[BBC71Nova]

Interesting story from last night. We went down to the local cruise-in last night. Plenty of cars. Maybe like 100 to 150 cars worth looking at. Only 2 Cobra replicas there, 1 Unique and 1 Classic. There were plenty of '60s - '70 chevys and a few street rod type '30s-'50s cars. Well, I ran in to the guy that is supposed to be painting my car. Long story short, he tells me another 1.5 weeks before he is ready. At that point I am pretty pissed and asking some of the owners who did their paint work so I can get a more reliable painter so maybe this year I can get my car done . I mean, what do you have to do to get decent service these days . Anyway, I approach this guy who has a nice, suicide doored, chopped top, fat tired, with a big block chevy in what is obviously a fiberglass replica of a ~'32 Chevy. Awesome car by the way. So I tell the guy he has a nice car and ask if he could tell me who painted it because I was new to the area, building a Cobra kit car and didn't know too many people in the business. I ask him if his car has a fiberglass body because I have found that don't really want to mess with kits with fiberglass bodies. He says yes it was fiberglass but in a less than friendly manner made it very clear that his car wasnt a "kit". So I decide to feel it out. I ask him what chassis it sits on. He says that a guy in I think North Carolina builds the chassis and the body came from somewhere else. So, sure sounds like a "kit" or "replica" to me. Fiberglass body, non-original chassis, hand built. I see no difference between those cars and our FFRs. Some people I guess. Being into cars sure exposes you to plenty of different types of people, especially here in Alabama . Haven't met a single FFR owner that is like that yet. Guess that is what I like about an FFR. Can't say the same about some of the other "Replicas". I just can't wait to get mine completed....big block or small block, "kit" or "not kit" my FFR will smoke his arse either way . Anyone with similar experiences?

See you guys at the fling. No FFR though. I will be the idiot in the black Firehawk(can you say donor car ).

John

 

[GregR]

I was talking to a younger guy last night, he wanted to know if my car was a Superformance. I told him no it was from Factory Five Racing. He then asked if I had a 427 in it. I told him that it had a 5.0. He said that was too bad, the 427 is a better motor and 302s sucked. He then tried to tell me all Superformances had 427s. I corrected him and told him most replicas don't have 427s and some of the origanals didn't either. At that point he said "what ever", I guess he had enough of the conversation. I then asked him what he drove. He said a '99 Eclipse. Figures .

Greg

 

[Ophitoxaemia]

there more than a few eclipse turbos that can dust most of our cobras off to 60. not saying he was one of them, but dont get caught looking if you dont want to.

cheers!

-james

 

[Micobrael]

YEP! I know exactly what you mean. I think at the next Hot Rod Nationals here in Kalamazoo MI. I'm going to set up a small stand and sell that Dr Suess book about the Sneetches some had stars and some didn't, Do you know the one? There are fewer and fewer of those old cars laying around and even when they do find an original, if they make a hot rod out of it, It's value as original just went down the toy-toy(toilet). The value is in the eye of the beholder HHHMMMM sounds like us eh. That guy you ran into is sorry to say typical and they really need to get a reality check! I just tell them "at least mine isn't eye candy" "if that's what you wanted then you should have took a picture and framed it, it wouldn't have been such a waste of money" and thats were you should mingle back into the crowd.

 

[Micobrael]

Hey check this out! I just thought of this. If FFR were to split into two companys then the body Dave could make and the frame Mark could make then our kits would not be kits. We could say there original replicas. HAHAHAHAHA I don't think FFR would want to rattle any more chains. But hey I am only using there own LOGIC!

 

[Dave Sheehan]

You had to get me started,didnt ya!!I can tell you the same story(except for the paint part) I dont know what it is, I think its is Cobra Envy
We are no diffrent than any one who builds his
or her's own car and most of these Hotrodders
didnt even build the thing in the 1st place
Now I know That a lot of FFR guys had there car
built for them but I know they are not going around talking trash about others rides not everyone has time to do that! my point is even if we bought all the parts for our cars from 8 diffrent venders they would still
bust our balls somehow a fiberglass 32 ford is
a 32 Ford..But a fiberglass 65 Cobra is a Fraud
I have NO problem telling these guys where to go
and have several times and will have to again
But I realize that down deep they really like
my car and it pisses them off like spoiled little
kids!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ June 17, 2002, 06:06 AM: Message edited by: Dave Sheehan ]

 

[Dior55]

I've encountered this at the shows too, and I think the whole concept of "kit car" is what throws most of the rodders off. An uninformed person, rodder or not, thinks that a "kit car" is the Fiero "change the fenders, chop off the roof" true "kit", where, after your all done doing what your doing, you still have a car that looks like a Lambo but runs, handles and performs like a stock Fiero (if you didn't f**k it up it the process!!!)

It may be, as to why so many have this negative Cobra idea, with the advent of the FFR "single donor" concept, people think that a Cobra is a kit (i.e. take the fenders, doors and roof off a Mustang, add some plastic crap and viola, a Cobra!) I can't believe how many people make the comment about the car being "re-bodied" and their genuine amazement that the car has it's own tubular steel frame! It's quite possible that FFR's competitors have spread rumors in their unified sales pitches to sway the customer to buy one of their kits. I've even heard owners of non-FFR Cobras tell people "yeah, there is this small company up in Massachusetts that takes a Mustang and you rebody it, but it's not a REAL Cobra like this one" (duh, reality check, Mr. Unique owner!!!)

It's obvious to anyone remotely into cars that a '32 Ford (kit) is not a rebodied '67 Galaxie so the pre-judged idea doesn't enter the picture. The rodder doesn't have this image of taking body A off a chassis and adding body B, so noone thinks of the word "kit".

In the end, life's too short to worry about someone's prejudice toward the car you happen to like.

I still have to laugh when I'm at a show and some guy will get all excited over my car and inevitably ask "is it real?" When I say "no, I built it myself", the next two comments go something like "wow, I can't tell!" and then "even though (it's not REAL) it's still nice!"

 

[Alain V.]

I keep a little album with some build pics in the trunk of my FFR. The very first one is of the bare chassis and the next is of it as a "roller" w alot of the aluminum on it.

Folks are usually really impressed to see how it is under the skin.

Alot of the streetrod guys around here are pretty cool. Especially when you take one for a ride.....
Usually the first thing you;ll hear is,,,"geez, my 32 doesn't ride nearly as nice as this!",,,,,, then if you get on it just slightly you'll hear something like, "dayaaam,,you sure that's only a 302 in there??"

The chrome plated sissy T-bucket "mine is better than yours" guys are a-holes and always will be. I just don't bother with them.
I have to deal with enough idiots at work everyday....... When I'm out playinging my cobra- I tend to ignore them.

oh-I was cruising around with my daughter yesterday and a kid in a riced out nissan honked & gave me a thumbs up.
(so I smiled & waved back at him)
Looks like even some of these guys are smarter than the chromed tunnel ram with dual 750dps on a 8 to one small block chevy crowd.

At least the kid in the little nissan appreciates a cool looking car when he sees one & isn't afraid to admit it.

 

[BIGMIKE]

I have run into the same thing. It is annoying.

It is great to take the unsuspecting for a spin around the block with my "302". Nothing better than nailing it from a 3rd gear roll and pinning the back of their head to the deck. All while they are asking "What's that funny noise when you shift?" (Blow - off valve)

Gives them a newfound respect for a little 302.

John - now that I have all of the bugs out of mine we need to get together. Turned the boost up from 8 to 10 lbs this weekend - WOW what an improvement!

Mike

[ June 17, 2002, 10:10 AM: Message edited by: BIGMIKE ]

 

[Sleekcraft Steve]

Alain, you must have loved that scene in the Gumball Rally when the Cobra driver yanked out the entire steering column on "the chrome plated sissy T-bucket" (that's a good one

).

 

[Platinum]

Fact,
There are more registered '32 to '34 fords today than was produced by Henry Ford.
Hmmmmmmmm!

 

[Alain V.]

I also really like the part when the T-bucket guy shows up and the cobra driver says, " That has got to be the ugliest car I've ever seen. "

Too bad car movies are nothing like gumball rally & lemans anymore.

 

[GregR]

Looks like a jukebox.

 

[todger]

It's not just the streetrodders that are snobs. At Carlisle I was talking to a man from Superformance. He drives the trailer truck to shows. I was working the gate so he didn't know I was building a FFR or even a customer.
He started out with "Superformance is not a kit like FFR." Theirs you only have to supply the engine and transmission. I asked the price and he said about $36,000, without the engine and transmission. Sounds like a kit with a different stage of completion.
I don't know why folks can't appreciate a vehicle without catagorizing.
I enjoy them all! In fact I saw a VW Bettle today, that the guy cut 24 inches out of the middle. Making it a two seater. I stopped to tell the guy he did a great job.

 

[TennLee]

Its not always that way. Sunday I took FFR2294 to the local charity Euro Car Councours, as a spectator vehicle. The car was swarmed! Everybody was very complimentary of it, a replica, no less. That from guys (and gals) who brought 930 Porsches, Ferraris, and old Jaguars.

Lee

 

[slipp1229]

Lee,

Everyone knows TN (and KY) folk are the most polite people in the US. Come on up to Detroit for a rude awakening...

Slipp

UK Grad.
TN someday

 

[Jack ffr1846]

Detroit Rude?!

C'mon. Boston invented and patented Rude. But of course we licence exclusive use to Long Island.


That's what gives the Ford Tempo driving dude the right to walk away dissapointed when he finds that there's not a 427 under my hood.

jack "I can't complain...I have a Cobra!"

 

[Chuck Robertson]

A couple of weeks ago My wife and I went to a Car Show and Arts and Crafts show combined. This show was a charity event for St Judes Ranch which is a local orphanage. We did not plan on entering the show but for a $30 donation we got a good spot to part the car while we went to the craft show. The judges for the show were the best, the kids from St Judes. They picked the 15 Coolist Cars from over 300 entries in the show. Their were some really nice rods in the show, rods that cost alot more to build and probably alot more hours spent building but the kids thought that the FFR was cool. We took second.

 

[FASSNAKE]

I just had a great weekend (celebrated my 50th birthday--Iam really only 13 though). My son flew up from Ca. and we went to a car show-cruise on sat. Then on sunday we went to another larger one a little further north. We were in a traffic jam one block from the show when my volt meter went DOWN and my temp went UP. So I figured my fan belt had a problem. Luckily there was a small u shape strip mall I pulled into, behind several parked cars. Opened the hood and sure enough belt was loose. I reached down and the alternator was just hanging there! The bottom bolt had broken off at the head--BUMMER!! Sure enough people started to come over to check the car out. Most were very nice and I really enjoyed talking to them. However the car show was comprised mostly of chevys. One guy comes over and sticks his head in the engine area to see what I was doing and made the old comment, " It's a ford just get some wire and it will be fine" and breaks into a sh*t eating smile. Without missing a beat I told him the only piece on the car that was chevy was the piece of sh*t alternator bracket that broke!! My sons eyes along with a handfull of other people flew wide open and watched the guy scoot out of there. With any crowd of people there will always be an a**hole. We sill had a great time!! Don

 

[Klayfish]

Gotta put my thoughts in here too.
I've owned the two types of cars many Cobra owners seem to single out as being rude to them.

First, I owned a 1980 Corvette. I really enjoyed that car. It was a lot of fun. I tried to hang out with other 'Vette owners, but admired everyone elses car just the same.

After selling the 'Vette, I bought a 1939 Dodge 5 window coupe. All done up...high compression 327, Cragar mags, flamethrowers...the body wasn't perfect, but it still looked good. I can honestly say that I found street rodders to be a more "selective" crowd. They weren't as welcoming as 'Vette owners, but it still wasn't bad.

Now, as a Cobra owner, I can still appreciate those who have 'Vettes and rods, and I think they have beautiful cars they should be proud of.

I'm sure there are rude Cobra owners out there. We just don't know them here, because they probably don't participate in these forums. But I must say that I've found the Cobra community more friendly than anything else I've seen.

Actually, I happen to really like t-buckets if they're done a certain way. I think they're pretty cool. Imagine how fast they are. Same weight as the Cobra, if not less, and big block power.

Steve