SN95 Moo-stang SVT Cobra as a track car?

I'm thinking about expanding my search outside the usual track cars as I do seem to have trouble finding "nice enough for me" examples of the usual suspects. I know these things have a bit of a reputation as flexible flyers and the IRS ones aren't much good for drag racing, but what about using the late 90s non-supercharged one as an occasional track car? I'm assuming I'm still talking suspension upgrades, brakes and subframe connectors.

And yes, I have read the GRM guide in the recent issue...

While I have owned a number of Mustangs they were all FOX chassis ones. That being said the one thing that I do know about the late 90's version of the Cobra's is that the diff. lube in the IRS gets hot when the car is run hard. Due to the fact that the amount of fluid is less in this diff. plus there is no place for the lube to get cooled like in a stick axel where the axel tubes act as a heat sink to absorb heat from the lube. The solution is a diff. cooler but that does add weight, complications, and cost.

You can get by without one by not running 100% all of the time and using high quality lube, and changing it more often then you normally would.

I though the SN95 is pretty much a Fox body with a facelift?

Also, anybody got any input on Fox body SVOs? Although those might be out of my budget.

I have a buddy running a terminator as a dd and track car. He has good fluids in it and its mostly stock besides Good pads and rotors.

Only issues he's had is boiling the brake fluid, termis are heavy and he's pretty aggressive. It was solved with a fluid change.

I'd run it with sub frames and brakes and call it good, maybe address the diff fluid but I hadn't heard about it overheating, then again most of the Cobras i run around with are more drag/street oriented.

Good news is parts are cheap as they used the Same platform from 79-04 and a cobras starts with most of the good parts.

I like the new edge stangs but couldn't live with one because I despise the cable clutch. Its sad that a clutch good for 700 ft/lbs in my t56 isn't as stiff as astock new edge clutch. Probably not a big deal if you're used to cable clutches.

The sn95 chassis has a few differences from the fox, it's stiffer, the brakes are bigger and there all 5 lug. There then that its basically the same car just much much better looking IMO.

There are 3 cobras that your going to be looking at if your shopping for one from the 90's. The 94-98 cobras come in 2 verities the 94-95/ 96-98 and then there's the 99-01.

The big differences are

94-95

look just like a v6 except for the cobra front bumper, special "crab claw" rear spoiler and there is no 3rd brake light in the trunk. Also they came with a special wheel package.

Performance wise it still has the old pushrod 302 in it,comes with iron gt40 heads,special intake manifold, 1.7 rocker arms, and a special cam. They where rated at 240hp and 285tq but most seem to dyno at around 280whp so many believe for under rated the hp.

96-98

As far as looks, it has a awesome hood, same cobra front bumper, COBRA rear bumper, different tail lights and different wheels.

performance wise your looking a DOHC 4.6 v8 rated at 305 hp and 300tq. I don't have alot of experience with this engine i'm a sbf fanso i can't commpent to much on it but it does weigh more then the sbf and they allwas seem to have more trouble at the track then there push rod counterparts.

Also both these cars are running struts up front and a SRA in the back with the same factory 4 link as the fox bodies.

99/01

The 99/01 cobras are the most unloved cobras of all, they have irs but uses the weaker 28 spline carrier and axels that snap if you even think about using an aggressive tire and going drag racing.

There rated at 320hp and 317tq but there where so many problems with the 99's when they came out that ford did a recall on them replacing the intake manifold (because of a bad batch of castings), catback exhaust and retuning the car because the power was so much lower then advertised. They then skipped the production of the 2000 model "base cobra" in the use US and re-released it again i 2001 with most of the issues sorted out.

Don't get me wrong the 99/01's are great cars there just over shaded by the mach-1,03-04 cobras and the 2000 cobra R

I was thinking mainly about the 99/01. There also appear to be a couple of Mach 1s for sale down in the Bay Area but they're a lot more expensive as as I'm not planning to go drag racing I don't think I need to pay the additional premium.

A good option could be a 96-98 cobra with a maximum motorsports kit.

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/4327972096.html

Opti wrote: I like the new edge stangs but couldn't live with one because I despise the cable clutch. Its sad that a clutch good for 700 ft/lbs in my t56 isn't as stiff as astock new edge clutch. Probably not a big deal if you're used to cable clutches.

I've owned two Fox bodies, and currently own a New Edge. The effort for a stock cable/quadrant is extremely reasonable. Most aftermarket clutch cables/firewall adjusters/quadrants are junk, swap it over for the stock or Maximum Motorsports setup and you'll be amazed.

My '92 notch had an aftermarket setup where the pedal was ridiculous, I went with the MM setup and pedal effort went back to normal. I've commuted in all of mine and hit stop and go, so if pedal effort was bad, I'd be complaining...

All you need is set up a hydrolic cylinder then do this:

http://www.blueovalfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?p=30414

This is what ill be running on my t5, im not sure if it would work on a t45. Ive never liked the feel of cable clutches, always preferred hydraulic

Caleb wrote: The 99/01 cobras are the most unloved cobras of all, they have irs but uses the weaker 28 spline carrier and axels that snap if you even think about using an aggressive tire and going drag racing.

I believe only the 99 uses 28 spline axles and the 01 got 31 splines.

dj06482 wrote:

Opti wrote: I like the new edge stangs but couldn't live with one because I despise the cable clutch. Its sad that a clutch good for 700 ft/lbs in my t56 isn't as stiff as astock new edge clutch. Probably not a big deal if you're used to cable clutches.

I've owned two Fox bodies, and currently own a New Edge. The effort for a stock cable/quadrant is extremely reasonable. Most aftermarket clutch cables/firewall adjusters/quadrants are junk, swap it over for the stock or Maximum Motorsports setup and you'll be amazed. My '92 notch had an aftermarket setup where the pedal was ridiculous, I went with the MM setup and pedal effort went back to normal. I've commuted in all of mine and hit stop and go, so if pedal effort was bad, I'd be complaining...

The only ones Ive driven were stock and my two friend's cars that have the Maximum Motorsports setup and they tell me its way better, but it still feels overly stiff to me, and is the main reason Im shopping for an S197 now and not a new edge mach 1 or cobra.

It's funny, I don't think my Mustang's clutch pedal effort is any higher than my E36 328is or my Camry 5spd. The manuals I've owned have been roughly split between hydraulic and cables, and I've never developed a preference either way...

I tracked a '98 Cobra for a few years and although the suspension leaves much to be desired it's a blast of a car to drive. The 4.6L block of aluminum up front is heavy and I went through a few sets of brakes pads and tires a year. My short list of absolutely critical upgrades would be SS brake lines, good brake fluid, subframe connectors, rear lower control arms and a panhard bar.
I had the above plus the Ford OEM Bullitt suspension package (front/rear struts/springs and swaybars). While it helped the overall attitude of the car the shocks appeared to be slightly underdamped for the spring rates and the Bullitt front sway bar was a little aggressive - my initial understeer actually worsened. Maybe sticking with the stock Cobra front sway would have been more effective?
It was a great car and I miss it but definitely not the fastest on the track - Ford's decades old suspension design played a huge part in that. My SVT Contour was loads faster on the track but there's nothing like revving the piss out of that V8.

Is the IRS Cobra worth seeking out over the earlier ones? Just asking as a '95 Cobra has shown up on CL a few miles from here.

I'm no expert on the IRS ones but there has been more aftermarket development on the solid axle rear models. I believe Kenny Brown had the best track stuff for the IRS while Maximum Motorsports has the best (at least in my opinion) for the other models. I know the 99 and 01's had issues with the rear axles snapping while drag racing. Personally I'd love a '95, last year of the pushrod engines. There's a lot that can be done with that platform and I'd build a '95 R clone if I had the money.

95's are great because there is a plug-and-play Megasquirt available and the engine/suspension is extremely well developed. Solid rear axle is perfectly fine for track work when set up right. Also OBD1 = no emissions in most places.

SlickDizzy wrote: 95's are great because there is a plug-and-play Megasquirt available and the engine/suspension is extremely well developed. Solid rear axle is perfectly fine for track work when set up right. Also OBD1 = no emissions in most places.

Why bother putting Megasquirt on a Mustang? The OBDI ECU is extremely tuneable as is.

No emissions is nice but we have that here anyway. I might go and have a look at it. After all the 302 has a reasonable supply of speed parts...

Good luck! I just passed on a 1998 328is with full M suspension and brakes today, really thought I was going to get it. Found a 1994 Mustang GT on CL for a pretty decent price that I might seriously look into...

Hmmm, Not sure what your looking to spend but I have a 94 cobra that I plan on selling this spring. It is a stock engine low mileage example and in almost perfect condition. I've owned it since day one and am ready for a change.

Will wrote:

SlickDizzy wrote: 95's are great because there is a plug-and-play Megasquirt available and the engine/suspension is extremely well developed. Solid rear axle is perfectly fine for track work when set up right. Also OBD1 = no emissions in most places.

Why bother putting Megasquirt on a Mustang? The OBDI ECU is extremely tuneable as is.

The 94-95 use there own unique ECU that is not obd1 and is imo much worse then the previous fox body ecu. Ford loaded a less aggressive map on the standard gt's to help avoid warranty claims,(idk about the cobra) one of the many reasons the 94-95 gt's make less hp then the fox's. Your only option for tuning them is to go with somthing like quarter horse or get a mail order chip.

Caleb wrote:

Will wrote:

SlickDizzy wrote: 95's are great because there is a plug-and-play Megasquirt available and the engine/suspension is extremely well developed. Solid rear axle is perfectly fine for track work when set up right. Also OBD1 = no emissions in most places.

Why bother putting Megasquirt on a Mustang? The OBDI ECU is extremely tuneable as is.

The 94-95 use there own unique ECU that is not obd1 and is imo much worse then the previous fox body ecu. Ford loaded a less aggressive map on the standard gt's to help avoid warranty claims,(idk about the cobra) one of the many reasons the 94-95 gt's make less hp then the fox's. Your only option for tuning them is to go with somthing like quarter horse or get a mail order chip.

What's the advantage of Megasquirt over Quarter Horse (I know a lot of people who use QH)?

The QH looks like a daughterboard that plugs into the ECU and plays "piggyback" in there. The Megasquirt is a full standalone, which tends to give you more freedom mapping the car as you're not trying to fake it for the existing map in the ECU.

rustybugkiller wrote: Hmmm, Not sure what your looking to spend but I have a 94 cobra that I plan on selling this spring. It is a stock engine low mileage example and in almost perfect condition. I've owned it since day one and am ready for a change.

Can you message me?