questions about a used shell valley cobra

[cdohar]

I'm hoping to get some feedeback from Shell Valley owners on a question or two. I am looking at a used SV cobra. The car was purchased in 2001 as a rolling chassis. That's my first quesion. Was/are SV cobras available as rolling chassis and if so, any idea how much a rolling chassis would have cost in 2001? Also, this model comes with rear drum brakes which seems unusual to me. Was this standard for that time frame? Is there any concern having rear drums as opposed to the more typical setup of discs all around on this or any cobra? Any comments and thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks, Chris

[Dwight]

I don't own a SV but have worked on a few. I think they have always offered a roller. The rear drum brakes are probably standard for a lot of Cobra. Rear disc would be an upgrade. It depends on how your going to drive it, street or racing whether you "need" rear disc. Remember the drums where made for 3500 to 4000 lb car and your Cobra should be less than 2600 lbs. I think the choice of tires are more importance.
I was researching Cobra in 98, 99 and 2000. I did look at the SV but I do not remember their price. I would think $9,000 to $13,000. But the price in 2001 has little to do with today's price. Today is the day of bargains in the Cobra world.

Maybe others will post their opinions.

Welcome to the Cobra Family. If I had known about Club Cobra in 2000 I could have save thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours on my build.

Dwight

[Ron61]

I have a friend that had one back in 1998 and he got it as a kit, not a roller. I know that since then they have improved, but he had all kinds of problems getting parts to fit. Then once it was done the first few times he drove it, he was all over the road and we took it in to an alignment shop and they checked it and the frame was tweaked. He got to checking and found out that at that time they had weak frames and that was common, but I think they upgraded them a lot a year or so after he got his. And the drum brakes used to come on the backs of several of the different makes. I don't see any of them around this area any more, but the last one I saw was a lot better than Joe's in all ways. Better body, frame, everything fit well and the parts were pretty good quality.

Ron

[rustyBob]

The cars they sell today come as rollers its easier to transport them ,if all you are buying is the chassis without the body it should be fairley inexpensive,if you are buying the whole car make sure to get the M.S.O. with it if its not already registered and licensed and depending on the fit and finish and quality of the build it should be a fun car to drive and own ....if you need more info P.M. me

[cdohar]

Folks, thanks for the feedback on the SV cobra questions I had. I took a good look at the car today. I also had a chance to compare that 2000 model to another SV conra from 1994. The older model's body (fit and finish) actually looked better than the newer one. Thanks for giving me additional pointers to look at as well. Chris

[rustyBob]

glad we could help............was the one car the one on ebay(dark red with purple stripes) how much were they asking? and is the other car for sale also?

[cdohar]

rusty bob, there were 2 recent SV's on ebay. one was the dark red with "phantom stripes". that was the one from 2000 and had a 390 in it. the seller may have taken cash and a trade for that. he wanted $35k. car looked great other than a few stars in the body. there was another SV that was older, a '94. body is in great shape. the original builder opted for side pipes that were under the car. kind of a hybrid between the typical side pipe arrangement and the roadster under-car exhaust. there were no takers on that one. it may be relisted. Chris

[rustyBob]

cdohar............are you dead set on a S.V. car or are you looking for something that is complete and ready to drive......35K dosent sound to bad for that car if that is what turns your crank.......i think you could probably build one for that if you watch your pennies and do your research.i spent 6 years building mine and about 35K and look what i ended up with........or just look around and keep your eyes open and the right one will popup.

[cdohar]

rusty bob, no i am not intent on an SV. i just came upon some attractively priced cars and wanted the forum's thoughts. i have been reading and researching and seriously shopping for longer than i care to admit. it's a slow process for me, but i am getting there. by the way, building is not an option for me, so all of my shopping has been centered around used, well (hopefully) sorted out cars. thanks for your comments. Chris

[rustyBob]

Chris.......thats cool.......happy hunting and good luck.