Autolife>> Out With The Old, In With The New?

Last week I said goodbye to a dear friend, she's gone, thats it, no more.. I spent 3 years of my life building this beast, and drove it for another 2 1/2 years, flogged it on the track a bunch, and generally had a blast, but like all good things, it came to an end.

While selling a car is always a tough thing, I did at least get the joy knowing the new owner will take great care of it, and I have never sold anything to anyone so excited in thier life, he's definitely deserving, and I'm glad it went to a good home.

I can't count how many times that car made me bleed, let alone all the countless hours sweating underneath it working on random things. I'd like to thank all my friends who helped me over the years work on the car, because of this, I think the car has a soul.

So now what? All I've got now is my truck, and it certainly does not fulfill my desire to be bouncing around inches off the ground hitting apices, (although, for a truck its pretty damn fun, and my dog loves it). So I'm currently looking for a new project, might not happen this year, but when I find it, I'll know. What I'm looking for; must have a roof, must be RWD, must be normally aspirated, hopefully will be cheap, and hopefully someday I can actually do some real competition with it, hill climbs, time attack, who knows, but thats my dream.

Perhaps an FC track car? Cheap, easy to mod, if I smash one up I can just get a new tub.. hmmmm interesting. Thoughts?

-Carl

ADVERTISEMENT

Comments



Comments are closed.

42 comments

by Oldest
by Best by Newest by Oldest
1

Aww... Must've been hard to part with the Cobra... Time for you to move on I guess.



Hell, why not an FC track car? Nice idea, but if you want N.A., why not an AE86 or a Miata?

2

Awesome Cobra :P

3

you could always get a 240sx, pretty cheap, if you feel the need for more power, you can swap in an SR engine, turbo, but a lot more power, even then, the KA's when modded have loads of power, it's a light car, otherwise the FC sounds like a fun project

4

wow nice car man.....and when you put that much blood sweet and tears in your car. it becomes apart of you. can''t wait to see your next car....how about ls1 FC timeattack?

5

IIRC you've had some experience with some N/A RWD cars in the past right? M3?



How about trying an S2000 out. or NSX?

6

n/a.....for hill climb, etc? sounds expencive....turbo might be cheaper for that kinda thing and work great in altitude changes. Do you like mitsu starions? cheap, kinda rare but not too rare....just a random idea u might not hear from others.........i forgot, was yours a superperformance kit (my coworker is building one right now)? how about a SP COUPE! lol.....F5 has that vett powered supercar kit thing....or.....an Ultima GTR kit?

7

FC is the sh*tz

especially with the ls1 in it, might as well throw a turbo while u at it



murder it out, wide body ....wait thats my car ....



anyways

u got urself a poor mans enzo

8

You can pick up a decent NSX for about 25-30k right now, get em while they are cheap cuz soon they will start to appreciate.

9

Get a Toyota Soarer/Lexus Sc300! :D

11

Fox Body stang! Cheap fun! But, that's basically a Cobra with a top and 1000lbs more heft. :0

12

i agree with some of these comments... it seems a 240sx fits your bill. readily available aftermarket parts for just about everything. swap in a v8 (only thing to really get big NA numbers)... do a horizontal section on it to make it different. hahaha. or go for lightweight and do a custom mid engine honda hatch or something. that's be kickass.

13

also i was just thinking... if you really wanna be different and get awesome handling and general performance... the factory five 33 coupe could be a nice fit... another kit car yea... but look it up, it's amazing.

14

Why don't you see if those guys have something for your liking - http://www.automotivelegends.com/? Maybe grab one of the bodies they make and put an engine of your taste in it. Ej20 or ej25 and try to create a 4wd underneath or just have it as a rwd. It will be the lightest option from all of the ideas in here but probably the coolest thing there can be! Since you had the Cobra, maybe other kit car will be the choice compared to the stuff everyone can get their hands on. Whatever is the choice, keep us posted!

15

FC with an LSX = Team America

16

What about a Caterham/Lotus 7 running 20v 4AGE, or if you are the fuel swilling kind, Elfin in Australia do Lotus 7 with a LS1 or LS3 in it... perhaps only for the suicidal..

17

Alfa Giulia GTA! I've seen a couple great-looking examples here in Ontario and in Québec, i'm sure you could find a nice one in or around Hongcouver :)

.

100% serious though they're FR, NA and definitely stand out.

18

ya that would be a good cheap car you have pictured because no matter what Mike Essa does to that LS6 it will not break :)...so i recommend it...

19

+1 for BlueSlug.

an alfa would be a great option, if not a gulia a 1979 gt alfetta.

20

Guys omg. NSX or S2000 are much, muuuch more expensive than fc >.> Maybe try FD ? But FC is quite an idea. Swap engine to 2JZ and it might be fun.

21

well, since you just finished with the cobra..how about moving up to the daytona coup?

22

E36 M3 - Lots of potential, lots of them around, and pretty much dirt cheap these days. It's amazing how little you can manage to pay for one, especially if you're willing to not worry about finding a showroom perfect example.

23

How about a Mustang II King Cobra. Small, Light, and different. And its a Ford so you will already have some back round and it because of the Cobra.Hot Rodders still use the front clips of them so suspenion should all be set. Put a Ford 9" in the back and some kind of piss off small block in it like an Aluminator. You could make a cool Charile Kemps IMSA Cobra clone. But what ever you do next we all know it will be kick ass. Good luck Carl.

24

Get a hillman imp! lol

25

FC rotary racing heritage is very strong. The fastest 13B block holds 6.97@197mph in the quarter mile and we still hold the E/BGT Land speed record which was established in 1986 by Racing Beat’s Driver Don Sherman. This run made a top speed of 138.442 MPH. As I mentioned before this still has not been beaten. A FC running Mazdaspeed aero parts is pushed from a drag coefficient 0.31 to 0.29 putting us in close reach of the Z06 corvettes 0.28 If you have any questions please feel free to email me and I will be happy to answer any you may have. m4xvltg3@gsficc.com

26

I think I need to change my shorts after seeing that cobra.

27

Pick up a E30 M3 ;)

28

it makes me so sad that people still dont understand how the rotary engine works, and how they SOMEHOW have this unfounded stigma that they are unreliable...despite japan putting them on the top of the list with GT-R's, NSX, and s2000's. the FC TROMPED the 240sx, the mk3 supra, the 300zx in 1989 @ tsukuba when bestmotoring did a feild test. I HATE having to defend the rx-7 and the rotary because in japan everyone just knows and isnt biased or naive....



Listen Ls1 may be "only" 70lbs heavier so it doesnt "HURT" but try shedding 70lbs easily? also people forget the whole, CENTER OF GRAVITY and the V8 definately is a taller and wider engine... no reason to go ls1 if you can just build a good rotary engine...(coming from a rotary shop....sounds biased but NO) how many Nissian or Toyota V8's or V6's do you see in FD's and FC's in japan.... hell i seen 3rotors in SC400's so go with what works BALANCE. i have an FC GT spec car thats almost ready as my shop demo car...and with VERY little invested in the power parts it proves to be a 7-8 power to weight car no problem.....



good luck with the search!

29

I was thinking FFR '33 Hot Rod kit too! You can pick up SN95 stangs for cheap too! But if you wanna be different, try a BMW E36 series with an LSx engine swap.

30

Get an S30 240Z. Straight 6, triple webers, huge racing history, incredible noise, and beautiful.

31

Some people just cant value the rotary Josh unfortunately, we live in a cruel world

32

I say go for a 1st gen RX7... work the chassis, then port the engine when you feel like more power, or put a 20b in there when you feel like MORE POWER

33

For hill climb: Ultima GTR, Radical SR4. For fun: Lotus Elise, 930 Turbo. If you're going N/A Rotary: SA22C 20B (View the beauty that can be, with the 22C) = http://www.22cworks.com/sa22cfile.html

34

glad someone's with me about a triple rotor sa/fb!

35

Where were the pictures of the Cobra taken? It looks like North Vancouver facing towards Downtown...

36

Thanks for all the comments guys! A few comments on the above, random..



Shots were taken in North Vancouver yeah, I knew of a few cool spots, but always looking for new locations. I love shooting a beautiful artful machine in front of rusted old machinery, great contrast.



S30 240Z, 240sx coupe are both really tempting, I don't know enough about them yet though.



The SA22C 20B FB RX7 is one of the cars that inspires me to do up an older RX7 to look like a works race car.



I'd LOVE to get an E36 M3 for a track car, but parts are $$, compared to older japanese tuners.



Ultima, Radical, Lotus, all sweet and would love to but I'm really looking for something I could total, go buy a new shell, weld in a new cage, and throw all my old parts on. I've seen some awesome older 70's and 80's 911's in track spec, but $$ again.



If I can find an FD roller with a blown engine cheap enough that could be fun too!

37

Josh, would love to see your car, looked for it on your site but didn't see anything.

38

old subie impreza, S2000, FC rx-7 or FD rx-7 (are they cheap enough yet???), datsun 510, bmw 2002, 240z or 280z(great cars, if you look a little you can still find many parts for it.change the original engine for a more powerful N/A engine , toyota starlet (random thought) I think these might be good.

39

LOL n00b squad!!!



Mate if you want a track car that will be fun, fast and reliable, go buy yourself a Nissan 180sx (the 240sx in America), strip the car down, put a cage in it, and drop a Nissan Skyline RB25 motor in there with the g/box and diff. Bigger turbo, computer system, injectors, cams and a tune = 400hp and the car will be the most fun you will ever have on hill climbs or track days. Without the interior etc, the car will weigh just over 1000KG (not sure how many punds that is).



Just an idea though :)

40

Why would you sell the car to begin with?

41

WOW the best cobra I've seen ever!

for best naturally aspirated engines I would go for something from BMW. The company has a history of making great engines hp per liter.

42

Glad to see you are considering coming to the darkside. ;)



I would find an FC, drop in a 20B with a single turbo set up and of course all the preliminary mods. Keep the boost low and have a blast!!

OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS