Drivability for high hp Cobra

whipple1raptor

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Hi all.... the cobra goes in for surgery next week for the GEN 4 Whipple 2.9 and I’m going E85.

I’m concerned about the drivability of the car. I figure to be around at least 750rwhp.

I have never owned a vehicle with that much potential of being at that power level.

I’m worried about the drivability of the car. Currently the car sits at 450rwhp.

Curious to know your experiences with high hp cars and or cobras specifically.

It’s a pure street car. Will probably never see the track.


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GodStang

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Depends on the overall build not just power levels. Depends on the tune. Depends on your driving ability. I have a cammed, stroker,high boost car and it drives just fine. Would I daily drive it? No! Can I drive it when ever I want with zero issues? Yes.
 

olympic

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Driveability can suffer if you go overboard with the cams. Most other things can be dealt with by your tuner.
 

Weather Man

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#1 on not going with stage 3 cams. I put stage 3 on my 730 RWHP 3.4 whipple 3V and had 8-10 inches of vacuum at idle and it sucked for street driving. Dialed back to stage 2 cams and 18 inches at idle made it night and day. I also switched back to my ID1000 from DW1500.

Step up to a twin disk clutch too, my SPEC stage 3+ failed rapidly when I bumped up the HP.
 

Bdubbs

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LoL you should have really thought this through before ordering all the parts.

In saying that, plenty of people making 700+hp and driveability is like stock. Like other's said, it's all in the tune and cam selection.

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94slowbra1

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Almost done tuning my gen 4 2.9 crusher and drivability is just as it was with the 2.3 tvs, 2.3 whipple and stock eaton. If anything I have found my e70 tunes are smoother than my 93 tunes. Like others have stated, dont do crazy cams and the rest is in the tune.
Dialy driver, absolutely not. Can drive when I want, yes
 

brigs

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OP, do you have supporting mods already done or being done at the same time? Suspension, tires, etc.? I consider those part of the bigger driveability picture. Is this a daily or an extra car?
 

BlckBox04

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I have 0 issues on the same set up. Very streetable as long as you're not driving like an idiot.
 

whipple1raptor

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OP, do you have supporting mods already done or being done at the same time? Suspension, tires, etc.? I consider those part of the bigger driveability picture. Is this a daily or an extra car?

Before getting the blower I was trying to prepare for the increased HP.

I had the car lowered, went to 10.5 for the rear wheels, went to Nitto NT01’s all the way around, went with the stifflers FIT system subframe connectors. Only other thing that I didn’t do is the brakes which I’m a little worried about.

This is not a daily driver.


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01yellercobra

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I daily drove my 01 Cobra when it was around 600rwhp. Still knocked down decent mileage and I could creep through traffic with the best of them. Granted it was a 5.3 engine with Ford GT cams. So I could lug it down to 600rpm with no issue. It never bucked or fought me on the take off. After I put the F1A on it was more of a nice day driver. But I'd still drive it to work once in a while. I worked on base for a while and my buddy told me he could always tell when I was coming around the corner because he'd hear the blower before seeing the car.

More of a concern would be traction. I ran NA for a while so I had some crappy Sumitomo tires on the car. I put a T trim on it and after it decided to change lanes unexpectedly when I punched it I went back to drag radials quickly. Decent tires are a must when you get up there in power. As well as being aware of your surroundings. If I punched it getting on the freeway I would be well over 100mph before the end of the on ramp. Things happen a lot faster at those power levels.
 

c6zhombre

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If you check these 5 things off....your drivability will be factory like:

-factory heads
-factory cams
-RXT or DYAD clutch
-state of art fuel system
-experienced E85 tuner
 

94slowbra1

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800hp also needs some supporting mods: trans upgrades, cooling (both engine and i/c), idlers and tensioner, exhaust, brakes, chassis stiffening, fuel system, and irs).
I love my new 2.9 but there is a lot that goes into keeping the car together and you safe. im sure the stock long block can handle it for a while but everything else should be upgraded to handle that type of power and tq
 
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c6zhombre

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OP - have you ever driven a car that's going to be this powerful? A RWD, ancient chassis, no computer aid, massive low and mid range TQ hit monster......you had better be ready. You can have every piece of the component puzzle added to the car, but it's really up to YOU to keep it out of a ditch or into oncoming traffic. That car is going to be a major handful any time you squeeze the trigger, and the back end rotating in front of the front end is a nanosecond from happening.

If not, I would have suggested a 600hp setup to get you some experience.
 

whipple1raptor

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What’s planned during install are: cooling upgrades, idlers, tensioner, fuel system, tuner that only really works on mustangs will also probably do upgrade alternator.


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whipple1raptor

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I have a full exhaust. Borla Attack and full length American racing headers


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whipple1raptor

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OP - have you ever driven a car that's going to be this powerful? A RWD, ancient chassis, no computer aid, massive low and mid range TQ hit monster......you had better be ready. You can have every piece of the component puzzle added to the car, but it's really up to YOU to keep it out of a ditch or into oncoming traffic. That car is going to be a major handful any time you squeeze the trigger, and the back end rotating in front of the front end is a nanosecond from happening.

If not, I would have suggested a 600hp setup to get you some experience.

Most powerful.... was my 2017 Gt350. I also had a Shelby GT that I added a Whipple to back in the day. The tuner is supposed to be one of the best.


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c6zhombre

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Most powerful.... was my 2017 Gt350. I also had a Shelby GT that I added a Whipple to back in the day. The tuner is supposed to be one of the best.


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Get a pump 93 tune along with the E85 tune. Use the pump gas tune as the training wheels.....it should be mid 600s and a lot less dramatic low and mid range TQ. Once you feel comfortable, swap the pulley, drop in the E85 tune, and practice throttling the car at a really safe area.
 

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