis are more important than the engine.

For the average guy who just wants to have fun, the flatter the torque curve on the engine the better.

More CID and less cam is the easiest way I know to get a flat torque curve. A 351 Windsor aftermarket 4.125 bore block and a 4" stroke, would be my first pick. The heads make the engine. I would have to give that some thought. Craft sells a special CNC ported Brodix head that would be high on my list. Brent Lykins in Kentucky would be happy to custom build you an engine.

I have watched a lot of Cobras run at London Ohio Cobra show, both at the burn out runs and the Auto-cross. I see a lot of Carb problems with fuel sloshing away from the jets during acceleration and cornering. Some go so rich the pipes are pushing black smoke. You just don't see that with EFI. A good multi port EFI solves all types of problems. It can also be used to flatten the torque curve by pulling a bit of timing to kill some power at a midrange, if you desired.

Experts on here have done some pretty fair tests and proven that a carb will make more power than EFI. I do not understand why, but I do not question their attempt to do a fair test. I do not think that matters in your case, as you could easily build more power than you can use. You want good drive-ability.