welcomed uncertainty

June 8, 2008September 20, 2008

Only 105 Day's separate those two milestones but it is so much more than a number to everyone involved with this project and everyone that cared enough to keep up with the blog. These two photo's have a much deeper meaning behind them then most people would think.

The semi truck, arriving with its hulking presence, brought welcomed uncertainty and sustenance to a project that in the past, existed only in our minds and on paper. I would compare it to the birth of my children but since that hasn't occurred yet (and would be very cliche nonetheless) , lets equate it to the earliest Christmas morning you can remember, wondering what presents Santa will bring for you all night then sprinting to the tree in the morning with welcomed uncertainty for what awaited your arrival under the tree. Then there is the second photo, capturing the flatbed truck eagerly awaiting its honored cargo, whom the owners hesitate to part with. I would compare it to your son/daughter leaving for college but since I haven't experienced that (from the parental perspective) yet either, lets equate it watching your cottonball snowman hanging on the wall in kindergarten be thrown away by the teacher because its June and its time for new decorations, but you still eagerly await with welcomed uncertainty for the next craft project that will soon replace that spot on the wall. Our new craft project will be the cobra returning home wearing a brilliant shade of blue accompanied by 2 white racing stripes.

Welcome back Its been a while!

So much has happened since my last update, the great depression of 2008, a new president, cobra body work... (in order of increasing importance of course).

Since I haven't updated in a VERY long time this is going to be a long post with alot of pictures and info so stick with me it will be worth it!!

Let me take you back in time a bit. The day before I departed for Ohio State we mounted the body on the chassis with a couple bolts mainly just for transport purposes and boy did it look incredible, even in its bare fiberglass form. (!Cation! GearHead content ahead)- The lines on this body are truly something you have to experience in person, but the photos will have to suffice for those of you who couldn't be with us. We all agreed that the stance and the fenders hugging around those tires is just pure beauty.



So, the cobra took a ride down to a body shop in Kentucky that has experience in fiberglass and was confident they could deliver a quality paint job. Frankly, we aren't looking for a show quality finish because from the moment you step in this beast you known that this car wants to be ravaged, but we want it to "look 10 from 10".


Now, a bit of a story. A few weeks before she went off to paint, Just when we thought 99% if the mechanical work was over we were contacted by ford racing, who informed us that a bad batch of crate engines had been discovered and that they were failing after less than 4000 miles due to vibration of the crankshaft. They had us send the oil filter on our engine so they could examine it for metal particles. After a couple of teeth grinding weeks we were contacted through series if emails and phone calls and the final call we made was the engine needed to be replaced. The engine was still under warranty of course and ford offered to replace it with a fully working one for no cost (But not pay for any labor to actually install it). Well, after some more contact with ford they weren't feeling too confident giving us an identical engine that could still be prone to issues, so they offered to upgrade us to a stronger, slightly more powerful Boss 302 racing engine for no extra cost. Duh, needless to say, we took the offer.

Fast forward a couple months. Currently, we are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the new engine as there is already a depressing cavity that a defective heart once called home in the cobra. One good thing about this is my conscience is finally cleared, I don't feel as bad about slamming the throttle in first gear on "light test runs" and for dropping that bolt into the carburetor ( just kidding).

The bodywork is progressing, well, as fast as body work usually progresses. Good preparation is a car-painting-must, it can turn otherwise OK paint job to show quality with just a few more hours spent on detail. Unfortunately, bodywork isn't the most instantly satisfying or jaw dropping thing in the world to see but it has to be done ( thankfully not by inexperienced busy 18 year olds).



We eagerly await the cobra's instinctive return to its birthplace (Cincinnati) (Ok thats the end of the snake analogy's I swear). As soon as its back in our hands we plan to tackle the interior, button up the wiring, exterior trim and finally the "fun" test and fix session that will follow.

The end, Wasn't that worth it? I told you...
-Andrew