Driving impressions of an ERA 427 Cobra

[fdjake]

Hi Folks....I'm a new guy here and just wanted to give some impressions of my ERA 427 Cobra. If you agree GREAT....If you don't...GREAT....I stopped debating on internet forums a long time ago...It's a waste of my time....Enjoy!

Let me give you a little background. I'm a real estate developer and have owned a lot of interesting cars over the years...Nothing too crazy, but a nice variety. Including...Various MGB's MGA's Triumph's, Porsche 911's, a Porsche Speedster replica (Beck)..Vintage Mustangs, Jags, 240Z's, and I'm sure a bunch of other stuff I'm forgetting.

Here's what I've learned over time...

A new to you car is like a pair of new jeans...They don't feel comfortable until you get some MILES on them. I'm always sceptical of a new car owner going on and on about how great his new "whatever" is and then 6 months later it's on Ebay...I'm not knocking that in anyway...Hell, I've DONE THAT!! But over TIME you learn to temper your reviews.

So....After all that BS...Here it is.

First impressions....

This car RIDES a hell of a lot better than I ever thought it would or COULD. My son mentioned that he liked the ride better than my 85 Carrera...I agree with him. The ERA is a very well damped car...Bumps don't upset it....It just swallows them up and moves on. Also helping here are the ERA seats which are a work of art...Not because they LOOK good, but because of what's INSIDE...You can FEEL those rubber strips the seat foam is suspended across. This is NOT and easy or cheap way to build a Cobra seat...But it's the ORIGINAL/EXPENSIVE way and you can feel it when you drive the car. Very comfortable! My Beck had fiberglass shells with foam over them...Those seats absolutely SUCKED for anything over a 20 minute ride.

Handling....I was suprised...The car turns in nicely, it corners very flat and after a few days behind the wheel you sort of get use to that massive amount of horsepower under the hood. The steering is light even with the big engine and big tires...Having said that as a new owner, I compare this car to handling a LOADED SHOTGUN....Perfectly SAFE, as long as you RESPECT IT and don't do stupid sh** while handling it. This car will rip your head off in a SECOND if you don't respect it....Let me clearify that statement. This is NOT a scary car to drive...It can cruise along easily in 4th gear (toploader) on back roads and just lay back.....OR....It can rip your arms off...Your choice....Choose wisely. But REMEMBER.....Any car can do that to you....Get a Toyota Corolla going 100mph on a back road and the results will be the same...The COBRA will just do it FASTER!

Other observations....This sucker is LOUD...Side pipes on race cars (which this is) tend to do that...If you want quiet...Buy a Lexus...I can't even HEAR my wifes RX-350 running. But I don't get in that car to take it down my favorite back road either. ERA sells a quiet side exhaust...If anyone here is running a set I'd love to hear from you about the difference those pipes make. My neighbors would LOVE it too!

So......Here's what I can tell you.....My BECK Speedster was fun...But it felt like a kit car.....This ERA feels like an E-TYPE Jag with BIG BALLS. It's smooth, rides really nice, can be brutally fast, is always beautiful, and man...It just feels GREAT to get in this thing and GO!!!!!