ERA Owners- Time to Nitpick!

[SSSammy]

Originally Posted by cobraviper_99

Downside? Yeh, the funky driver's side parking light that's tilted down a little. Maybe that's been corrected by now.

Nope, they didn't even change it for the Gen II 427 body! When I was up there last year, I asked Peter why they left it that way and all he said was it relates to the original AC body that they used as a form. I think it is like a beauty mark. They all have it .. and you can instantly tell an ERA 427 from any other make if you know ...

Sam

[cobraviper_99]

That's a riot! I may have this wrong but I'm pretty sure the original street 427 that Peter owned for a long time, CSX3252, had a light front-end hit and that was the body that was used for the ERA molds. My CSX is #4252 and as a tribute to all the ERA 427 cars, I briefly considered having the guys at Shelby angle the left-side parking light down when they did my car, but I chickened out.

[xracerbob]

I just noticed this over the weekend. I thought the lens was loose, but it wasn't and then I started looking and comparing the L and R parking lights. Another bit of character that ERA does not charge extra for!

[patrickt]

This shot that I posted a couple of days ago for the "Slowww Drivers in the Left Lane" thread shows it nicely. It's almost like a "droopy eye."

[Grubby]

I purchased #178 last Winter. The original owner had installed a Corvette rear and the car only had 300 miles on it and was not even close to being sorted out.

Peter answered several prepurchase questions and then when I got the car home the guys at ERA answered numerous questions and fixed me up with all the parts needed to put the correct Jag based rear in the car. They even made a special run or rear closing panels to replace the ones that had been "modified" for the Corvette rear. #178 now looks like a proper ERA, and is an absolute joy to drive. I put 600 miles on it in one month of driving.

Peter even remembered the original buyer, and noted that he was frugal and had the Corvette rear in his garage and was going to use it.

I plan to order a new ERA in the near future.

John

[Kramer]

Patrickt - havent had the time to get to the charging issue yet....still trying to find time to get the speedo working right. The car is not the issue...just trying to find the time.

Kramer

[snakebitekit]

ok, really nitpicky, my car an FIA came and I was in awe, the finish work just on the gel coat was great and I hear it is even better now. The nitpic, the manuals could be a little sharper and a little more clear in the discriptions. I was sent the wrong the page for my dash wiring and spent several needless hours trying to figure it out. Had I called or emailed first, as I I finnally did, the error was noted and an email several hours later with the correct set. Everyone makes mistakes.
Other than that when going to a Cobra meeeting and I look at the other cars I am soooo glad I spent the extra monet to get the top of line (imho) fiberglass car.
The service has been great, when mistakes were found, they readly respond and and take the time to talk to you instead of trying too jump off the line.
The nit picky stuff is just that, would I do it over again, you bet.
I am still in the build stage, all painted, wheels, wiring, almost everthing, just waiting on the motor, a 347 with webers. I can hardly stand it now being so close. I bought it with the frame powered coated, and the body bonded,with that they wired the most of the car and installed the doors, windows , trunk, windshield, that for me is the only way to go. All of the spaces between the body and the opening items were even and well matched. All I have to do is reinstall after the painting. Trunk lid has been reinstalled and it was a snap to get back to the original mounting.
Good luck, build it the way you want it, not the way someone else expects it.

snakebitekit

[Snakebit]

I can not say enough about ERA. The quality of the kit and attention to detail is excellent. The wiring diagram was excellent. Turned the key and everything worked. They answered all my questions and returned all my phone calls, not that I made that many calls. Purchased their FIA car as a roller with the competition brakes, ERA rear, and sway bars. I did the paint and prep myself. As far as custom work all I asked was that they did not cut the holes for the defroster vents as I did not get a heater. They just did a car with computerized traction control, polished aluminum panels computer controlled fuel injection, the works. Not my cup of tea, but that shows you they will build anything you want. Good luck on your decision.

[fkemmerer]

Just to add to everyone else's comments on the quality of ERA's cars. If have found their cars to be outstanding and among the most accurate replicas that are available. In my case, I really want to build an autherntic Big Block car and I chose the ERA 427SC because they were hands down the best manufacturer for what I was trying to do.

- Fred

[Chaplin]

I've said it before, ERA is the single best company that I've ever dealt with- regardless of the industry. They make a first class product, the people you deal with are extremely responsive, helpful and knowledgeable about their product. And, as other have said, they are also very flexible and will do as much or as little as you want them to do. Plain and simple, they make a first class product and have the customer service to match.

As for the nitpick, here goes (and I've mentioned this to Bob a few times and I don't think he's changed it yet!)- the nut that goes on the inside rear stud of the driver's side seat is a pain in the ass to get on because you need to squeeze your fingers between the bottom of the floor and the top of the frame rail to get the nut started. If you've taken your seats out, you know what I'm talking about. Other than that, I have no complaints at all.

If I were to do it again, the only thing I would do differently would be to order the ERA rear with the outboard brakes.

[jagxjr5012]

I was fortunate enough to see Freds #753 when I was at ERA and I don't think it gets any better than an ERA !! Looks absolutely beutiful Fred!! Love the color !!

Mike

[strictlypersonl]

Chaplin,

The problem is that the rest of the car is so easy to put together, you guys get all flustered with a little challenge.

Next year we'll have an open house where we teach how to put a washer, lock washer and nut onto a hanging stud with one finger, while lying on the floor with the dog nuzzling your crotch.

[PatBuckley]

My ERA (#535) - was the best Cobra I have owned. I would do another ERA in a heartbeat.

Bob, I had no idea you were so kinky. I usually let the girlfriend do that.

[fkemmerer]

Originally Posted by jagxjr5012

I was fortunate enough to see Freds #753 when I was at ERA and I don't think it gets any better than an ERA !! Looks absolutely beutiful Fred!! Love the color !!

Mike

Thanks Mike. ERA builds an excellent car. They were also very flexible and helpful in customizing my build. I elected to do a number of things that were non-standard for ERA:

1) Custom build electronic EFI setup with traction control. ERA helped be engineer this system, created a custom driveshaft and wiring harness to support what I was doing, built special panels and mounts to allow me to completely hide everying, etc. Way more than you can expect from just about anyone else.
2) I polished all of the aluminum panels on my car. This was a logistical problem for ERA as they had to give me the panels ahead of time, store them in polished format when I was done, and go through the grief of assembling the car in way that did not damage them. Again, the results were excellent.
3) I wanted a set of custom polished stainless steel lines on the car. ERA provided me with a set of their original so that I could get these made.
4) A high capacity fuel system. ERA did custom modifications to their gas tank, created a hidden mounting location for the fuel pump and filters, and installed extra large feed and return lines on the car.

The following are a few pictures of all of this work. As you can see, the custom work the Doug, Bob, and others did at ERA was really outstanding. I've done quite a bit of custom car work over the years and I have not seen better workmanship anywhere.

The finished car. Note how straight and accurate ERA's body is. They have some of the best quality fiberglass and body components that I've seen on any replica.

Some pictures of the custom work ERA did to allow me to do a completely concealed installation of the EFI system and electronnic traction control on my car. The second picture shows the custom driveshaft and sensor setup ERA fabricated to support the electronic traction control on my car.

The authenticity of ERA's car is apparent everywhere. The engine bay and interior are two good examples. Note the footboxes, throttle linkage, correctness of the firewall and electrical system, and underhood aluminum in the engine bay. ERA also does a good job with details in the interior like the dash layout, rollbar showing inside the cockpit, downtubes between the dash and the tunnel, etc.

Finally, here's a few pictures of the aluminum work in the car along with some of the things that ERA did to help hide the custom fuel system and electrical components:

If you choose an ERA, I am sure that you will be very pleased with the result.

- Fred

[jagxjr5012]

Fred
That looks unbelievable !! Thanks for sharing the pictures !! Is the car home now?? Great Christmas present to yourself !!

Mike

[fkemmerer]

Originally Posted by jagxjr5012

Fred
That looks unbelievable !! Thanks for sharing the pictures !! Is the car home now?? Great Christmas present to yourself !!

Mike

Mike,

Car is with Ron Randall at Metal-Morphous, Inc getting a final color sanding and buffing. Ron did the body work and paint on my car and he also did an outstanding job. It should be back in the garage sometime after the first of the year. The car was actually my christmas present 2 years ago when my wiife decided it was a good time for us to build another car. The whole project took about 2 years to complete. Thanks for the nice comments!

- Fred

[ZOERA-SC7XX]

Originally Posted by strictlypersonl

Chaplin,

The problem is that the rest of the car is so easy to put together, you guys get all flustered with a little challenge.

Next year we'll have an open house where we teach how to put a washer, lock washer and nut onto a hanging stud with one finger, while lying on the floor with the dog nuzzling your crotch.

I glued the washers and nut (like the Nascar wheel nuts) together and still busted my nut getting the thing on. I actually had to do it twice, as the shifter I originally installed didn't work right and I had to remove the seats & tunnel to replace the shifter body. Other than that, order the car bonded and painted and all the options you buy come installed. You cannot beat that with a stick.
Buying an ERA is like buying a custom taylored suit. It's made for YOU! Buying a brand X is like buying off the rack. You get what you pay for. Good luck.

[RICK LAKE]

Chaplin Michael Last time I saw you at Washingtons crossing, your where in the light heavy weight divison for cobra owners. There was a jar of KY jelly in your glove box. Being you are married with 2 children at both a very young age, and the fact that there is little room in a cobra for fun stuff, the question is, what is the KY for???? Rumor has it you needed it to get your butt into your car. Grease up the hips??? Any way, Mike have a good Christmas and Happy New Year. I already sent Mr. Jim Holden a seperate letter of the same questions and retorques. Rick L. Ps weight is down to 235. Pss I am also about 10 years older than you. I passed 50 a few years back. LOL

[WarrenG]

The only nit-pik I had with my FIA was the seat tracks. I had to pull them and shim the slides to get them to interlock properly. Other than that the car has been trouble free for 5500 miles now. The only thing I might consider changing if I had it to do over, would be to consider the TKO 600R with a 3.31 rear end instead of the standard 600 with the 3.54.

[FrankJohnson69]

Warren your car is incredible and drives just as well. Ain't nuth'n wrong with what you've got!