Project-Obsessive Compulsive Disorder! Full Cobra Build.. Lots of *PICS*

[HandsomeRob]

Hey Dudes!!
This is my first build ever. For those of you that already know me, I am very particular and have a horrible sickness called OCD. I'm very particular and try not to cut corners. It makes my life pretty miserable but my projects turn out pretty damn legit. lol
I am a perfectionist and i'm pretty anal about cleanliness.
Kind of excited to see the outcome.
I will give you a little history on my car before I unload all the pictures.
I am the second owner of a beautiful 1997 Cobra. I purchased the car 2.5 years ago with 37K original miles and now the car has 41K. The car is flawless and has been garaged for most of the 12 years. I now keep it in my buddies Hangar along with our other toys at a local airport and work on it every weekend.

The reason why I started this project in the first place was becuase of a leaky oil pan & I was pushing my stock bottom end to its limits at 480RWHP. Pretty much pulled the pin on a grenade and was waiting for some sort of explosion and an oily mess on the pavement. I've been saving my money and I decided to start a one of a kind build.

OEM B Head work to be done by Ron @ FoxLake Racing:
Stage 3 CNC 5 Axis Port & Polish
SS Ferrera Valves
Bronze Valve Guides
Titanium Valve Springs & Retainers
Stock 97 Cams
Every bolt replaced with ARP

OEM Short Block work to be done:
OEM Teksid Block-.10 over
9:0-9:5 Compression Ratio
Forged I or H Beam Rods
Diamond Pistons-Ceramic Top Coating/Teflon Side Skirts/Notched
Possible Stroker Motor-Not Sure Yet
Every bolt replaced with ARP
ALKY Control Meth Injection[Dual-Nozzle]

My goal is 600-650 RWHP
I will be using a Vortech V1 Si-Trim with an Air to Air cooler.

Every OEM bolt/nut/washer on the engine and suspension has been replaced!! I'm not kdding either. Almost every single OEM bolt has been taking off the car. This is what took me the most amount of time. I've been working with Dave over at ProWeld on sizes and thread pitches.
Pro Weld Performance Parts
All the engine bolts are Allen Head Stainless Steel and all the suspension bolts are Allen Head Grade 12 Black Oxide.

Just about all old and new parts have been powdercoated. I've spent over $1200 in powdercoating. Nothing in my engine bay will look old or worn out.

Here is the eye candy!!
Right before the start of Project OCD

And the fun begins

All recyclable trash:rockon:

My OCD Table's full of top of the line HP Parts epper:
BGG 8 Rib Setup with 10% Overdrive Crank
Vortech Si-Trim with huge Turbonetic's FMIC (3.1" Ultra Grip Pulley)
"Big Red" Bypass Valve(Open)
60# injectors
Accufab Race TB
Custom Anderson Power Pipe Powder-Coated Silver
Custom Oil Catch Can
Red Monster's COP Harness
03 Cobra Coils
etc

IW 10% Overdrive 8 Rib Crank Pulley

Set of 03 Cobra Valve Covers purchased from SVTP Member 03DSGSnake

Had them powdercoated Ford Wrinkle Blue through Action Powdercoating

Canton Power Steering Res. -Before-

After

Bung welded on Canton RR Pan for Blower Return
Oil Pan was then fully flat clear-coated to protect Zinc Finish

Intake Manifold -Before-

-After-

I even powder coated my EGR Valve silver and flat black.

Coolant Crossover Tube "Head Cooling Mod" -Before-

Powder-Coated and Clear Coated. New Sensors and XRP Fitting -After-

Some of the Stainless Hardware & XRP Fittings

More Stainless Hardware! ;-)

Maximum Motorsport K Member Package (Street)
Powder-Coated front Sway Bar and Sway Bar Brackets
Bilstein HD Struts w/300lb Springs

Grade 12 Strut Bolts and Nuts

Grade 12 K-Member Bolts

Brand New OEM 04 Cobra Rack and Pinion from Tousley Ford (Thanks Steve)
Grade 12 Steering Rack Bolts
MM Bumpsteer Kit and Solid Rack Bushings

MM Caster Camber Plates

Power Slot Rotors
Hawk HPS Pads
MM Steel Braided Lines
Speed-Bleeders
New Motorcraft Hub Nuts and Hub Dust Caps
Stainless Steel Guide pin and Anti-Rattle Clips
New OEM Powder-Coated Dust Sheilds
Powder-Coated Spindles
Powder-Coated Cobra Calipers and Brackets (Color-Mirror Red) (Thanks Mike from ThePowdercoater.com)

New Timken Hubs with ARP Studs

Suspension and Brakes all Installed

-More pics and More Install-
-Continued on Page 5 Post 108-

 

[scottg]

Good God man, should've just bought a brand new car. lol

 

[HandsomeRob]

No New cars for me bro. I need a project to work on or else I go insane. I plan on keeping the car forever so it's a good investment.

 

[hittinboost]

Wow OCD is right! Looks like it's going to be a sick build!!

 

[HandsomeRob]

Yea. I cant wait to get the motor built.

 

[03 DSG Snake]

You're a sick sick man, can't wait to see it done. :rockon:

 

[Ciotti]

This is the best build I've ever seen. I'm the exact same way too, **** new cars I'd rather find an older car that I love and blow TONS of money on new parts to turn it into my perfect monster.

 

[HandsomeRob]

You're a sick sick man, can't wait to see it done. :rockon:

Sometimes I wish I would of never started this project.
The more you get into it the more $$ it cost. This whole thing started over a leaky oil pan. I just wanted to change oil pans and I ended up doing a bunch more. Lol FML

 

[4vRedone]

Looks like its going to be lots of fun have you ordered the bottom end yet?

 

[HandsomeRob]

Looks like its going to be lots of fun have you ordered the bottom end yet?

Not yet. I still have to get the old crank and pistons out before i send the block in. I'm going to get the heads done first then do the short block. Im short on cash at the moment:nonono:

 

[HandsomeRob]

I'm still contemplating using my OEM strut bar or buy a MM Strut bar

 

[AZSN95SNAKE]

that's brilliant! that is going to be one clean build. so much attention to detail, its the most detailed build I've seen.

any chance you could get some exterior shots of that beauty? side shots maybe? thanks if you can!

 

[encasedmetal]

You should really paint the engine bay while the motor is out- especially if everything else if gonna look new

 

[bornatiger]

Rob, the tranny and rear-end are feeling neglected! Just sayin' :thumbsup:
You are insane, sir!

 

[CrispCobra95]

Sick bro, sick.

 

[AntiHeightPunk]

i have come to the conclusion that if you plan on spending x amount of money multiply it by two and thats how much it will really cost.

 

[Tabres]

And I thought I spent a lot of cash on my car... Wow.

Absolutely outstanding build though. This one will be fun to watch. I love all of the stainless allen head hardware!

You should really paint the engine bay while the motor is out- especially if everything else if gonna look new

I thought the same. Wire tuck and smooth the engine bay.

i have come to the conclusion that if you plan on spending x amount of money multiply it by two and thats how much it will really cost.

Yeah, probably pretty accurate.

 

[Helomech74]

I would rethink going .030 over bore. When you strip the block down, have a machine shop do the work and only have them remove the bare minimum needed. You might be able to get by with something as minimal as +.005. Always remove the least amount needed just in case you need to do it again later on. If the block is in good shape, you might not require any work in which case you can run standard bore pistons.

 

[SVTurbo 98]

Nice build! It seems you suffer from the same sickness I do, lol. I look forward to seeing more progress pics.

 

[HandsomeRob]

You should really paint the engine bay while the motor is out- especially if everything else if gonna look new

I was thinking about doing this but paint always seems to flake and chip later on. Honestly, the engine bay is so clean there is really no need for paint. I dont mind all the wires either. I'm definitely recovering the entire engine harness though. All new wire loom and harness tape!