Go Back   Club Cobra > Manufacturers, Engine Builders, tools, and parts. > Kirkham Motorsports

Welcome to Club Cobra!  The World's largest non biased Shelby Cobra related site!

  •  » Representation from nearly all Cobra/Daytona/GT40 manufacturers
  •  » Help from all over the world for your questions
  •  » Build logs for you and all members
  •  » Blogs
  •  » Image Gallery
  •  » Many thousands of members and nearly 1 million posts! 

YES! I want to register an account for free right now!  p.s.: For registered members this ad will NOT show

Keith Craft Racing
Nevada Classics
MMG Superformance
Main Menu
Nevada Classics
Nevada Classics
Keith Craft Racing
Keith Craft Racing
Advertise at CC
Banner Ad Rates
MMG Superformance
MMG Superformance
November 2024
S M T W T F S
          1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Kirkham Motorsports

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 12:08 PM
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: San Carlos, Carmel, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: Kirkham #625 427S/C, 468 ci Al block, 615 HP
Posts: 100
Not Ranked     
Default KMP625 is on the road

I drove KMP625 for the first time yesterday; first up the hill from my house a few times so if it died I could roll home. Everything went fine and eventually drove for about 20 miles. It is really awesome. The slow steering and unboosted brakes took a little getting used to but seemed pretty natural after a few miles.

The build was pretty straightforward and the two problems I had were entirely of my own doing. The oil pressure indicator problem was easily resolved once someone pointed out that pressure is measured on the return side (a bit quirky I maintain) and swapping the lines fixed the problem. I believe I was a pioneer in mounting my header/sidepipes on the wrong side of the engine in test fitting prior to install. It actually looks ok, but the mount tabs on the downtubes are 180 degrees out from the ones on the sidepipes. We chased this for days with detailed pictures exchanged and the Kirkhams made me a whole new set before they discovered what I had done. The kirkhams reputation for incredible customer service is well deserved and they were incredibly responsive and gracious throughout.

I have already had two "people magnet" events in my hour of driving. Second pass up the hill a neighbor stopped me to take a picture. He thought it was the most amazing car he'd ever seen (the canyon I live in is full of Ferraris, Porsches, Maseratis, etc). Then I went to the gas station to fill up and emptied the service bay as they had to look. I have gassed my son's FFR there many times and no one has payed the slightest attention. Funny stuff, polished aluminum.

Thanks to all of you for your help, I really appreciate it. See some of you at BACC meetings.

Mark
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 01:12 PM
Jamo's Avatar
Super Moderator
Visit my Photo Gallery
Lifetime Contributor
 
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Fresno, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: KMP 184/482ci Shelby
Posts: 14,445
Not Ranked     
Default

Extremely happy for you, Mark.

Neat thing is that the experience just gets better.
__________________
Jamo
Reply With Quote
  #3 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 01:19 PM
Senior Club Cobra Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: SF Bay Area, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: SPF #1019
Posts: 1,657
Not Ranked     
Default

Congratulations!!!
Reply With Quote
  #4 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 02:30 PM
4pipes's Avatar
Senior Club Cobra Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: saratoga, ca
Cobra Make, Engine: Kirkham #185, Shelby Alloy 482; sold
Posts: 1,190
Not Ranked     
Default

Congrats Mark, hope to see you at some of our gatherings. Do you live in Rancho San Carlos? I have a few friends in that area. If I'm not mistaken, my oil pressure is measured by the inlet to the block after the filter....I'll have give a look.
__________________
Dave
Reply With Quote
  #5 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 02:37 PM
tkb289's Avatar
Senior Club Cobra Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Cobra Make, Engine: ERA FIA 'Street' Build
Posts: 2,127
Not Ranked     
Default

Mark,

Way to go, can't wait to see it!

Congratulations!
__________________
289 FIA --- ERA 2136
Build Log:
http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/era-...build-log.html
Reply With Quote
  #6 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 08:01 PM
PANAVIA's Avatar
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: San Jose CA, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: SPF_R_/BRG/FRBoss302/327CI/FordEFI/Under_Car_Exh/
Posts: 2,523
Not Ranked     
Default

Very cool mark -- glad to hear you are rolling along !
__________________
Steve SPF 2734 MK3 / Brock Coupe #54- panavia.com
Reply With Quote
  #7 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 09:53 PM
JJCobra's Avatar
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Cameron Park, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: KMP478
Posts: 103
Not Ranked     
Default

Congrats. You are not the only one to mount the header pipes on the wrong side. I'm speaking from personal experience. It was my engine builder that had a pretty good laugh at my expense.

Jason
Reply With Quote
  #8 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 10:05 PM
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Cobra Make, Engine: KMP611 / 427SC, 427 SO/482 by Keith Craft
Posts: 17
Not Ranked     
Default

Congratulations Mark - I will put these cars up against any of my Lamborghini, Ferrari, Maserati, Bugatti, or Aston Martin on the road for attention. These cars cross all socioeconomic, gender, age and racial lines as well; everyone loves them.
Reply With Quote
  #9 (permalink)  
Old 05-09-2010, 10:41 PM
Dangerous Doug's Avatar
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Scotts Valley, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: ERA 289 FIA #2108
Posts: 1,882
Not Ranked     
Default

What? No pictures? The biggest Cobra fans are on this site, and we just get to READ about a polished aluminum Cobra?

But, seriously, congratulations. My first ride in my ERA was up my hill, just in case I needed to coast home due to some unforeseen self-induced hiccup.

I was just down in Carmel today, thinking how nice it would have been to be tooling around in my Cobra (which is all of four hours labor away from being reassembled after paint) instead of my Tahoe. Looking forward to rumbling through downtown Carmel, and then hooking a left at the bottom of the hill to skirt the shore all the way back toward the Mission. Only Mother's Day could keep me out of the garage...

DD
__________________
Dangerous Doug

"You're kidding, right?"
Reply With Quote
  #10 (permalink)  
Old 05-10-2010, 08:43 AM
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: San Carlos, Carmel, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: Kirkham #625 427S/C, 468 ci Al block, 615 HP
Posts: 100
Not Ranked     
Default

Nice to hear from all of you. I considered posting a picture, but all polished Kirkhams look alike! Dave, San Carlos is on the San Francisco peninsula, where the car will live. The downside of bare aluminum is that salty fog, a daily presence in Carmel, is highly corrosive and would quickly make it look nasty. Maybe I need a painted FIA for the coast-side. Hmmm.

Mark
Reply With Quote
  #11 (permalink)  
Old 05-10-2010, 09:38 AM
xlr8or's Avatar
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: San Diego, CA
Cobra Make, Engine:
Posts: 2,979
Not Ranked     
Default

Congrats Mark. The Kirkhams build a darn fine car you will enjoy for years. I sold my KMP almost 2 years ago and miss it dearly.
__________________
Remember, It's never too early to start beefing up your obituary.
Reply With Quote
  #12 (permalink)  
Old 05-10-2010, 09:52 AM
RodKnock's Avatar
Senior Club Cobra Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Cobra Make, Engine: KMP 539, a Ton of Aluminum
Posts: 9,588
Not Ranked     
Default

Mark, I'm about 10-15 minutes away from your "Northern" address. Looking forward to meeting you and checking out 625. You're right. All polished Kirkhams look alike. There's at least one more in Redwood Shores too.

Oh and we can't forget there's one in Woodside owned by Mr. Ellison.
Reply With Quote
  #13 (permalink)  
Old 05-11-2010, 12:26 AM
PANAVIA's Avatar
CC Member
Visit my Photo Gallery

 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: San Jose CA, CA
Cobra Make, Engine: SPF_R_/BRG/FRBoss302/327CI/FordEFI/Under_Car_Exh/
Posts: 2,523
Not Ranked     
Default

I wonder if you could "Clear Powdercoat" a polished AL car .......>?
__________________
Steve SPF 2734 MK3 / Brock Coupe #54- panavia.com

Last edited by PANAVIA; 05-11-2010 at 02:38 AM..
Reply With Quote
Reply



Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On



All times are GMT -7. The time now is 09:44 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.0
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0
The representations expressed are the representations and opinions of the clubcobra.com forum members and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and viewpoints of the site owners, moderators, Shelby American, any other replica manufacturer, Ford Motor Company. This website has been planned and developed by clubcobra.com and its forum members and should not be construed as being endorsed by Ford Motor Company, or Shelby American or any other manufacturer unless expressly noted by that entity. "Cobra" and the Cobra logo are registered trademarks for Ford Motor Co., Inc. clubcobra.com forum members agree not to post any copyrighted material unless the copyrighted material is owned by you. Although we do not and cannot review the messages posted and are not responsible for the content of any of these messages, we reserve the right to delete any message for any reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your messages, and you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s). Thank you for visiting clubcobra.com. For full policy documentation refer to the following link: CC Policy