SoCal is a Mecca for some of the most unique vehicles ever created, but none are quite like this Terminator you're about to meet. Okay, you've drooled over the photos of this black beauty long enough--now read on about the story behind this incredible '04 Mustang Cobra.
Eric Burgos, affectionately known to his friends as "EBCobra," is popular in his area of SoCal for being the Jack of all trades. Union pipe fitter by day, professional fender roller, fastidious automotive detailer, and car restorer by night--this guy has a serious passion for alluring automobiles.
As a kid, Eric would help his dad restore old vehicles. He loved taking neglected, unappealing cars and making them look new again. That's where he found his passion for pretty much anything with wheels. Although Eric and his dad worked on many makes, their specialty was breathing new life into Volks-wagens. His love for old cars and talent for restoring them even landed him in multiple magazines, and let's not forget to mention a wall full of awards from numerous car shows.
Despite his adoration for old fixer-uppers, he still loves the reliability of the modern muscle car. As an adult, he just so happened to live and work next to a Ford dealership, only magnifying his craving for a Pony of his own. It was during one of his routine trips home from work that he spotted a black '01 Mustang GT beauty in the parking lot of the neighborhood Blue Oval dealership, and he couldn't shake it from his mind.
After lusting over the shiny new gem for long enough, and probably telling his wife on a daily basis how badly he wanted it, she finally gave him the green light to check it out. Generally, when the wife gives her blessing to go "look," it's a pretty sure thing. And just like that, with his wife's blessing, Eric came home with his dream ride.
His new toy plugged him directly into the Mustang social scene and he made lots of new friends with the same common love for the all-American muscle car. Eric immediately began cruising with the local car clubs. A periodic jaunt through the streets and lots of car shows was the most action his '01 Pony ever really saw.
There was still much fun to be had, but Eric knew he wanted more than his Two-Valve GT had to offer in stock form. Let's face it--by today's standards, 260 hp is just plain weak. This Mustang would prove to be just a stepping stone to his ultimate Steed--the '04 SVT Cobra that he would soon call his own.
The male species is wired to be competitive, especially when it comes to the hobby of fast cars. When Eric laid his eyes on the first Terminator, he knew it had to be his next big thing. Long story short, out went the Two-Valve GT, and in came a new '04 Four-Valve SVT Cobra--at the time, one of the fastest production Mustang's ever. He was stoked about having 390 hp in his new ride, but it didn't take long for him to catch the modification bug after seeing what others were doing on various Mustang sites, and how easy it was to make big power numbers with the very stout Terminator platform.
Wanting more and armed with just enough knowledge to be dangerous, Eric started modifying his new snake. The goal was simple--keep it mild enough to enjoy on the street, yet be able to handle a road course with ease. He was drawn to road course racing because of the seat time versus drag racing. It was the longer-lasting and more rewarding adrenaline rush that motivated him to build this bad boy with the perfect combination of a corner-carving suspension and horsepower to propel him in and out of each turn.
Like many other Terminator owners who start small with increasing boost capabilities to their already-powerful factory Eaton superchargers, Eric decided have his Eaton ported, but soon realized that just wasn't enough. When he saw what others were doing with larger aftermarket superchargers, he had to go big. After weighing his options, he chose a twin-screw 2.3L boost-breathing Whipple supercharger--one of the larger displacement options at the time.
With already-beefed-up forged internals from Ford, the only addition to the inside of the engine was set of Crower stage-three cams. After all, a lopey idle paired with the whine of a twin-screw is what dreams are made of for just about every Cobra lover.
Proper fuel components are a must. So when it came time to adequately feed this snake and with the help of Racers Edge Tuning in Downey, California, they got the car dialed in with ease. They also added 60-lb/hr injectors, dual Walbro 255 pumps, and Fore Precision dual fuel hat, fuel rails, and fuel pressure regulator. This combo is the perfect solution for a supercharged animal.
He added several other goodies before tuning this setup, including an Accufab 60mm throttle body, JLT high-boost CAI, BBK long-tube headers, BBK X-style mid-pipe, and Borla stingers to make his beast growl. With the car ready to be tuned, the guys at Racers Edge worked their magic on the dyno and the Terminator dialed in at an impressive 676 rwhp and 636 lb-ft of whiplash-inducing torque at 19 psi.
Eric was more than pleased with his fire-breathing snake, knowing it was capable of running with just about anything on the street. But what's all that power worth if you can't get it to the ground?
Proper weight distribution is key when attempting to plant the tires on a dragstrip, or even when trying to use body roll to your advantage on a road course, so the right suspension is a necessity. Eric didn't skimp at all, installing nearly the entire suspension catalog from Maximum Motorsports on his Pony. This included a six-point rollcage, replacement K-member, caster/camber plates, solid steering shaft, swaybar relocation kit, and subframe connectors, just to name a few. Keeping the IRS and adding 3.73 gears and a hefty Centerforce clutch, the car was officially set up and ready to run with the best of them.
Finishing the look--and giving the allure we can't stop lusting over--is a sick set Chicane wheels made by True Forged. The 18x11-inch rears wrapped in 305 Nitto drag radials really make the stance similar to that of a venomous creature about to strike it's prey.
Believe it or not, Eric still hasn't made it to a road course to see what this thing is made of! He keeps this serpent pretty tame by limiting his fun to car shows and club cruises for now, though. With his mind more geared toward road course driving, we hope to see Eric fulfill his dream of taking his Mustang through the twists and turns of his local road course soon, but until then, he'll just be cruising and polishing this unique Terminator.