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the.greg

Greg's 1996 Cobra Kenne Bell build

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I’ve decided its time I made a build thread. My name is Greg, and I bought my 1996 Cobra when I lived in Marietta, GA from a guy in Kissimmee FL, back on October 30, 2011. My goal for this thread is to document my ownership of the Cobra, and explain my particular setup in detail. I previously owned a 1998 gt and I “outgrew” it very rapidly and decided not to mod it, but keep it mint and keep my eyes open. I take extremely good care of my cars and a friend of mine made me an offer on the gt that I could not refuse, so I started looking for a replacement. I had test driven a new 2011 mustang gt 5.0 and base 3.7 and I knew I wanted something that would rival the 5.0 in straight line acceleration!

My old gt next to my cobra

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My price range excluded the cars that I wanted most, a 2001+ lightning and a 2005+ gto. I searched online when I came across a 1996 cobra with a 1.5 kenne bell setup. It was located in Kissimmee Florida, so after several phone conversations I decided to grab my brother and a mechanic friend and we made the roadtrip to Florida. After a thorough inspection, and test drive I wasn’t sold on it just yet; it honestly wasn’t as fast as the 5.0 that I had test driven. The car also was not as described, it had a leaky rear diff, a very erratic idle, its rear tires were shot, and its paint was in sad shape. I renegotiated the price and my mechanic friend drove it home because I hadn’t learned to drive a manual transmission yet!

How the engine bay looked when I picked it up

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Driving it through a toll booth in Florida.

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The ride home was uneventful, and my mechanic buddy drove it hard and enjoyed every minute of it! He actually told me if I hadn’t bought the car, he would have purchased it himself!

Got the car back home and learned how to drive it. At this point I will rattle off it’s entire list of mods that the car had prior to my ownership:

Clear Cobra headlights with clear side markers, HID kit in headlights and foglights, 18x10 and 18x9 Anthracite Fr500wheels, sequential taillight kit, OEM Export side view mirrors, 1.5 Kenne Bell Supercharger, Snow Performance stage II methanol injection kit, 03-04 COP conversion installed with brand new motorcraft coils, Mishimoto radiator, Moroso coolant reservoir, BBK cold air intake, Lightning 90mm maf, 42lb injectors, 255lpf fuel pump, Ram HDX clutch, Ford racing clutch quadrant, BBK offroad h pipe, flowmaster catback, Tokico Illumina adjustable front/rear shocks and struts, Steeda cc plates, Steeda progressive rate lowering springs, Steeda upper and lower control arms, freshly installed Moog balljoints w/new inner outer tie rods, and Aluminum driveshaft, black interior conversion, autometer guage cluster pod w boost gauge and coolant temp gauge, blue led interior light conversion, JVC head unit/cd player, ‘98 center console, mach 1 aluminum pedal kit, steeda tri ax short shifter, billet headlight knob, ‘01 cobra seats, ‘03 cobra shift knob. Bunch of little odds and ends…

Then we began troubleshooting it. First I cured the erratic idle with a new TPS sensor, easy fix. Then it needed new rear tires, it was terrifying to drive in the rain. A new set of sumitomo tires, helped a lot in the rain, but are admittedly lacking in the dry traction department. Oh well its pretty fun spinning tires into third gear anyway! We drained and filled the rear diff with fresh fluid and friction modifier as well.

Changing the diff fluid.

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Also I removed the rear dogbone at this time.

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New Tires

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I could tell the car’s drivability was a bit lacking, and the power wasn’t as strong as I thought it should be. So I scheduled a dyno session at Kurgan Motorsports on 11-10-11. On the dyno, after some tuning, it put down 335rwhp at 5psi! Another thing that we noticed on the dyno was a huge meth leak, the line had been cut and leaked like crazy at WOT! Kurgan fixed the leaky line and retuned the meth injection. I went from using a gallon of meth a week, to maybe a gallon per 3-4 weeks! Kurgan and I determined that the missing boost was due to the underdrive crankshaft pulley, so I had him leave a conservative street tune at 5psi and went home that day determined to save up enough cash for a retune. Kurgan also told me I was getting some spark blowout above 5500rpms and suggested ngk tr6 spark plugs gapped at .030 for my setup. I went ahead and installed the spark plugs myself and saved up for a retune session. A couple months later I was back, Kurgan installed a oem crankshaft pulley on it and swapped the 11psi blower pulley for a 10psi pulley on my request. He also installed a oem ford lightning IAT sensor in the intake manifold in order to get accurate, post-blower IAT readings so that the computer pulls/adds timing to the tune as needed. This is extremely important in running a kenne bell on a b head 4v!! It prevents detonation even under heat-soaked conditions, or in the case of bad fuel, or any other reason. I told him I wanted a conservative, safe, street tune, I wasn’t worried with max numbers, I wanted a safe, reliable tune for my DD. With the meth and a full 10psi I hit 372rwhp/352tq on the third dyno pull of the day. I was more than pleased as it was so much of an improvement over my old npi gt. It now had a perfect AFR, nice straight, dyno-proven powerband. It is also worth noting that this is tuned for 93 octane, no cheap stuff, gotta pay to play! I keep an eye on my IAT by using a sct product that mounts to the windshield and displays live IAT, as well many other engine parameters.

This video is the initial dyno run, you can even see the massive meth leak if you view full screen!

This video shows a short pull after I got it tuned the second time.

Ready to be dynoed.

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After the first dyno, I started using boost juice.

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First dyno sheet. 5psi!

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Second dyno sheet, much smoother, no spark blowout. 9psi

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Edited by the.greg
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IAT monitor

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Many months later, around April 2012, my t45 started slipping out of gear, I researched my options. I wanted a t56 swap, but that was pretty expensive and I honestly love how a t45 shifts. I decided to have it rebuilt by The t45 Source, a company out of Ohio. I pulled the transmission and sent it off, turns out the syncros were shot. At this time I pulled the Ram HDX clutch which still had plenty of life left, but I decided I wanted all new parts in my driveline.

Got t45 out. Did it in the driveway with some friends. I'm honestly not much of a mechanic and this was a real pain to do in the driveway!

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My basement after the t45 drop.

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I was very proud to have done this on jackstands! I'm on the right.

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After pulling the clutch I realized that I had a stock flywheel, (the previous owner had told me that it had a Ram aluminum flywheel installed!! I was furious!) so I ponied up and ordered a new Fidanza aluminum flywheel and installed it and my new Ram HDX clutch. I received the t45 back and my buddies and I installed it, in the driveway on jackstands! This sucked too! I also installed new Ford Racing pilot bearing and throwout bearing. Also at this time I realized my rear u joint was shot, so I installed a new heavy duty unit from napa.

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This shows the driveshaft safety loop and the aluminum driveshaft.

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Whoops, snapped this bolt off...

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Tri ax, speedcal

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New Fidanza flywheel.

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Old stock flywheel.

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Couldn’t get it to drive right, I could tell something was wrong, but had no idea what; drove to the front of the neighborhood and turned back around. The clutch could not be adjusted correctly with the Ford racing clutch quadrant, so I ordered a new 2 hook unit from Promotion and a new firewall adjuster and installed them and was able to correctly adjust the clutch. I had driven the car 26 miles when I took it to a shop for an alignment. Well, they called me and asked if I had problems shifting the car, I said, “No, why?” They said it had jammed in reverse when they tried to back it off the alignment rack! I was in the middle of a move from GA to NC so I had to rent a uhaul trailer and tow it to NC. Thank goodness my brother has a ‘99 GMC Sierra that never has any issues and could tow it!

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I brought it to NC and contacted The t45 Source who agreed to take a look at it and covered shipping for free. I highly recommend the t45 source, they have worked with me to determine exactly what my transmission needs are, and always have excellent customer service. Now I’m just waiting to get it back and reinstall it.

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Also somewhere during my time of ownership I replaced my rear brake pads, front brake pads(Hawk HPS pads), and front rotors, fuel filter, flushed the coolant system twice, replaced all coolant hoses with Gates units, and changed the thermostat to a higher quality 180 degree unit.

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It is still very-much a work in progress, but mechanically it is now at a point I am pleased with, next I need to focus on the paint!

It still shows pretty well from a distance.

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Edited by the.greg
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Future plans are to have it repainted, probably will stick with Crystal White, but also I am considering Bright Atlantic Blue, or Competition Orange. I also would like to have the rear end built, ideally I'd like some 31 spline axles and carrier, and swap my 4.10 gears for some 3.55 or maybe 3.73 because honestly this car gets no traction and if I ever take it to the dragstrip I think I will have to shift into 5th with my current setup.

I also just purchased a set of 2 17x9 cobra r wheels with nitto 555R 275/40?/17 so when I get the t45 back in I can go to the dragstrip and my goal is 12s.

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Probably still have 90% tread life, got them for a steal, 200$!

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I'm not a fan of racing at the dragstrip though so I may only go once, I just don't care for it. This car is only meant to be a fun daily driver, I do not put much emphasis in dyno #s or 1/4mile times honestly.

Edited by the.greg
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I probably should have started this sooner, instead of having to cover 10 months of ownership, mods and maintenance in just a few posts haha. I had wanted to wait until I completely finished the build, but I've decided its time to share what Ive done so far. Also I apologize for my photography, most were taken with my iphone and I never think to take pictures while I'm fixing stuff.

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10/13/12 -Got quite a lot done today:installed a new battery, installed my t45 from the t45 source(besides the standard Street Heat level rebuild, mine has a syncronized Reverse gear because it had a issue with getting jammed), got the exhaust/driveshaft/starter re-installed too.

New Duralast Gold battery

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t45 installed

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While my driveshaft has been uninstalled for the past 2 months, my rear differential leaked a ton of fluid where the driveshaft connects. It has had a slow leak from the rear since I got it, so I decided to try to re-seal the diff cover. I pulled the cover, cleaned it up and re-sealed it with some black gasket maker. Its gonna cure overnight then I can put in some Royal Purple 75w90with friction modifier. Hopefully this cures the leak.

Cover all cleaned up

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re-installed

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I also was able to verify that the car has FMS 4.10 gears in it, when I bought the car I was told it had 3.73s, but after a while I suspected it must have 4.1s. I was very happy to see that the rear gears appear to be in great shape, I expected to find lots of metal shavings, but I was pleasantly surprised to find none.

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I also threw on some stickers from companies that I've had good luck with. Kinda ricer, but I think for now I like the way it looks and represents what I've done to the car. And yes my paint is that bad in a few areas! Gonna save the paint for last.

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Also added a 03 cobra svt decal, because my original one was deteriorating.

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12-16-12 Update:

More bad news, my car developed a massive coolant leak. Upon further inspection I found that I had a leak between the oil cooler adapter and the engine block. I ordered the gasket set from here-http://www.speedconcepts.net/product_info.php?products_id=967great deal, only $45.99. I followed this guide to replace, its fairly straight forward.http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/how-230/772115-how-repair-leaking-oil-cooler.html I also replaced the oil cooler's internal seals at this time, they are included in the above kit. I took a few pictures while I did mine, but honestly the link I provided does a better job of explaining the process.

Seals the kit comes with.

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After I got the oil cooler off and block adapter out I cleaned the block surface with sandpaper.

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My oil cooler had lots of crap in it?

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Cleaned everything back up and installed new gaskets. Good as new now. For anyone with a 4v, fill the coolant up from the coolant crossover tube so you have no air bubbles in the coolant system and you won't have to burp it.

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Been updating this thread with some of the things I've done in the past months.

Currently 12-29-12: I am on hold due to a cracked throwout bearing sleeve retainer that either was cracked during the shipping from the t45 source or during installation when I installed it. Regardless the t45 source helped me figure out that this was causing the clutch pedal rattle that I was experiencing and is getting me a new sleeve so hopefully when I get it I can get in installed and back up and running. The thing still shifted fine, but I only put about 125 miles on it while I was tracking down the unusual clutch pedal rattle.

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1/26/2013 Update:

I'd determined that my clutch fork rattle/death shake was likely due to a broken throwout bearing retainer sleeve. Today I finally got around to pulling the t45 out of the car to verify and replace the bad tob retainer sleeve.

I dropped the trans and found this.

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Broken retainer sleeve on the left, new one that will be replacing it on the right. The base has snapped off.

Tomorrow morning I'm taking the trans to a Ford Specialist to have the new retainer sleeve installed and then its just a matter of throwing the transmission back in the car asap. Hope to have it back together by mid-week, but it will depend on the weather, my garage isn't heated.

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1/27/2013:

This morning I met with a Ford Specialty Technician(not sure if this is the proper term) but a very high-ranking, knowledgeable guy. He helped me remove my t45 bellhousing, press out the broken throwout bearing retainer sleeve, and reinstall with the new one. He has access to the Ford training center, so we had very nice facilities at our disposal. Only snapped a few pics, but the training center was pretty impressive!

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You can see the billet "slammer" 3/4 shift fork.

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Gonna start with the transmission installation this afternoon and depending on progress be driving the cobra by tomorrow.

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Got the transmission back in the car.

Before I put it back in, I cut off these portions of the transmission to free up additional clearance between the case and the transmission tunnel. Made it a hell of a lot easier to install/uninstall! Wish I would have done this the first time I pulled it out!

I used a sawzall to cut these two casting "ears" off the case.

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Made sure to tape off the shifter opening to ensure no metal shavings got in the case.

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I then filed down the rough edges so I wouldn't cut my hands while installing the bellhousing bolts.

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This made a significant increase in clearance between the t45 and the transmission tunnel!!!

Also I think I made a few ounces of weight reduction haha.

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Another tip I found: It is easier to "benchpress" the tranny back in, as opposed to how I've previously done it by using a jack to position the t45 into position.

All thats left to do tomorrow is attach the midpipe and add transmission fluid and she should be roadworthy again.

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I love seeing the progress! I might have to cut those pieces off when I remove mine here soon.

You wouldn't think by just looking at the pictures that it would make a difference, but it really did help a lot with clearance and made more room to get to the top two bellhousing bolts! Probably only takes a few minutes with the sawzall, but honestly one of the best mods I've done lol.

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Thanks a lot. The sct dashscan is really quite useful, but I've never seen another mustang using one to its potential. I use mine every time I get behind the wheel. Its like the ultimate gauge system imo.

It sounds like it! Its like having a full read out of everything gping on with your car

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Took the cobra out a few days ago to get some fresh pics. I think the sun was too bright for best results, but with my present paint condition maybe that wasn't a bad thing haha. Here are a few that I liked:

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Passenger side is the bad side with the paint. The roof is in great shape, and most of the hood looks good too.

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3/8/13

Today I spent a few hours detailing the interior of the Cobra. It pretty much just sits in the garage since I bought a 04 Corolla to dd. It was just a bit dusty, so I vacuumed it out really well and went over it with some meguires interior product. I still need to apply leather conditioner to the seats, hopefully I can get to that tomorrow. Considering how old the car is(1996) its interior is in pretty decent shape. I also cleaned the bullitt pedals, they were pretty dirty but some glass cleaner shined them up nicely.

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I was able to go ahead and finish the interior detailing with some leather conditioner on the seats. I really love these seats! Also yes, I traded/sold my export mirrors to Brian and got his stock ones. IMG_0057_zpsd5fc2304.jpgIMG_0059_zps2a8c85ad.jpg Stock mirrors IMG_0055_zps27eb920c.jpg I think my next project will be repainting the rear bumper cover valence black again. IMG_0063_zpsa3a83268.jpg But then again it seems like a waste of time to repaint the valence when the 1/4 panel looks like this lol. IMG_0064_zpsfee9b679.jpg

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3/9/13

Today I washed the exterior, this is as clean as she gets lol. Looks pretty darn good from about 15 feet. Its really weird, the paint on the roof, hood, and rear decklid is about a 8/10, but the bumpers are closer to a 4/10 and of course its flaking to hell on the 1/4 panels; very inconsistent paint lmao. I drove the car about 10 miles before the wash, it just sits in the garage nowadays, but it runs great!

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I've decided that I'm gonna sell the car.

I'm trying to get my career started and this car just doesn't do it for me anymore. The plan is to stay away from fast cars for a while. I recently purchased a 2004 Corolla and I'm gonna sell the Cobra, and dd the Corolla. I hope to see the car go to someone who will be able to paint it. I am really gonna hate to see it go. I've spent tons of time, work and money on this thing. FS thread will be up soon.

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This makes me sad but you know I support ya and understand why (from our previous conversations). You better keep your word and still actively post!!!!! Either way you have my number so keep in touch if you don't come on the board.

Tell the seller about the forum too that way we can keep tabs on it.

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Is the Cobra paid for? I have to say, I was that guy who decided to sell a paid for Mustang because I was starting a family. Looking back at it now. I really wish I would have kept that car. It may seem like a great idea now and driving that corolla or whatever around is ok, but you'll get that itch, and when you do, you'll have no car to fill that itch with. Don't be like me... Even if you just leave it in the garage for awhile. I'd hate for anyone to do what I did and regret it like I did.

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Man that blows that you're selling it, but if it doesn't do it for you anymore, it is what it is. That really sucks about the paint, it would drive me crazy.

If you sell it to someone who intends to paint it, tell them to add a blue pearl when they do. A local guy I used to cruise around with here in Pittsburgh a few years back had a 98 cobra that was painted crystal white with a blue pearl and at night when headlights hit the paint it looked insane.

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This makes me sad but you know I support ya and understand why (from our previous conversations). You better keep your word and still actively post!!!!! Either way you have my number so keep in touch if you don't come on the board.

Tell the seller about the forum too that way we can keep tabs on it.

I will stay active for sure! I will never leave the "car scene" forever, this is more of a temporary respite I hope. Will be in touch bro.

Is the Cobra paid for? I have to say, I was that guy who decided to sell a paid for Mustang because I was starting a family. Looking back at it now. I really wish I would have kept that car. It may seem like a great idea now and driving that corolla or whatever around is ok, but you'll get that itch, and when you do, you'll have no car to fill that itch with. Don't be like me... Even if you just leave it in the garage for awhile. I'd hate for anyone to do what I did and regret it like I did.

The Cobra is paid for, but I took out a loan to purchase my Corolla so I will use a portion of the sales to pay that off. It honestly isn't as much about the finances as the car just doesn't do it for me anymore. I've only put 300 miles on it in the last 8ish months if that shows you my level of interest in it, while I've spent untold hours working on it/getting things perfect mechanically with the built transmission and other stuff.

Man that blows that you're selling it, but if it doesn't do it for you anymore, it is what it is. That really sucks about the paint, it would drive me crazy.

If you sell it to someone who intends to paint it, tell them to add a blue pearl when they do. A local guy I used to cruise around with here in Pittsburgh a few years back had a 98 cobra that was painted crystal white with a blue pearl and at night when headlights hit the paint it looked insane.

^Yup I got it with 100% intention of repainting it, but unfortunately I ended up spending much more than anticipated on a tune and fixing a million little things because the guy I bought the car from was a lying scumbag haha.

Optimistically I will take a year or so off and then trade the Corolla in on something nicer, I'm thinking:base c6/c5z/nitrous c5/termi/. I would never be able to get fair trade-in value towards anything off a dealership lot with a modified 96 Cobra, so in order for me to move forward, this route makes the most sense. I hope it will allow me to save my money faster towards what I really want vs continuing to spend money on paint/dding costs associated with the Cobra.

By my estimations the Corolla is 5x cheaper to operate than the Cobra haha! The good news is that I got the Corolla for a STEAL so I'm confident I can trade it in in a year or two for more than I paid for it.

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