Just How Much Tinkering is Needed?

[Al G]

There have been a lot of posts lately about carb problems, MSD distributor problems, leaking valve cover gaskets, etc. How much time can I expect to spend tinkering on my engine once I take delivery? Are these issues typical or do some of our members just have bad luck?

[blykins]

Cobras are not "zero maintenance" vehicles....neither are the engines. These are all high performance engines, sometimes race engines, using all aftermarket components. Sometimes failures happen.

Some items are just a function of the engine....i.e. FE's have more troubles with leaks because of the rear main seal and the fact that the intake and cylinder head share the valve cover mating surface.

So to answer your question......some issues can be typical, some just happen because of the luck of the draw.

[lovehamr]

It's also a function of the time period in which most of the engines were produced and the technologies and techniques used to make them. Solid lifters for instance haven't been in a production car since when? 1970? I drove a Boss 302 as my daily driver until the early 90s and I have no idea how many times I've adjusted valves. So really the bottom line is either: be mechanically inclined, have your Cobra built with a new type drive-train or be well off enough to have someone else do the tinkering.

Good luck, Steve

[Tommy]

Here's my answer. Virtually every problem has a root cause. If you don't or can't find the root cause of a problem, you can spend a lot of time and money trying solutions that help but don't solve the problem. If you find and fix the root cause, each problem should only happen once. For example, I reubuilt my engine twice before I got it all sorted out. Since then (2005), it has run flawlessly. It has a carb, MSD ignition and valve covers. .... Having said all that, I must admit that on a mile for mile comparison, my Cobra is nowhere near as reliable and maintenance free as any contemporary mass produced car.

[Excaliber]

A couple of things come to mind on this issue, no particular order I guess.

One is; most Cobras don't see a lot of miles and anything mechanical that isn't used so much goes down hill just sitting there! Fuel gets old and funky and messes with the carb. Now about that carb, many guys spend a LOT of time "playing with the carb" in search of that illusive "perfect tune". As many of us are running fairly healthy "race" cams seeking the perfect carb response is like chasing rainbows. Your always "almost there, but not quite." EFI is often times much worse to dial in!!! You want "perfection" with your fuel system? Do a near stock 302 with factory EFI and computer. Ford has spent millions of dollars and thousands of hours "dialing in" the software so you don't have too. The minute you rip that out and go with a "carb" or an after market EFI system, there goes your weekends. It could take YEARS to eventually stumble on "perfection". Double pumper? Center Squirter? Center pivot float? Vacuum secondaries? What cfm? Jets? Power valve? The combinations are as endless as the world of replica Cobras!

If you don't want to spend so much time with a carb, keep it real simple. Buy a NEW (never used) Holley vacuum secondary without adjustable floats, one PV and one metering block. Keep it around 650 cfm, enjoy more weekends free. Simple and inexpensive and mostly bullet proof because there is not a lot of adjusting you can do to screw it up. Works well for most engine combo's right out of the box!

Ignition systems; no easy way around it. Subject to high temperatures and moisture due largely to the car "sitting" to much. Self wired, it's easy to screw up the wiring, it's easy to BLAME the ignition when it may not even be the problem! So that takes you back to the carb, which if it was setup OK, is usually NOT the problem. Many of these "problems" we bring on ourselves, in search of 4 more horse power...

I know a guy who has over 60,000 on his Roush 427 small block (CSX-8000 car). He does carry a spare carb around with him though. I've seen him change carbs a few times, they can be nasty little buggers to sort out. But he's clearly in the ball park, with 60K on it!!! He put a 100,000 miles on a B&B with a 351 Cleveland before he got the CSX. Built them both himself. He is NOT looking for that illusive 4 more horse, he is after smooth and long life and has figured it out, so it can be done! His car never "sits", thats a big part of it.

...now excuse me, I've got to try a new combination of power valve and jet size on my carb. I'm pretty sure I can pick up that illusive 4 more horse if I stay with it another 6 months, or until I blow up the motor,,,, again,,,

But if it does blow, thats OK, there some new combination of internal "stuff" and "tricks" I've been wanting to try out. In search of the perfect side oiler 427 stroked perfection, an illusive goal, but I'm tracking it down.

Oh yeah, CORK gaskets, I could never get the rubber ones to work. I use cork, ONCE, throw it away, buy new ones every time I adjust the valves (which is a lot actually).

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by Al G

There have been a lot of posts lately about carb problems, MSD distributor problems, leaking valve cover gaskets, etc. How much time can I expect to spend tinkering on my engine once I take delivery? Are these issues typical or do some of our members just have bad luck?

Compared to your daily driver? A shi*load. But most of the problems that I've had, in the scheme of things, are really not that bad. Actually, I don't mind it breaking down, so long as it breaks down in my garage (which it has the last two times). It's the break downs out in the middle of nowhere that's a real bitc*. If I didn't enjoy working on my Cobra I doubt I ever would have bought it... and if I did, it would of been sold by now.

[dcdoug]

As long as you are willing to learn and enjoy spending time with your car, the experience should be a good one. Lots of advice on this forum and CACC members are very willing to help out. A few of them don't work on their cars and have mechanics they know and trust as well, so there is always that option.

[Barnsnake]

I have to invent things to "Tinker" with on my car. Since it's initial shakedown period, it has just fired-up and run. Admittedly, it's not very radical and I don't take it to the track. I do make changes, but not because they're needed, just because I like to "tinker". That's why I built it in the first place.

If you have a super-radical cam and a giant chokeless mechanical secondary carb, you can spend the rest of your life chasing some almost imperceptible flat spot between 2324 and 2332 rpm on days when the temperature is 41.7-42.5 degrees and the road is slightly downhill. That's a choice, not a requirement.

In short, once sorted, you can work on them as much or as little as you like. Breakdowns aren't really very frequent, but they do make attention grabbing threads on this forum. I expect the significant majority keep the dust off their tools with periodic maintenance and "improvements".

[elmariachi]

Most of the problems I have had have been related to either the fact that I built the car (and you learn as you go) or because of my desire to improve engine performance or behavior. I will let others comment on whether or not they think its reasonable to own a big bore FE built by someone else and not have to wrench on it to keep it maintained. For me, getting to learn about the engine and wrench on it was part of the attraction. Sometimes frustrating, but always fun.

[Paul F]

Remember that these were production motors that gave tens/hundreds of thousands of trouble-free miles. The tinkering/trouble is proportional to how far you stray from a production motor. The more you stray from a mild production motor, the fewer miles it will survive and the more tinkering it will need.

[Al G]

I don't mind tinkering because I choose to. I'm more concerned about down time caused by a failure or because my tinkering screwed it up. I agree these engines ran many trouble free miles as daily drivers in the 60s, and thats what had me wondering about the rash of problems I've been reading about. Certainly those 60s engines might have been a little milder, but they also had 60s quality parts. I would hope a well built modern engine could deliver lots of trouble free miles with the proper care. I'm getting a new Shelby engine, not one with a 40 year old block.

Thanks for the comments.

[elmariachi]

Originally Posted by Al G

I'm getting a new Shelby engine, not one with a 40 year old block.Thanks for the comments.

All other things being equal, the age of the block has no bearing on how much tinkering an engine requires.

[Excaliber]

Doggone it, the dang starter drive went out on my OEM Ford starter today. I replaced it with a NAPA $50 unit, piece of cake. It's that 40 year old block that ate the starter, ya think?

Whew, sure glad it wasn't a Shelby alloy block, those require a high dollar special starter. Try getting one of those if it goes out on ya in the middle of nowhere. Me? No problem, any local parts house will have MY starter, for my 40 year old block.

[Paul F]

It doesn't matter who built your engine or how old it is, the formula is:

Amount of tinkering = HP x RPMs x hours spent having a good time

The more you get it on the road, and the harder you run it, the more tinkering you will do. If you don't want to tinker with breakdowns, leave it in the garage and it will give you endless hours of tinker free time.

If you don't mind tinkering a bit, take it out once a month.

If you really like wrenching on your car, ride it hard and often.

[elmariachi]

Originally Posted by Paul F

Amount of tinkering = HP x RPMs x hours spent having a good time

Yea, what he said.