Factory Five?
 

Anyone here have any experience with the FFC's?

I have a dream of a Porsche and a Cobra next to each other in my garage.... also might be a way to keep from trying to make the Porsche fast.

Thought I'd ask here.

Last time I checked (years ago) the Factory Five used old Fox body mustangs as a parts bin (made them popular/affordable), so it may look the part but......................

It would be interesting to hear about the changes, assuming they have been keeping up on them.

It’s usually a better deal to buy someone's partially completed project. There’s a lot of them out there. Check out the classifieds on the factory five forums.

If you ever decide on a manufacturer, lots of replicas show up for sale on Cobracountry.com .

I am partial to ERA for several reasons but FF is pretty popular.

I agree with you on ERA. Any of their Cobras and even their GT40 are almost indistinguishable from the orig. Not so with the others.

One very cool kit FFR does have is their ‘35 Ford truck. THAT I’d have no problem with in my garage. They even offer a steel body.

Except for the steering rack, there is very little on any of the FF kits that comes from the Mustang parts bin. The foxbody steering rack has been a hot rod staple for decades. Cheap, small and light and easy to graft into any number of projects make it a pretty easy choice.

But what? If the parts meet the specifications to handle the loads being put on them by the vehicle, what does their lineage matter?

I built a FFR several years ago (over 10 actually)to race instead of my 911.
It was the spec racer so i had to build it to certain spec.
When i finished it, i was only able to take it to the track once before it ended up becoming the product of a divorce sale.... It was alot of fun on the track and was fun to drive on the street as well....http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1553480776.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1553481130.jpg


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1553481216.jpg

A friend of mine built the Facotry Five 33 coupe. It has won several car show trophies (like nearly every show he puts it in).

It is really well executed.

Their Cobra has progressively moved up market, higher cost kit, slightly more accurate result.

They've made a Subaru based kit to take the place of what the FFR roadster used to be, but no longer is.

Their "truck" is intriguing.

I know if I wanted to do a specialty custom "car" a vintage styled truck body would be a top choice.

https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-conte...9/CAM12487.jpg

How about this bad boy ? WOOF ! :D If I ever won the lottery would have to consider this one or a Superformance .

https://www.kirkhammotorsports.com/

Superformance is the South Africa manufacturer as I remember. Very high quality. One of the local guys here has a Dayton Coupe Superformance made machine. It is just amazing quality.

The show on Auto-biography was on about the real original Daytona Coupe. It is easy to tell it was not a pristine perfect car. It looked like it had a long life as a race car, and of course it did. It is hard to believe it was sold for just a thousand bucks once.

I have a deep seated urge to buy one of these Factory Five kits and finish it as a daily driver.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1553531309.jpg

That is a great looking car, but I bet it would suck big time to drive as a daily.

I guess with enough work and money a quieter muffler and a little softer suspension set up for street use and some creature comforts would be helpful. I do know that with the engine right in your lap they get real hot inside real fast.

You might want to take a ride or drive one before committing.

Check out https://www.ffcars.com/ I bought my Mark 1 off the site and later sold it on the same. Great cars,
I prefer the under hood looks of the older V8 engines more than the 4.6 ones,
Plenty of power from the 5.0 but if you want to pass everything but the gas station get the 427

clubcobra.com will get you a lot of information.

If you want an accurate replica Kirkham is the best out there since they make the bodies for Shelby. ERA is accurate for a glass body. JBL is a pretty trick race car that looks like a Cobra. FFR used to be the inexpensive, close enough replica but they have come a long way from the early gen cars which used a fair amount from the Fox Mustangs, including the rims.

There is a guy in Shasta Lake that has a coupe as his DD and likes it a lot. He has long since retired so if comfort were an issue I am sure he would complain about it.

I guess the question is how accurate do you want to be and what do you want to do with it.

A long time ago, FFR didn't have a very good rep.

They've come a long way since then and are pretty good at it now, while still keeping costs reasonable. AFAIC they know what they are doing and are doing it well when so many others have failed before them.

But if cost were not a major issue and performance were, my first choice would be superformance.

Thats where i sold mine as well..

I Dont really agree with that statement. The only ones who really had bad things to say about them where from owners or fans of much much more expensive cars. The quality of the build has always been dependent on how well the owner built it...Some were and are built poorly by there builders, but the FFR parts have always been solid.

Superformance as you know, isnt a kit car. Its built in Africa and then only the motor is installed stateside. So everyone is essentially professionally built.....

My dream car. I want to build one up with a Mazda 20B dropped in.

It would be my middle finger to the V8 swappers.

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similar:
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No O'ffense, but that isn't zackly accurate.
We've had this same conversation several times over the years, and every time I explain that I got that info from a book called "The Complete Guide to Cobra Replicas". IIRC it was volume one or two.
Back around 1999, I was seriously researching which cobra kit to buy.
I bought that book when doing my research.

There was also a placed called cobra City, a shop that bought and sold cobras and also raced them.
I knew the guys who worked there and they knew me.

I see no need to rehash all that. FF makes a fine car and has for a long time.
BUT, when FF was in it's infancy and had not developed they rushed a car to production before it was ready.
They survived and improved and got a whole lot better.

Well Sammy, the original poster asked if anyone here has any experience with FFcobras. As a owner and builder of one, i have that experience. Didnt get it from reading a book, got it from putting one together, driving it and also taking it to the track. But, your right, no need to rehash all of that. FF makes the BASIS for a fine car and has for a long time.

My brother has one, with a stroked 302, 347ci. Mustang 5 spd transmission, straight axle. He says it rides too stiff, very hot (temp) with side exhaust, but it's a rocket. He said if he drove one first, he wouldn't have bought one. That was his opinion. I enjoy my 993 cab, just saying.

He can try different springs and dampers?

Tire pressure?

Ride too stiff can be fixed.

Heck, my experience with my lowered Corvette Z06 is the difference between taking my breath away on the bumps and being comfortable was just swapping to a seat with a thicker, softer, and springier cushion.

This is my buddy’s FF Rod...

33 Hot Rod - Tecmotion Chassis Dyno

I did a factory tour, was all set to buy one before things went haywire at home.

I am most impressed with th for car frame and safety
they learned a lot from their spec racing series

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Most replicas ride fairly stiff but some QA1 or other adjustable dampers would help. The spring rates aren't that high but the dampers are usually pretty stiff. Maybe because of the limited travel. My Shell Valley is really no stiffer than a firm sports sedan, but it does crash pretty hard over big bumps in the road because of the limited travel. he may want bump stops if he goes less firm on the dampers.

From an early FFR model.

Body Work

http://www.chuckbrandt.com/seams.jpg