Who has a polished Kirkham...................

ng8264723 · #1 (**permalink**) 08-20-2008, 03:19 PM

My car is ordered and going to be picked up in 10 days. I was just offered a deal on a polished version. I'm down to the wire here and would like to talk with someone who actually has a polished version. Could someone email me a phone number? chenis5950@charter.net
thanks
chris

ng8264723 · #2 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 06:09 AM

Well I decided to go for the polished version. It is to be picked up on Sept 1st. These cars add up fast I think in the last 2 weeks I added $3,800 in options. They gave me a great deal though. Oh well I can't wait until it arrives. When I first started here I asked which options were really needed. I then said I don't like bling. Well I guess I contradicted myself a little. My whole car body is BLING!!!!!!!!!! But I'm sticking to my guns. Absolutely no billet gas tank straps for me. No way.
chris

ng8264723 · #3 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 06:25 AM

Also thanks to everyone that sent me a phone number!!!!!!
chris

dlampe · #4 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 07:45 AM

So what have you found out? I have always waffled back and forth on the polished car thing. What do the owners think? Money well spent?

fast_4 · #5 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 08:27 AM

How much time does it taked to keep cars finish shined?????????

Traveller · #6 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 09:21 AM

The sun reflecting off the hood must be blinding at times. Has anyone ever painted the hood flat black? I bet that would look kinda cool.

ROSS WEAVER · #7 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 09:22 AM

I would be more concerned about being blinded while driving.

RON N BKFLD · #8 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 12:29 PM

I have over 5000 miles on my 289 car, never an issue with being blinded......Ron

Ronbo · #9 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 01:02 PM

Considering the strong sunlight here in Florida, the blinding of either myself or another driver was one reason I opted for the brushed finish.

The brushed finish will hide dings and flaws better than polished (or painted) as well. I already made the mistake of wiping dust off the car with a towel and little micro-scratches showed up in the polished stripes.

I think the brushed finish is pretty flashy as well...

hot427cobra · #10 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 03:03 PM

I previously owned a Kirkham with the brushed finish for 2 years and now own a polished finish.

The brushed finish was pretty cool and it looked OK when it was not perfectly clean. After a while it actually looked slightly oxidized and the minor scratches just added character giving it a raw mean look. Once a year I got out the scotchbrite and wet sanded the car going with the grain and it looked good as new. Other wise some warm water and a micro fiber towel to keep it clean. If need be a few drops of mild dishwashing soap in the bucket if you had some grease, tar, bugs, or general road grime to remove. That first Kirkham car was excellent and it was the best.

Last summer I picked up a new polished car. WOW! What a difference. Everywhere I go people are either taking pictures of the car or stopping to ask ... is that chrome? is that stainless steel?, etc.... It grabs people's attention more than I could ever have imagined. Way more attention than the brushed car. Even women who generally are not into cars make comments. As far as the maintenance, I still wash the car down with a bucket of warm water and a micro fiber towel. I use another micro fiber towel to dry it as I clean an area. This is the second driving season and I have a few swirls from the cleaning process. I plan to once a year get out the polishing buffer and take out the few marks that have occurred. Every so often on a sunny day I might get a little glare on the windshield from the sun reflecting off the dash board surface. No big deal though. Other than that, the polished finish has never affected my vision in driving the car and I have yet to hear any comments from other club members who we cruise with stating that they got blinded by the mirror finish. The car body has many curves with no real flat surface to bounce the light off with any great magnitude. I think being behind a pickup truck with a cab over the bed throws off more reflection from the rear window if the sun hits it just right. Don't let the worry of sun light reflection be a concern in your decision process to buy the car.

Having owned both I can say the polished car is my favorite. It is a show stopper. I am not into all the attention it creates, but it just comes with the territory. Your biggest concern might be whether you yourself want all the attention. I guess this is what the celebrities go through on a daily basis being chased around by the paparazzi. Good luck!

Mark

Keithc8 · #11 (**permalink**) 08-23-2008, 06:54 PM

I have built and owned several myself and liked them all. I have some poeple like one more than the other but I think it is up to the individual. I have a nice new Brushed one for sale right now with about 70 test miles on it ready to go and a polsihed one on the way that can be built anyway a person would like it. The Kirkham is the best Cobra out there that I have seen and the ones that I have sold have made the customers very happy. We do some things to the cars after we get them from Kirkham to try and make them a little unique from the others. Good luck, Keith

CowtownCobra · #12 (**permalink**) 08-24-2008, 07:16 AM

Polished is easier to paint.

ng8264723 · #13 (**permalink**) 08-24-2008, 10:26 AM

Polished is easier to paint.

Who wants to spend $13,900 and $2,000 for stripes to then paint it
chris

ENTDOC · #14 (**permalink**) 08-24-2008, 10:27 AM

I think he was kidding

ng8264723 · #15 (**permalink**) 08-24-2008, 10:37 AM

I realize he probably was however, one of the posters on this board had a friend with a polished car that got tired of it and painted it red. I think that's nuts but he was happy with it

RodKnock · #16 (**permalink**) 08-24-2008, 10:59 AM

I purchased my car polished from Kirkham. As probably you did, I was able to swing a deal on it. I always figured that someday that, if I tired of the polished finish, then I would paint it. Or even go back to a brushed finish. That's one reason why the aluminum bodies are great. There's some flexibility with the finish and I have a tendency to want to change things. Different strokes for different folks. Some like vanilla and some like chocolate. Others like strawberry.

I guess after all the prior "bling" comments, you finally came to the "dark side." Happiness is what counts. Congrats.

ng8264723 · #17 (**permalink**) 08-24-2008, 08:43 PM

I stand by my prior's though no billet gas tank straps or pedal assembly for me. I like steel just fine
chris

kobrabytes · #18 (**permalink**) 08-25-2008, 08:26 AM

I love my polished car, I have been amazed at the attention!

Murphy · #19 (**permalink**) 08-25-2008, 10:25 AM

You can't go wrong polished. If you don't like it hit it with some sandpaper or paint.

Slojo · #20 (**permalink**) 08-26-2008, 10:03 PM

Murphy, nice pics of your ride in your gallery. You have my dream car there, especially with the FI.

Although I own a SPF, the one place I always seem to get hit with a bad glare is from that little chrome ring around the stick shift that holds the boot to the carpet and floor. Maybe it is in the wierd position where it shoots up under my sungalsses. Who knows.