Give plenty of thought to "the look" issue. Look at loads of pictures and do a lot of research on this site. When I was first looking at making a purchase, I too was initially taken in by the stretched and bulged hot rod "cobra-like" concept - in my case, it was the West Coast Cobra product.
I initially liked the cobra-on-steroids idea and had all but decided on going ahead with the purchase when the time suddenly became right for a major relocation.
That put my Cobra buying plans on hold and to pacify my cravings, I immersed myself in Cobra research, mostly right here on this site. I hungrily amassed a lot of information and images, learning more about Cobras in one year than the previous ten years combined.
The more I learned, the less I liked the whimsical, stylistic, almost cartoonish and non-functional bulges of my earlier fantasy and the more I began to appreciate the unfrivolous, taut and athletic muscularity of the original design. A design that evolved out of the necessity of fitting a bigger engine and tires under the skin of an already lithe, handsome sports car body.
The curves and bulges are just right - not a contrived styling exercise - just pure, functional, unpretentious perfection and that look is just as responsible for the Cobra's cult like appeal as is the legendary performance it is famous for.
More is not always better and IMO, the replicas that seek to "improve" and add on to the design miss the whole point by a country mile. While they can look menacing from one or two angles, the big fat -butt-up in the air appearance is generally awkward and reminds me more of a plump, tarted-up, false everything, hooker with too much silicone than the refined, athletic beauty that the original shape invokes.
Some people like that look and love their cars and that is all that matters. I know that it would have gone sour for me over time in the same way that I am glad I did not marry the one or two over-the-top, B-movie queen type women that very briefly rocked my world and my waterbed (hey - gimme a break - it was the eighties!
).
What really defined it for me was reading and re-reading the words of Lee Iacocca (or it may have been Bob Lutz ) who drove an AC Cobra at the time. He said something like:
"There's something really special about a car with an engine too big and a body too small, causing it to arch and bulge over the mechanicals."
This long diatribe was meant in no way to denigrate anyone's choice of Cobra or Cobra-like replica. I'm just sharing my personal experience and food for thought relevant to my time in the exciting position of choosing a brand that you are now lucky enough to be in.
For what its worth, I like the ERA and SPF products and I also highly recommend that you take a good long look at Unique Motorcars. Have fun and good luck.
