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That's pretty awesome.
No idea what kind of number you'd end up with if you combined Lotus 7 + Caterham + Locost builds.
Hoping to get some garage time this week to start cleaning up the engine & see how it all looks. Need to pick up some precision measuring tools & check clearances on some parts prior to putting any $$ into the pricey rebuild kits.
If you saw my last post in my build, I got the keg split & now comes the dirty task of cleaning is up to see if the donor is worth rebuilding (and sourcing the missing parts like an intake manifold).
Parts availability is getting more & more scarce for a low-ish production 30 year old drivetrain & a car that's been out of production since 1992.
I did......the keg reminded me of pulling a crank damper off a 389 GTO block. Was supposed to be 130 ft lbs. Took two of us two loosen the bolt with the breaker bar & cheater pipe. Had an easier time pulling road wheels off a tank. Have two suspension parts on the Cobra I hope I never have too remove they are over 200 ft lbs IIRC
Curious, how is the stereo, on the road?
At the moment, and a ways off, I'm thinking of just a flyscreen (half height or so, which will also negate the need to implement wipers) windshield, instead of a full height unit. Probably take a bit of trial & error to find the right height for pushing the wind above the cockpit & not obscuring the sight line.
I was thinking of one of those hidden bluetooth units (or something like the vintage audio style BT units) and a couple weather-resistant (marine use maybe?) speakers, but no idea on how useful it'll be on the road.
Its good up to about 60mph then wind noise starts to drown it out. Have Bluetooth radio to hearing aids adapter which I use if on a longer drive at 60 or more. Use the screen mostly for Waze warnings & directions. The COYOTE is pretty quiet at no load cruise & very, very loud under any kind of load. Creep out of the neighborhood at fast idle.
The Throttle House guy were torn between big smiles & terrified. They called it a "Homicidal Maniac". There is a long piece written on what's it like to drive one...pretty funny.
Its good up to about 60mph then wind noise starts to drown it out. Have Bluetooth radio to hearing aids adapter which I use if on a longer drive at 60 or more. Use the screen mostly for Waze warnings & directions. The COYOTE is pretty quiet at no load cruise & very, very loud under any kind of load. Creep out of the neighborhood at fast idle.
Good to know, thanks.
I met a guy earlier this year with a 12A Rotary (converted from carb to FI) Locost. His was pretty tame at parking lot speeds, but quite loud as he took off out of the parking lot on to the highway.
The Throttle House guy were torn between big smiles & terrified. They called it a "Homicidal Maniac". There is a long piece written on what's it like to drive one...pretty funny.
Freddiehebert posted this in 2011 - Long but its really really true.
"Disrespect me and I will kill you".
Add up the following:
Roads are cold but dry
Tires are cold
488WHP on tap
Short wheelbase
Occasional puddle/run-off/wet on the road
I'll save you the trouble... it equals "spirited straight acceleration turning into a 1/2-lock powerskid don't snap the throttle shut or overcorrect keep your goddam foot off the brakes holy **** that retaining wall is close damn I saved it and need to shake the turds out of my pants" in less time than you took to read this. (and I wasn't even on it "hard")
PART 1 A reminder to all owners & a good read for soon to be's
Driving a Cobra Replica
"If you want to just gas and go, and never have to worry about replacing an alternator, or snuggling down the header bolts, or getting a wet leg driving in a rainstorm, or learning how to set your carb float level, or driving in traffic on a warm winter day
with "winter gas" in the tank, get a Corvette. "
With a Cobra Replica you have to remind yourself that you are driving a hand made race car on the street. There is no compromise for anything other than pure speed. These cars are brutal and unforgiving, with all the refinement of a medieval battle ax. Like being in a relationship with an exotic dancer, you can never take anything for granted. These cars don't have millions of miles of testing refinement before you get yours. For any trip longer than an hour, you need earplugs, and goggles, and carry Advil and eye drops. You will need to learn to "read" the clouds for rain in your path, and have experience in un-wrapping your frozen fingers from the MotoLita. You will experience lady passengers "wetting" the passenger seat when you merge into traffic from an on ramp, and then nearly burn their calf getting out of the car.
You will have all the invisibility of a burning Hindenburg, and flee from underground parking lots when uncountable car alarms are screaming your departure. When you shop, you will remind yourself that these cars get more attention than a dead body in a parking lot.
With a power to weight ratio better than almost every supercar, you will find your 1/4 mile times traction rather than power limited. On the other hand, when you stage, out of the corner of your helmet's visor you will see almost the entire audience lining up at the fence, most with cameras up. If you track on a road course with a Porsche club, owners of expensive German machines will come to the fence to watch you power out in smoking oversteer. You won't even try to start your engine in the garage, but push it out onto the driveway, else your loyal watch dog will croak from the exhaust fumes. If you idle next to other "sports" cars at a traffic light, by the green, their girlfriend will be coughing green phlegm into her hanky, yelling at her date to just go! When you refuel, you might as well prop the "bonnet" open, because you are going to have to show your motor to just about every other guy there. When you order your wings at Hooters, your waitress will whisper in your ear "take me for a ride." When you stop at the red light, the girl in the convertible next to you will invite you to "take my top off too."
When you slowly pass a troop of Harley riders, they will look over and give you thumbs up. When you want to ease out into traffic, other cars will immediately pause to let you go ahead of them. When your engine has its hot, crackling, intimidating exhaust side-pipe aimed right at the flank of the GTO, or the Z28, your exhaust pulsation's slowly unscrewing his lug nuts, the other car will remain motionless, as if the slightest quiver of his car will cause your car to stomp it dead. When you leave it open in a parking lot, and come back to find your sunglasses and cell phone still sitting on the tunnel, it is because your car has sullenly warned those who came over to admire it "touch me and I will rise up here and kill you dead."
When you put that tiny silver key into the ignition, and begin your start countdown, your car will whisper "take me for granted, and I will kill you."
When other drivers just hop in and snap up their belts while backing out of their parking space, you will still have two more minutes before you even get all the Simpson's properly on and snugged down. Pulling up in a Cobra Replica is like landing an F4U at an ultra-lite convention.
In summary, very, very few drivers want this kind of attention, or can tolerate all that a formidable Cobra Replica demands. These cars are intolerant mistresses.
But remember, there will come a day when you have to hang up your car keys for the last time. And perhaps you want to say then "I did it."
PART 2 A reminder to all owners & a good read for soon to be's
Ten Cobra Driving Safety Tips
1. The two most dangerous words in aviation are, “Watch this.” The same goes for driving a Cobra. Humility is a wonderful personal trait to have for driving a Cobra safely. If you’re not humble now try thinking you’re a hotshot driver in a Cobra for awhile – you will get humbled, as they say down south, “…right quick.”
2. “You don’t even know what you don’t know”. Huh? Well think about it – if you’re not a professional race car driver, you’re kind of out of your element in a Cobra. I saw a video of a Cobra going out of control and rolling because the driver missed a downshift at speed in a sweeping turn. This caused the rear wheels to momentarily lock up and the rear end to slide out and thus the rollover.
I didn’t even consider that as a possibility when I’ve been downshifting all this time, did you? That’s my point; I didn’t even know what I didn’t know. That short wheel base Cobra you’re driving can introduce you to all kinds of nasty things you never thought possible. Be careful out there and learn from others. The problem with learning from the school of hard knocks is that the tuition is too high.
3. “Know Thyself”, was said by the Greek philosopher Socrates. How true it is when it comes to driving a Cobra safely. I know that for myself I’m unqualified to be driving my Cobra anywhere near its performance limits. I have virtually no racing experience, very little training and I’m in my 50’s so my reactions are not what they used to be. Instead I have the advantage (I hope) of wisdom. It is said, “The superior driver uses his superior judgment so as to not have to use his superior skill.” The most important thing here is recognizing limitations, do you?
4. I saw a video of a Cobra going out of control when the passenger door was not closed properly and the driver tried to close it while underway. The lean of the body when reaching for the door caused the throttle foot to press on the pedal. Probably not a problem in a regular car but in a Cobra that does 0 to 60 in less than four seconds it’s a recipe for disaster – especially when you only have one hand on the steering wheel! What’s the lesson here? If something falls on the floor or to the side of the passenger seat from g-forces or whatever, wait until you’re stopped (in neutral) before reaching to pick it up.
5. Beware of the club ride. It could be that you will be surrounded by some guys driving bullets (it’s been said you don’t shift a Cobra – you just chamber another round) who are in denial or unaware of their limitations and driving experience. These guys and I’m including myself, have good intentions but are young at heart so the “two teenagers in a car” phenomena is in effect. You know how it goes; they say “This is so cool, let’s do something crazy!” Two teenagers in a car will do things one teenager in a car would never do. This effect can take hold in a club ride. Use caution and don’t get caught up in it. Be a defensive driver knowing someone, because of the above, may do something totally unexpected right in front of you.
6. Street racing kills. Its stupid and only the completely self-centered do it. It can kill you, or worse yet it can kill innocent bystanders. So just say “no” and go to a track. When that Viper pulls up next to you at the stoplight and revs his engine, then if you must, yell “Ace Raceway [or whatever your local track is called], this Friday, 6 PM.” You’ve just saved face and saved lives -- and I bet he never shows.
7. Take command of your Cobra. You can’t be afraid of it or else timidity will prevent you from taking the decisive action necessary to stay out of trouble. Now you must respect your Cobra, but not be afraid of it. Analyze yourself privately deep down and determine if you’re kind of afraid of the car. If you are, then its time for some professional training or time to sell the car. This is supposed to be fun and if you’re afraid of the car why deal with it, it will only cause trouble. A Cobra isn’t for everyone and there’s no shame in that.
8. Don’t let anyone tailgate you – ever. Folks behind you might want to get an “up close and personal” look at a Cobra and end up tailgating you. If you have to brake hard for some reason your car will stop much faster than theirs. You have no head restraints, virtually no crush zone and you’re basically sitting on top of a gas tank. Get the picture? Pull over to the slow lane and slow down if you have to in order to get them off your tail. Attention comes with the territory when driving a Cobra and the distractions can be dangerous.
9. Do “what if” scenarios in your head. Quickly now, what would you do if you were going down the freeway and your throttle return spring bracket let loose and you went to full throttle with no throttle control. Too late, you’ve already crashed. My answer is instantaneous and simultaneous controlled braking, clutch in, neutral gear then ignition off and coast to side of the road watching out for traffic and then and only then think about what happened. The key word here is “instantaneous”.
You can’t do this quickly if you haven’t considered it beforehand. Be graphic and realistic in your scenarios. What would it sound like and feel like if you went to full throttle unexpectedly going down the freeway? How much time would you have? My engine has an electronic RPM limiter so I’m not going to worry about blowing my engine by depressing the clutch at full throttle. And so what if I did blow my engine – my life is at stake here. “What if” scenarios are wonderful because they’re free, they can save your life, and as my dad used to say, they “tickle your brain.”
10. Don’t go for a drive in your Cobra to clear your head. Clear your head then drive your Cobra. This ain’t the car to be driving when you’re distracted.
11. A bonus tip: Have fun – safely.
12. Leave the alcohol for the end of the day. Maybe, a single beer with a meal, but no more. These cars can go from fun to "OH S*^T!!" faster then just about anything I've driven.
“There's nothing nice about a Cobra, it's stripped down to the essentials – a big engine, a small car, and four wide tires trying to keep the whole business on the pavement. It's loud, smells like gasoline, and shakes, shudders, and bucks. It makes your arms tired and your feet hot. You nearly crash about once every ten minutes. It's so damn wonderful you can’t believe it
Cobra heard whispering to the owner: circa 1963
"When you put that tiny silver key into the ignition, and begin your start countdown, your car will whisper "take me for granted, and I will kill you."
Last edited by BEAR-AvHistory; 08-11-2021 at 11:58 AM.
Making some shake down runs to see if all is well with the do over....brakes need a full bleed & the Fuel Gauge needs to be calibrated. So far so good. Quick non WOT burst hit a 3.2 0-60 according to the cars new Speedometer GPS system. Antenna is the little black lump between the rollbars. Nitto NT-01 Road Course tires grip much better than my older tires. Need to tuck chin or get a new neck.
Seems like the Darth Vader Shuttle (grandsons jet black dog is "Vader" who likes ridding in the Z4) is getting jealous of the time spent with the red car. Blipped the throttle coming out of the garage & the Z4's alarm system went nutz, horn beeping, lights flashing. Had to shut down..no hand brake... unstrap the 5 point, go into the house look for the key & shut the Z up.
Wife wondered what all the noise was about. "Nothing just testing a wire install"
^ No hand brake? Just rely on the trans to keep it stationary when parked?
Yes it's 5MT so it's left in gear. There are electric parking brake kits will/maybe get to at some point. These things are forever ongoing projects that you constantly sped money on. Have three or four things I am looking at now first will be new seats to replace the low back vintage units. Car now has to much initial punch for no neck & head support.
Good to know.
My Rotus has no provision for a handbrake as it sits right now.
Haven't investigated too far into Wilwood's offerings for an add-on solution. But I do know they have an electric e-brake option on some of their kits & have seen an add-on mechanical option from Wilwood as well.
Was just waiting on getting better solution than the pull cables. Been running the past few days & need to do a further bleeding of the brakes, still some air in the lines. Clutch has smoothed out, very strong but not as grabby. must have been a high spot or foreign matter. Combination of new clutch, tires & tune will force me into high back seats, need a head rest on launch. Hard time now will be impossible with my helmet. New package is defiantly sub 3 seconds without any nannies. Need to replace fuel level float new gauge will not calibrate. Old gauge was flakey so looks like the full instrument change caught out the float. Saves me from reopening the dash. Not a big deal part will be here Thursday.
Left access points in trunk for the sender & fuel pickup when I redid it & laid in carpeting so I don't have to drop the tank.
Took Grandson 5 going on 6 fishing in the intracoastal waterway a few weeks ago. First thing he caught was a Stingray. He thought a StingRay was gramps old car. He had a good time in a friends small Carolina Skiff, no problems getting rocked by wakes. Will take him out in the offshore boat next year. My other grandson now 25 caught a shark as his first fish. Grown-ups got nothing exciting
While we were at the beach last week the next town over Sunset Beach had a short green guy arrested for not paying his public pool admittance fee & broke the fence.
He was released on his own recognizance into a local pond for a later court date.
Meanwhile up the road at Top Sail Beach it was 500lb Hammer Head time with the EMS
Congratulations Bear! Looks stunning! Enjoy it in good health.
NOW go and slaughter a TLX-S since BMW M's are the competition.
Thank You but I don't think I am allowed to push the red Bucky Beaver killer mode M1 & M2 releases yet. They manage the two stage flux capacitor executioner system so beaten senseless is the current limit.
Thank You but I don't think I am allowed to push the red Bucky Beaver killer mode M1 & M2 releases yet. They manage the two stage flux capacitor executioner system so beaten senseless is the current limit.
Have not pushed it very much but in normal sports driving I sense it will eat the Z4's lunch, dessert, & steal its candy money. Very little throttle input in day to day driving. Thing is its a pretty big car & that will take some getting used to. A lot bigger than the 135is it replaced. The Z4 is much more agile. One of the guys with an identically spect convertible did this on Dragy in Mexico. The 0-60 run was slightly uphill.
He ran into traffic on the 1/4 mile section of a 1/4 mile run & had to brake but still did 11.40 @ 113mph. So looks like low 120's in a full run.
Will not time this one till 1200miles. The convertibles @ 503BHP, 8ZF & AWD (the only way they come) are quicker then the lighter coupes most of which are RWD & 60% of them are 6MT according to the M4 forum.. You can't get the big engine in the coupe with MT but you can get it with 8ZF & RWD. RWD is not a good plan IMHO. Major traction issues with RWD causes it to default to 2nd gear on a WOT launch with the 503. Best package for raw performance would be a coupe with AWD, 8ZF & the 503 engine.
Last edited by BEAR-AvHistory; 12-07-2021 at 05:19 PM.
Have not pushed it very much but in normal sports driving I sense it will eat the Z4's lunch, dessert, & steal its candy money. Very little throttle input in day to day driving. Thing is its a pretty big car & that will take some getting used to. A lot bigger than the 135is it replaced. The Z4 is much more agile. One of the guys with an identically spect convertible did this on Dragy in Mexico. The 0-60 run was slightly uphill.
He ran into traffic on the 1/4 mile section of a 1/4 mile run & had to brake but still did 11.40 @ 113mph. So looks like low 120's in a full run.
Will not time this one till 1200miles. The convertibles @ 503BHP, 8ZF & AWD (the only way they come) are quicker then the lighter coupes most of which are RWD & 60% of them are 6MT according to the M4 forum.. You can't get the big engine in the coupe with MT but you can get it with 8ZF & RWD. RWD is not a good plan IMHO. Major traction issues with RWD causes it to default to 2nd gear on a WOT launch with the 503. Best package for raw performance would be a coupe with AWD, 8ZF & the 503 engine.
Wow! That's incredible! certainly a beast!! Went over to bimmerpost to browse threads and saw this. It's a nice upgrade
The one I liked was being developed in Germany, looks a lot more like the traditional BMW grill.
Have not heard or seen anything since the virus lockdowns. My ideal would be a version of the Z4's grill. Major issue for me regardless is the car has custom paint. Might be a bitch to match & enough to kill any thoughts of a change.
Was tempted to put the Dragy picture up in the regular TLX forum regarding the Type-S as being an M competitor but figure I am in enough trouble over there. What is amazing to me is this is a street car, on street tires, on an unprepared surface. I have some 3.2's & better with the Cobra but am running 315 wide 100 treadware road course tires & am just about a full ton lighter. Can't match the nannies, they are just too good now. Takes a rare 100% perfect launch to break 3 seconds, maybe 1 in 10 if I am lucky. Really way to hard with a clutch & no traction.
Still trying to figure the performance stuff out. The traction control has 10 separate rates to chose from. Anything to do with performance has multi settings. Never had a car that had a "setup" button on the console right along with park distance, stop/start etc. Thought the red button was for the ejection seat
Last edited by BEAR-AvHistory; 12-07-2021 at 08:13 PM.
The one I liked was being developed in Germany, looks a lot more like the traditional BMW grill.
Have not heard or seen anything since the virus lockdowns. My ideal would be a version of the Z4's grill. Major issue for me regardless is the car has custom paint. Might be a bitch to match & enough to kill any thoughts of a change.
Was tempted to put the Dragy picture up in the regular TLX forum regarding the Type-S as being an M competitor but figure I am in enough trouble over there. What is amazing to me is this is a street car, on street tires, on an unprepared surface. I have some 3.2's & better with the Cobra but am running 315 wide 100 treadware road course tires & am just about a full ton lighter. Can't match the nannies, they are just too good now. Takes a rare 100% perfect launch to break 3 seconds, maybe 1 in 10 if I am lucky. Really way to hard with a clutch & no traction.
Still trying to figure the performance stuff out. The traction control has 10 separate rates to chose from. Anything to do with performance has multi settings. Never had a car that had a "setup" button on the console right along with park distance, stop/start etc. Thought the red button was for the ejection seat
I'm sure by next year someone is going to produce something. I'd assume IND Distribution would come out with something 1st.
SERIOUSLY??? Convertible adds some AWD stuff to the setup table
Tyranny of choice. Sport+ opens 10 levels of "M" traction control to choose from. Then there are the RWD modes which totally disconnect the front wheels from the system. Why not just do a Porsche & make the best one for the car in ECO, Street, Street Performance & Track Day?
Nice feature is the big centered tach on one setup with a shift light for upshifts. Speed, Gear selected & I think speed are displayed. Computer will prevent a money shift on downshifts. Can go to the lowest available gear by holding the paddle. Paddles are about twice as long as the ones in the Z4.
FWIW Thomas the guy on Throttle House who is a Track Attack competitor & does the track section of the videos got 4 stars on the drift thing. Loves the cars performance not happy with the Beaver Look & some of the interior. In the interest of transparency he owns an M2? Some typical YouTube BS but the actual track driving section is worth a look IIMO. Noticed I am required to bring the car in for break-in service at 1200 miles. Little orange thing comes on when the car is started.
08-09-2021, 11:45 AM
Love it!
