satisfaction rating for 03' cobra

[soniccobra 03]

satisfaction rating for '03cobra

I have a cobra on the way soon.So I was Just wandering what your opinions are on the total quality of our cars.

 

[harry gilbert]

I only rated the Cobra a "7" due to what I percieve as poor quality control: thin paint, wheels improperly balanced, failure to tighten screws and bolts during assembly. Don't like the way traction control defaults to "on", and the wimpy fog lights. I found the transmission to be somewhat balky and hard shifting, although that's getting better. I'm disappointed in the quiet exhaust, and the dealers' antagonistic attitude toward any type of mods.

On the positive side: it goes like a bat outa hell, and handles well.
Overall, I love the car. Now if it would ever stop snowing, and get above freezing, I could take it out of storage.

 

[StickyFinga]

Only problem I have is that the brakes aren't vented very well.

 

[DD2000GT]

9 - THIN THIN THIN paint (shame on Ford) Everything else is GREAT in my book for a $35k car.

 

[Pyro]

taking into consideration the cost of the car compared to the level of performance....(a.k.a. VALUE), I gave it a ten. You'll have to consider that I've owned many mustangs most of which were Cobras. This is by far the best one yet and certainly has the best value. This isn't saying that it's cheap but consider the types of cars everyone is comparing it to: BMW M3/M5, Massarati, Z06... These cars cost much more. Yes, they are higher in quality but the performance is what I am measuring since that is what I bought it for. Others may rate it lower because of comfort issues and quality details. If you know Cobras, those items are usually sacrificed for the sake of performance. Motor Week actually stated that the cheap looking interior and trim could have been upgraded to match those of expensive cars but Colletti's goal was to keep the price as low as possible. With this in mind, I would rate it at 10. In other words, you should know what you are getting into and dont expect "the Ultimate Driving Machine". You should expect "the Ultimate Bang for the Buck" in performance. Upper class performance at a middle class price.

 

[SVTDAN]

I voted 9 for many of the same reasons I think everyone else will. Poor craftmanship: Paints defects, poor finish on rims, poor door alignment.

IMO however I can live with all that stuff and/or fix it myself which I have done. Just keep bringing that raw power.

 

[donaisenbrey]

---8--- I like everything except the "sloppy drive train"..............Don

 

[03DOHC]

I gave it a 10 for it's good stock performance and outstanding performance potential for the money, which is why I purchaced it.

 

[rskdsk]

I gave it a 6 because of all the issues I have had. new motor at 2K, 3 flywheels, 3 clutches, vib, pull, tick. Usually, I would have given a car with this many problems a -10, but the horse power to money ratio, the great dealer attitude (buying back car and getting me a new one) still has me hoping for a great car. Like a freind (vette owner) of mine said " You mean the cobra can now keep up with a vette, what's this world coming too."

 

[ygohome]

depends on what you are comparing to i guess. my jeeps have had less rattles in the interior haha

But the performance is definatly a 10
looks are about a 7 or 8
interior is about a 6


sorry for the negative vibes

it is a muscle car though so if i keep that in mind it is a 10 all around

 

[davidmax]

Very satisfied,a large %ge of my car is far from stock and when done in 2-3 weeks (if I dont die of waiting) the car comes back from SHM for there suspension ,Gen7 computer and I let them install and tune the ATI race blower.Even though I have a nice size shop we are Chev oriented,10% Ford and thats with 0 parts sales,we have gotten so good at the 600 rrwhp on pump gas SHM stroker kit that and some 4:10's are a wild ride to say the least.We have 2 in the mid 10's.
Mine will be the 1st with the D seiries procharger and will flow 30 lbs of boost at 7800 rpm.If there is a ton of lag I will run a nitrous 75-100 hp dry kit.But with the Eaton it was hard gripping at 548 rrwhp so I dont forsee lag as a problem.Quite the opposite we will be retarding timing for 100-150 ft. and then full advance the Gen7 computer is very versatile and allows super trick tunning.
The extra few cubes (318 ci) make a huge tqe. differance and with the ATI should be quite an animal.Im looking for single digit times with a real driver behind the wheel.me very mediocre in my drag ability.
The suspensions real trick and not designed for the 1/4 but will pull in excess of 1g lateral acceleration.All in all as a car a stock one I rate it a 9.I dont compare it to my BMW but I do compare it to my twin turbo Z06 and Vettes in general.The paint on the "Stang is world class compared to the Vette and at least its only 1 color the Vette is mish mosh junk.The ammount of power available from the little 4.6 is amzing afew bucks puts you close to 475 at the wheels.
I believe as a fun car this is the best piece of metal to ever come from Detroit bar none,what else can compare.To get over 500 rrwhp is cheaper on the Vette,we have our share of 750 hp cars that are very civilized,but that is not the norm.
The "Stang for 2k will give you 475 with a real Dyno Tune,the Vette for 2k will go380 and thats on a Z06.To get 550 from a Vette is a simple ATI bolt on 8k and your at 550-600 depending on fuel but a safe 550-570 on 91 octane.To break 500 rrwhp on the "Stang would take a Fuel system,A Blower I believe I wouldnt run the Eaton at Hi speeds for to long it will burn up with a 16k rpm red line,some people are spinning em close to 30k,about 17-18 lbs. of boost.You would need the Kenne bell or ATI so about 6k for that and I dont know how much else for install, injectors,but I believe you can get equal results from the ATI or KB upgrade and run 550+ on pump gas with changing out the fuel delivery system.
So I believe the only 2 cars that matter are the Vette and "Stang and putting 10k into a Stang your at 45k VS putting 10K into a Z06 your at 60K a nice 15k differance and then the other dietary staples would be big brakes,shocks,springs,bushings,frt sway bar and all the chasis components needed to go and stop fast under Control with minimal effort.
The Vette at 600 ponnies will always sound more civilized,my "Stang sounds like a pro stoker and rumbles the earth at Idle its not civilized but we all need a Pro Stock sounding car,I have switched to walker turbo mufflers and I havent heard them yet but it should be a bit quiter and with a 3" system and the Kooks 1 5/8 long tubes they lay down POWER I highly recommend them.
I have another stroker I will be building in about 6-8 weeks I have all the parts all I need except the time to do the job,we do great work and we are booked till June.Look for us next month on the cover of Vette Fever Magazine,and than a 3 month portfolio of our work to follow.All avge. 600 rrwhp cars all super civilized and all 10 second street emmisions legal cars.
I vote the Cobra as the best buy of the 60's through the 21st century and I look foward to the opptty. to work on many,we may have to expand again this time if its a 5th bay its a new shop with a cool landlord hope he's resonable.
ENJOY YOUR SUPERCARS,Dave S.
PS.With the Stang and the blower upgrade your at25-30 lbs. boost with the Vette your at 7-8 Lbs..In my twin turbo I run 5-7 low boost,9-11 mid boost and 1 Bar(14.7) hi boost.I have squeezed 19 lbs.,maybe 21 lbs.and that puts it well over the 1000 rrwhp range and about 1200+ lbs of tqe at the wheeels,talk about 0 hook up.Yet its still fun to eat Supras from 50-200 you just loose "em at about 160,they seem to really loose steam at about 180-185.Dave S

 

[BOOOOST]

I voted a "10", even though I know it has its quirks. The is the best value for performance that I've EVER seen!

 

[bossvt]

I rate it a 10 because there is no way I can spend that kind of money and ever admit it was anything but perfect for me.

:thumbsup:

 

[ArizonaSnake]

I gave it an "8". I am ok with design decisions (cheaper interior etc) but I am not with quality control. Poorly assembled is poorly assembled. Panels not lining up, loose bolts, etc.

Trying to give bang for buck should not include shoddy workmanship.

That being said, I love the car, it is an animal. Very happy that I got it.

 

[JSHTROD]

Originally posted by ArizonaSnake
I gave it an "8". I am ok with design decisions (cheaper interior etc) but I am not with quality control. Poorly assembled is poorly assembled. Panels not lining up, loose bolts, etc.

Trying to give bang for buck should not include shoddy workmanship.

That being said, I love the car, it is an animal. Very happy that I got it.

I feel much the same way....

Interior quality sucks. It's noticably cheaper than the 98 cobra my wife drives. Hell.... even the leather is MUCH thinner (I'm thinking the alcantra is cheaper than hq leather).

I really wonder if the 03 will hold up over time...

That being said...

The suspension is fantastic, power is amazing, and it's a very comfortable car to cruise around in. Mileage sucks... but it IS supercharged (it's even worse than the 98... and that has 4.30's!)

 

[03 Red Cobra]

I give it a 7. Poor door/fender alignment is just plain unexcusable in todays world. That's just poor quality control at the assembly plant. I spent 5-6 hours fixing the misalignment problems myself because the local dealer made a puss when I asked them about doing itand there reply was, " Well, it's a Ford, what do you expect". I told him I expect better for 35 G's. Plus the windshield cowling was misaligned, again, I fixed it myself. But I think a 7 fits the overall car.

 

[ygohome]

OMG DavidMax! you are out of control! COOL!

 

[SoCalBlk03]

I voted a 9, my only legit complaint is the domelight buzz, everything else is my fault.

 

[03CobraBro]

No complaints here...
==============================================
Looks sharp as hell

runs strong as hell

mods well

No vibes or ticks

Interior is sharp and decent enough quality.
(Iv heard guys complaining about poor interior quality in the vettes too, bottom line is we drive american production cars, not handbuilt ferrari's/lamborghinni's. Though I dont have any problem with the quality of our Cobra's interiors, if you guys do, why didnt ya go buy a 70 thousand dollar M3/M5 or 100+thousand dollar Mercedes sedan/roadster that performs up to par with our Cobras? [See what im getting at??])

No flaws in the paint that I'v noticed yet (and thats damn good because there is ussually always atleast 1 mistake somewhere on almost every factory paint job Iv seen on any car thus far)

 

[dun4791]

I gave it a 9 we dont want someone at Ford to think that they dont need to improve quality do we..

Paint quality much better than my 01
I for 1 think that the interior is way cool and nice looking in our cars
And the drivetrain..well you know