Hi Brian:
Well, you have chosen two marques that oddly, are at different ends of the cost/value spectrum....
Usually folks that have ERA as a finalist also have SuperFormance in the mix.
I would very STRONGLY suggest you get a copy of the book written by Curt Scott, called _The Complete Guide to Cobra Replicas 4th edition_ you can find this on
www.cobracountry.com
Curt lists 10 steps (based upon your criteria and level of importance) that any prospective Cobra Replica buyer should go thru to help understand how to arrive at a good kit choice. This book also lists the all of the "current" kit makers and the pros and cons of each of their product offerings. Were I you, I would NOT proceed any further until you understand his perspectives on the process. BTW, Scott lists the category of price as the last of the ten categories.
I was in your shoes about 2 years ago, and very luckily I ran across a nice "used" ERA for sale here in Connecticut which I purchased. I am not sorry at all for going that route. There are some excellent cars out there from both makes you mentioned that are for sale.
From what I saw (when in the market) however, the build quality on FFRs varies quite widely from poor at the low end to wonderful at the high end with prices commensurate with the build quality. In the ERA world, the build quality was always at the high end and beyond that. However, there are very much fewer used ERAs on the market at any given time as there are less than 700 427s and less than 120 289s ERAs in existance.
There is a wonderful ERA for sale out of Texas which is in a classic roadster configuration (sans side exhasut and roll bar) which is priced very very right. You can find that post here on Club Cobra.
Good Luck and if you wish to come on down and see ERA375 and jawbone about your options further, I can arrange for you to meet me and another owner friend of mine who is an FFR owner.
You should email me.
Cheers