kit car ratings

[jmimac351]

I'm a Kirkham owner trapped inside an FFR body. I'm hoping maybe Kirkham will come out with a $20k coupon. As much I would love to have a Kirkham, knowing the look I can achieve with the FFR makes it tough to rationalize. And I am pretty good at rationalizing spending money on cars. I like "authentic" but not quite that much. I think those differences become more of a conversation between fellow cobra owners anyway. I'm not sure I would enjoy the ownership experience any more. In fact, it's sort of fun to park my car next to "better" (read: more expensive) cobras. It's fun in much the same way as passing Corvettes with my 225hp Panoz. "You spent how much on that?"

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by ENTDOC

...but my choices would be.. CSX (aluminum), Kirkham, CSX (fiberglass), ERA, SPF, Unique, FFR

In the spirit of the Holidays, and in the spirit of this thread, we'll read from right to left....

[rokndad]

Originally Posted by patrickt

In the spirit of the Holidays, and in the spirit of this thread, we'll read from right to left....

As Rodknock would say, "L'haim"!!

[jmimac351]

I was thinking "is he Jewish?". Happy Passover!

[ENTDOC]

my old Panoz will pass more than corvettes

[jmimac351]

Originally Posted by ENTDOC

my old Panoz will pass more than corvettes

Yes, but I am long on passion and short on talent. I'm converting your Panoz over to carb right now. Should net another 25-30hp. 255 screaming horses!!! Now those Miatas won't have to lift for me to pass them on the straights! Woo-hoo!

Chuck, do you realize how many Backdraft owners you offended?

[Dinobyte]

I don't think any Backdraft owners are offended. We tend not to get into pissing matches over the size and tilt angle of our rollbars like some of you do.

[jmimac351]

Uh-oh you had to go there... Put that round tube in your pipe and smoke it!

To the original poster, most of the guys I know either own an FFR or a Backdraft. All are happy. One guy owns a polished Kirkham which speaks for itself. Figure out whether you want to build a car or buy a roller then start whittling down from there according to budget / look / options. My tastes have changed to appreciate a more "authentic" look. If I were to do another car I would be looking hard at an ERA because the Kirkham is out of my price range. That is unless FFR comes out with an FIA car or 3035 replica... And wouldn't that just be great to see show up.. a digitized version of 3035 with wood paneling and corduroy carpet. "Build it like YOU want it" my azz. Ugly is ugly and it should be illegal.

[john lomonaco]

This is a picture of my crappy FFR. Everything on this car is brand new. The
engine is not a crate motor put together by a couple of illegal aliens or south africans making a few bucks an hour. It's hand built and designed by my son and I and features a new World 351 block, Crane cam, Ross pistons, Holley carb etc. I will park this car next to anybody's car and not feel ashamed. The point I'm trying to make is that an FFR build is not automatically inferior
to anyone else's car and I'm getting a little tired of feeling like a 2nd class citizen here. I applaud the beauty of Kirkhams, the originality of Superformance, Backdraft, ERAs and others but I've also seen some very nice FFRs. The main difference here is that these cars are not sold as rollers but typically hand built by their owners and build quality will vary. I have also seen some poor builds but let's not let a few bad apples spoil the bunch.

[Dinobyte]

Beautiful Car!

[RodKnock]

Originally Posted by rokndad

As Rodknock would say, "L'haim"!!

Well, I sometimes say "oye vey", but what's "El Ham" mean?

No habla espanol.

[RICK LAKE]

Dynobyte Where did that slanted chart of cobras come from?? I find that getting parts from ERA has Never been a problem. I am sure if a called the Smith brothers or any of the guys at FFR that I could have parts either next day or in 2 days. How can CS have a higher number than SPF when they are building CS cars? Track quality, Where this BS come from? Who was driving, Miss Daisy. Where the same tires on all these cars??? Fit and finish, every cobra there has some that are redone to be perfect, it depended on how much the owner wanted to go with. Someone should be questioned on there comparision of those cobras. Motors, trans, and rearend gears ALL EFFECT the way a cobra drives and handles. A car setup for street is going to drive great on the street and handle nice. A car setup for the track will handle great on the track. These are totally 2 different SETUPS for a cobra. You have cars here with solid axle rearends, Jags IRS rearends, and Ford IRS rearends. Did everybody have the same brake package?? Steering rack?? There are only a few ERA's with P/S. I own one for a reason of track racing. There is not a car on the chart that can't be assemblied in 100 hours if you have all the parts in the garage. The Kirkham would be the ONLY one that with an Aluminum body would have me taking alot more time to assembly for fear of denting the body. Who ever did this test is bais to one company. This is why this kind of carp should never be done, You can't compare them like this. Rick Lake Ps I don't know about the other companies policies for buying a car but, ERA has a waiting period of 6 months before you can even sign the papers to start doing a car for you. How many businesses have this kind of policy?? I had my roller in 3 months after I got the number of the car chassic. Rick

[CowtownCobra]

I think anytime this topic comes up the thread should automatically self destruct

[Silverback51]

Originally Posted by Dinobyte

Beautiful Car!

I agree, John's car is beautiful.

I look at Cobra's the same way I do Pizza. There's good Pizza, and better Pizza. But there's really no bad Pizza.

I bought what I liked, and what I felt was one of the better replicas available. However I would never look down on anyone elses car because of the choice they made. I don't have to feed my ego by bashing someone elses choice of vehicles.

[jackmi]

I'd like to say I'm sorry for asking, but I'm not. I appreciate all of the input. I am looking for a used car...one that I can buy and enjoy driving on the street. I like big block cars (I've had 10 big block Mustangs), a good old toploader, independant rear, throw in some original knock-offs, instruments, and steering wheel, all at a hell of a good deal. Also, a car wth good resale down the road. I haven't found my Easter basket yet, but I really doubt the bunny left me a Cobra, so the search continues. Cheers...Jack

[jmimac351]

Originally Posted by john lomonaco

This is a picture of my crappy FFR. Everything on this car is brand new.

Nice car John! I think we've managed to tamp down the irrational prejudice against Factory Five and his Peacemaker.

Jack, when you say you have a SPF, BDR, Kirkham, or maybe an ERA - people have an idea of what the car is in terms of fit, finish, dash layout / overall look, etc. When you say you have a FFR the realm of possibilities for the Finished car is endless since that's mostly up to the builder. That doesn't mean you won't find some FFRs that are as nice as some of the other Finished cars. However, if you are concerned about resale the potential buyer won't automatically know some of those things and it may take a little more work to "sell" the finer points of your car. You'll find lots of SPF cars with big blocks. Your cost to entry is going to be more but during these times you should be able to buy the car right...which helps at resale. Lots of really nice cars are to be had.

Good luck.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by jmimac351

I think we've managed to tamp down the irrational prejudice against Factory Five and his Peacemaker.

Perhaps, but the rational prejudice remains firmly entrenched.

[jmimac351]

One of these days Dave Smith is going to accommodate his "Kirkham Owners" with a digitized copy of 3035 or a nice FIA. I have a set of Webers waiting in a cabinet in the garage. I can almost hear the howling now!

[Scufty]

I think that one of the reasons that FFR gets a bad rap sometimes is that there are alot of guys going out and builing a FFR with all donor parts...I dont know how many times I have read a add for a FFR for sale that says ...mustang this mustang that ... mustang blah ....If I wanted a mustang disguised as a Cobra I wouldn't buy a Cobra. Now a Hand made done right FFR can be a beauty. They just get a little off the mark sometimes I find.

[Russ Dickey]

Originally Posted by CowtownCobra

I think anytime this topic comes up the thread should automatically self destruct

Amen - always seems to get everybody's gravy boiling. Didn't the discussion come up on here once about creating a really good un-biased FAQ response for this question?

Oh yeah, and moderators, can I get my last name uncensored in my signature? I am sorry if it offends folks, but I'm getting tired of people calling me Russ "Astersikey"