Rebuilding The Terminated Cobra1FAFP48Y43F309694

9397SVTs

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Terminated_cobra_03

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Wait! You're still in high school, and you've held 5 jobs in the automotive field? "My first job was at a Lexus dealership as a porter, then I did a short stint in carbon composites, then moved to a ferrari challenge team as a shop hand, after that I went to Chip Ganassi Racing working at the Indycar and IMSA shop in the fab and machine side. Then went to my current job (at an auto parts store)". That's quite a (2 year?) resume!
Most where part time internships. 3 of them were in 2021, on paper it sounds bad. The carbon composite was a one or 2 hour a day job so I was able to stack it. I was looking at other options as it was too spotty. The second one around ferrari was temporary. They needed some things done around the shop but I did enough that I ran out of work after 2 months (cleaning cars and tires and other small things) they said to start looking elsewhere as they were hiring a mechanic and didn't have room for me. I moved to a Ganassi at that point to finish out my summer as an intern.
 

Terminated_cobra_03

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Wait! You're still in high school, and you've held 5 jobs in the automotive field? "My first job was at a Lexus dealership as a porter, then I did a short stint in carbon composites, then moved to a ferrari challenge team as a shop hand, after that I went to Chip Ganassi Racing working at the Indycar and IMSA shop in the fab and machine side. Then went to my current job (at an auto parts store)". That's quite a (2 year?) resume!
Most where part time internships. 3 of them were in 2021, on paper it sounds bad. The carbon composite was a one or 2 hour a day job so I was able to stack it. I was looking at other options as it was too spotty. The second one around ferrari was temporary. They needed some things done around the shop but I did enough that I ran out of work after 2 months (cleaning cars and tires and other small things) they said to start looking elsewhere as they were hiring a mechanic and didn't have room for me. I moved to a Ganassi at that point to finish out my summer as an intern.
 

Terminated_cobra_03

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Ok, gonna make this post to kinda clear the cloudiness in the air. So what's happening at this point. The car is on the ground sitting. Next weekend I want to go through and pull everything out and vacuum out the interior. I want to get something to protect the firewall and keep water out of the interior. The car will be cleaned, put under a tarp and sit for a bit. In a few months il go to Lima, Ohio the car will come with. The car will then sit again until I find a shop that is interested in taking up the task, as well as when I have enough money saved up. After the frame is fixed il probably get a V6 or a crashed 5spd GT and use the parts to rebuild the Cobra enough to drive to a place to get it to the point that it can be inspected and turn it from salvage to rebuilt title.

At this stage the title and frame problems would have been resolved.

After this the car will get torn apart and have a proper drivetrain put into it. At that point it will once again be a ture terminator Cobra.
 

decipha

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dont let any of these bastards get you down or make u feel that u have to explain yourself.

I was 10 in the 5th grade in elementary school the first time i replaced the head gaskets on our old nova while my oldest brother supervised.

Middle school I worked at a machine shop blueprinting engines.

By the age of 16 I was all in and a pretty well respected mechanic. I had gents 3x my age that had been working on vehicles before i was even born still come to me to ask my input and help them diagnose issues.

The haters were hating pretty hard.

Age is just a number and everyone has to start somewhere. I commend you for your efforts and appreciate anyone that revives a unique vehicle.
 

dragrazor

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I don’t think it’s hating on the man as much as it is trying to advise him of the journey he has in front of him. Mostly the money he is going to need with a job that doesn’t provide for said journey. Some of us have been through this before and all we want is to advise him. I really don’t think anyone here has led him in the wrong direction Including yourself. He can take the advice or leave it. Your advice is also a good one as he will feel a great sense of accomplishment once he is finished. Either way, I wish the op luck in all endeavors in his life.
 

CobraBob

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Ok, gonna make this post to kinda clear the cloudiness in the air. So what's happening at this point. The car is on the ground sitting. Next weekend I want to go through and pull everything out and vacuum out the interior. I want to get something to protect the firewall and keep water out of the interior. The car will be cleaned, put under a tarp and sit for a bit. In a few months il go to Lima, Ohio the car will come with. The car will then sit again until I find a shop that is interested in taking up the task, as well as when I have enough money saved up. After the frame is fixed il probably get a V6 or a crashed 5spd GT and use the parts to rebuild the Cobra enough to drive to a place to get it to the point that it can be inspected and turn it from salvage to rebuilt title.

At this stage the title and frame problems would have been resolved.

After this the car will get torn apart and have a proper drivetrain put into it. At that point it will once again be a ture terminator Cobra.
How much do you estimate each stage of the rebuild is going to cost? Numbers you'll need to establish a project budget. Including the motor, drivetrain, Terminator interior, Terminator specific pieces, paint, outside contracting (ie. frame and stuff you might not be able to do yourself, etc.).
 

Terminated_cobra_03

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How much do you estimate each stage of the rebuild is going to cost? Numbers you'll need to establish a project budget. Including the motor, drivetrain, Terminator interior, Terminator specific pieces, paint, outside contracting (ie. frame and stuff you might not be able to do yourself, etc.).
I don't have a firm number, I have a number from a few years ago when I first put the number together. I think that price is no longer valid, what interior parts are Cobra specific?
 

TK1299

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dont let any of these bastards get you down or make u feel that u have to explain yourself.

I was 10 in the 5th grade in elementary school the first time i replaced the head gaskets on our old nova while my oldest brother supervised.

Middle school I worked at a machine shop blueprinting engines.

By the age of 16 I was all in and a pretty well respected mechanic. I had gents 3x my age that had been working on vehicles before i was even born still come to me to ask my input and help them diagnose issues.

The haters were hating pretty hard.

Age is just a number and everyone has to start somewhere. I commend you for your efforts and appreciate anyone that revives a unique vehicle.
I don’t think most of the people responding to this thread are being malicious, at all. I see a lot of advice from older and wiser folk who are trying to pass on their own experiences to a youthful person. Based off the information op has provided about himself, people are giving their “fatherly” advice to try and help protect op from really getting into a worse situation.
Ultimately, he is his own man and can do what he wants, but from the 30,000 foot view I am looking down from, most of the advice provided to the op has been sound.
 

CobraBob

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I don't have a firm number, I have a number from a few years ago when I first put the number together. I think that price is no longer valid, what interior parts are Cobra specific?
Seats (front and rear), to start with. You really should know at this point the answer to your question. Can't start a project without knowing the details, which is exactly why I've asked a lot of questions to you. Questions we've all asked hopefully generate thoughts on your end which will translate into a solid project plan which includes time and estimated costs.
 

Zemedici

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I have my IS300 Sportcross, and the Cobra. People don't realize that my past overshadows the current. I have never had it easy. What People don't realize is that I have held 5 different jobs all in automotive. As small as my current job at an auto parts store, but the last one was not a small deal. I worked for Chip Ganassi Racing in the Fabrication and machine shop. I was taught to Tig weld by some of the best. Justin was my main teacher. He was the chassis builder at John Force Racing.
My first job was at a Lexus dealership as a porter, then I did a short stint in carbon composites, then moved to a ferrari challenge team as a shop hand, after that I went to Chip Ganassi Racing working at the Indycar and IMSA shop in the fab and machine side. Then went to my current job. I don't make much but current still in high school living with my parents it makes it so besides taxes I keep everything. I had around 3k in savings, that was until the transmission in the IS300 let go and that killed it but im slowly rebuilding it. And my comment about 8k for the ecu and body controller, that was not entirely correct. 8k covers a scratch built harness, all the controllers, everything working, a highly advanced tracton control system that would be able to be adjusted, it would use tire temp, wheel speed on each wheel, steering angle and more to pull timing to prevent tracton loss, and install, and probably tuning. For around 8k. Not to mention a state of the art engine control program that would monitor the AFR and temperature in each cylinder and correct the fuel maps on the fly.


I’m just going to throw this name out there……. “Revvv”.

Absolutely
 

Terminated_cobra_03

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Seats (front and rear), to start with. You really should know at this point the answer to your question. Can't start a project without knowing the details, which is exactly why I've asked a lot of questions to you. Questions we've all asked hopefully generate thoughts on your end which will translate into a solid project plan which includes time and estimated costs.
I have the cobra front and rear seats, however, I need to have them redone, as they have seen a lot of suns and are not in great shape. I think the dashboard is different in the Cobra, if not the dash then the wiring harness.

From what I know, what is Terminator Cobra specific.
IRS
Seats
hood
bumpers
radiator
radiator hoses
coolant pipes
rear suspension
alternator mount bracket
harmonic balancer
timing cover
pully bridge
water cross over
intercooler
Intercooler manifold
Intercooler pump
Intercooler lines
Heat exchanger
Heat exchanger hoses
serpentine belt
belt tensioner
oil separator
oil pump
cobra intercooler relay box


list of immediately recommended upgrades?
GT500 Intercooler Pump
IRS bushings (FTBR)
Alternator
Clutch
Maximum motorsports camber plates
H&R springs
B&M Ripper Shift
CTS-V Big Brake Kit or Cobra R
Cobra R steering rack?
Brake Ducts

N2MB WOTBOX


EDIT
IF SOMEONE HAS A LIST OF ALL TERMINATOR SPECIFIC PARTS SEND ME THE LIST OR A LINK
 
Last edited:

cj428mach

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I think the cheapest and best way to fix that car would be to drill all the welds on the entire front clip and weld on a donor clip from the aprons where they attach to the firewall forward. This will be the best repair in terms of strength and looks that you can do.

Ideally the best thing would be to buy a wrecked in the rear terminator donor car, it will be 10x cheaper than buying parts one at a time.
 

Terminated_cobra_03

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I think the cheapest and best way to fix that car would be to drill all the welds on the entire front clip and weld on a donor clip from the aprons where they attach to the firewall forward. This will be the best repair in terms of strength and looks that you can do.

Ideally the best thing would be to buy a wrecked in the rear terminator donor car, it will be 10x cheaper than buying parts one at a time.
I have considered that but for some reason, people want to have a lot more than just the aprons and stuff, they want the entire front clip from about halfway behind down the door forward. I wish I could find someone who would be interested in teaching me how to do it properly. Just giving it to a shop handing them money and having it come back finished kind of defeats the purpose. The project has a message behind it. the reason I am willing to do this is that I want to rebuild the car to show the world that people with autism and learning differences can do great things. People stereotype people with autism more than you would think. That's the first half, the second was that it's a tribute to my uncle who was a Mustang enthusiast. He had a 99 Cobra. He passed away in 2017. I am not gonna just give up.
 

cj428mach

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Check out the vintage mustang sites they often replace the entire front frame assembly. I have an old mustang magazine around here somewhere with a how to on doing it. There are some youtube videos on it.


I would never allow the car to be cut at the windshield pillars and spliced. To me at that point it's a rebody and time to go to the crusher.
 

SVTdreamin04

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…I’m no dream crusher. I just talked to a guy in his early 30s just this weekend who showed me pics of one of the most beautiful Foxbody coupes I’ve seen in a while. It was a 4 cylinder car he bought in high school out of someone’s back yard that looked much worse than your Cobra. Anything is possible.

Anything is possible. I’m here to help in any reasonable way I can O.P. My car was a basket case that taught me a lot about Cobra’s.

You have my support. I wish you good luck. You’ve got a long list of to do’s before that car ever hits the road under its own power.


Sent from my iPhone using svtperformance.com
 

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