The Cobra was the unfortunate victim of a chance highway encounter with a semi. It had been on its way back from Bob Stiegemeier's shop where it had just received a Stage VI port job, a 2.8-inch upper blower pulley, and a killer dyno tune, when it was punted across the road by the big rig. For George, the previous owner's heart-ache was his joy. After purchasing the car, he pulled it in his garage next to the waiting recipient.
From the outset, George knew what he wanted from the project. "A car I could drive comfortably, anywhere, anytime, with my wife and four-year-old daughter." And so began the transformation of the '80 Cobra. Trying to fit the 4.6 blown modular mill under the hood of the Fox-body required serious modifications to the engine compartment. George and Clint started by fitting and welding portions of the '04 firewall to the '80's Fox. This made mounting the 04's pedal support and HVAC box easier, as it bolted directly to the factory '04 holes on the grafted firewall. After installing the rear seat, package tray, and seatbelts from the '04, George went back under the car to install the K-member and independent rear suspension.
Next came the effort to relocate the '04 powertrain into the '80 chassis. With help from Bill Collins of Bill's Mustang Restoration in Rochester, Illinois, the factory engine, trans-mission, brake and fuel lines, radiator, and fuel tank that George had ripped out of the '04 was bolted in. Everything was kept mostly stock, as the Cobra motor was backed up with a stock T56 and clutch setup. When everything was bolted in and secured, George added a set of Kook's long-tube headers that dump into a 2 1/2-inch exhaust system featuring high-flow cats and MagnaFlow mufflers.
Following the powerplant install, George took the Cobra to Paul Knoles, who spent the next weekend fabricating new rear bars for the rollcage. When that was done, it was back to George's garage, where it came time to put the finishing touches on the restomod Cobra. The '04 Cobra had its factory heat exchanger and supercharger coolant pump smashed in the accident, so it was up to George to create his own. Using an AFCO double-pass heat exchanger and a Meziere electric water pump, he devised a system that worked. FC Customs came up with a Vortech reservoir, and when all was said and done, the new system not only worked, but its capacity was more than doubled from the stock setup.
Back under the car, George bolted in a set of Hypercoil springs on all four corners, along with full-length custom frame connectors and a custom driveshaft loop. With the mechanical portion of the car completed, it came time to wire up everything. Knowing he was going to need help in getting all of the connections hooked up correctly, George enlisted the help of Jim Saathoff of Hometown Garage in Pleasant Plains, Illinois. "I wanted most of the electronics in the rear," George says, "so I had to add 17 feet of wire to all 108 wires from the PCM." A daunting task indeed, but it paid off as he was able to get all of the accessories working, from the fully functional key fob all the way down to the power seats. To retain the factory look, George even had the line-lock wired to the traction control switch.
Say goodbye to 1980 and hello...
Say goodbye to 1980 and hello to 2004. The powertrain wasn't the only part of the '04 Cobra transplanted to its older sibling. Thanks to Mike Rodden, the entire interior was moved over. The armrests are custom pieces fabricated by George and friend Clint Faugust. If you ever see George at a Ford event, ask him about the anger-management techniques he learned while creating those one-off pieces.