"My story starts when I was in high school," explains Jose Chavez of Whittier, California.
"I would see the 5.0-liter Mustangs around school-they were loud and had good power to go with the looks. What really caught my eye was seeing a '96 Cobra for the first time. At first I didn't know what it was, but soon found out it was a special model from Ford, and told myself one day I would own one.
"When I turned 18, it was time for me to get my own car, and I had two options-a Pontiac Firebird or a Ford Mustang. I asked my mom what she thought, and her response made perfect sense-'Girls won't know what a Firebird is, but everyone knows what a Mustang is.'"
After test-driving some V-6 Ponies, Jose set his sights on a new, black five-speed-equipped '96 six-shooter. When he arrived at South Bay Ford (Hawthorn, California) to take delivery, he was greeted by a dark blue Pony instead of the black Stallion he wanted, which the dealership sold earlier that week. In typical hot-rodder fashion, it didn't take long for Jose to want a more power. Soon he would make a friend that would change everything. Fernando Perez was a Ford Senior Master Technician at South Bay Ford and owned a ProCharged '94 Cobra. He began sharing his expertise with Jose, and soon a P1-SC ProCharger was breathing extra life into his V-6.
"Fernando taught me that if you want to play with the big boys, it's going to cost you," Jose tells us. "This helped me keep up with stock GTs running around Southern California, but after a few years, the stock V-6 came apart."
Knowing he needed a new powerplant, Jose began researching Cobra engine swaps. He came across a Four-Valve mill from an '01 Cobra, while searching eBay Motors, and couldn't pass it up.
"The engine came out of a wrecked '01 Cobra, and only had 10,000 miles on it," Jose added. "The problem was the seller wanted local pick-up in Washington, D.C., and I live in Los Angeles." Luckily for Jose, the seller worked at a Ford dealership and was able to ship the engine from one dealership to another.
A few months later, he purchased a T56 six-speed out of a wrecked '03 Cobra from the same seller. He also bought a wiring harness and ECU from a '96 Cobra, which brought him very close to having all the parts to complete the swap.
While surfing the Internet, he came across an ad for a white '99 Cobra. It had tan interior and 80,000 miles on the clock. The deal was negotiated, and Jose drove home in his dream car. "I drove away with the biggest smile on my face!" exclaimed Jose. "I even called Fernando and asked if this was only 320 hp, because it felt nothing like my V-6."
As soon as the car was back in Jose's garage, the IRS was replaced with a solid rear from a local salvage yard. At this point, Jose was faced with a tough decision-continue the Cobra swap into the V-6 or start fresh with his new Cobra. After weighing the options, the choice was made to restore the SN-95 six-banger to stock condition and sell it to fund the new project.
"My heart was broken when I sold my first Mustang," Jose says, "But I had bigger goals!" His '01 Cobra engine was then dropped off at Ford Performance Solutions in Anaheim, California, where it was disassembled and rebuilt with better-than-stock parts. The stock Cobra crankshaft was reinstalled, and sets into motion an octet of Manley rods and Ross pistons inside the stock-size cylinders. The upgraded rotating assembly produces a boost-friendly 8.5:1 compression under the stock cylinder heads.
As the build began to take shape, Jose found a take-off Eaton supercharger kit from an '03 Cobra. Prior to completing the powerplant, the decision was made to swap the Eaton supercharger for a 2.3L Whipple. The larger blower gave Jose's engine the ability to efficiently make power, while leaving some room to make more power as he became comfortable in the car.