1998 Cobra GT3 R-esque

LongLostLatz · Nov 12, 2016

Ok so my goal with this project was to build myself a poor mans GT3 RS inspired Cobra. A car that is track focused without completely ditching the comfort and drive ability. I got the car about 3 weeks ago and my first upgrade was figuring out a better seat situation. In previous builds I've used Recaro seats out of an EVO 8 or 9 but I've had trouble sourcing a clean pair this time around. I did find a black leather drivers seat locally for a really good price so I picked it up so I could get the custom brackets fabricated to get them as low as possible. Brackets are factory manual seat tracks with modified seat frame to relocate the EVO mounting bolts to the Mustang bracket. The slider was also dropped 1" and seat track extensions were added. The finished product is pretty much exactly what I'd hoped for. Now I just need to find a nice pair of seats or a clean black leather passenger seat to match. Also found a set of staggered FR500 reps in matte black so I put those on in place of the gloss black Saleen reps. Next step is a MM R&T box and possibly Cobra R Brembos. Anyway let me know what you guys think.

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white95 · Nov 12, 2016

Subscribing...

I like the way this is going :evil:

codfod · Nov 12, 2016

This should be interesting, I'm digging the blacked out look.

Frank.JD.Perez · Nov 12, 2016

Welcome to the club
#bankruptcyduetodoperacecar

g36 monkey · Nov 12, 2016

Are you super tall or something? lol

I do like the seats!

LongLostLatz · Nov 12, 2016

Thanks for the replies. Yeah I'm pretty tall (6'4) and it's nice to actually have the adjustment to find a comfortable driving position. Tomorrow I'm going to take a crack at installing the MGW shifter so hopefully that goes well.

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DKblue98GT · Nov 13, 2016

Great looking car! I like it a lot.

g36 monkey · Nov 13, 2016

MGW is the way to go. You shouldn't have any trouble. Very easy.

LongLostLatz · Nov 13, 2016

Installed MGW shifter this morning. Everything went pretty well until I dropped one of the nuts for the shift stops. Somehow it disappeared so I need to call MGW to see if they can send a replacement. Also it's such a nice shifter that it didn't seem right to hide it under a boot. I tried trimming the boot several different ways but it just didn't look right. In the end I just removed the boot completely. First impressions are that the shifter is much more direct and the throws are definitely shorter. It does produce more noise than I would like and I checked all the bolts to make sure everything was tight so I'm not sure if that's just how it is. Anyway I'm pretty happy with it now I just need to find a nice shift knob to replace the Pep Boys knob that came with the car.

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g36 monkey · Nov 13, 2016

The shifter will have a tendency to transmit more noise. You can order one of cobra bobs gaskets, that did a lot to help with noise transfer, and makes it much easier to install. I know some MGW kits come with a similar gasket.

I did similar with my MGW shifter because it is a nice looking piece. I made a piece of foam covered in black material to go around the center so it looks like the shifter rises out of nothing. Came out pretty cool

LongLostLatz · Nov 13, 2016

Yeah this kit came with a silicone gasket. I would imagine the boot helps a little with muffling the sound so that could be part of the problem. I was actually thinking about doing the same thing with the shifter surround. Do you have any pictures of how yours turned out?

sleepn_sn95 · Nov 13, 2016

The boot does kill a good amount of noise coming from the trans/tunnel. I've driven around a few times without mine on and was surprised by the difference. Good choice on the mgw and I'm looking forward to this build!

g36 monkey · Nov 13, 2016

Alright it had been a while since I did it. The boot that's on there is actually a BBK shifter boot from like a T56 shifter. I think most of their boots should be the same though. Then the foam surround. I needed that little bit of short rubber to clean the look up a bit. I think it came out nice.

Side note, you should be very happy I did that. Had to fire up an old computer, dig around for a pic, then email to myself then upload it lol.

All the pics are gone from my build thread for the most part since I took FB down.

LongLostLatz · Nov 14, 2016

Haha thanks man. I actually went through your build thread trying to find a picture but had no luck. That looks pretty nice. I'm considering using a carbon sheet to fill in most of the open area but leaving a cutout for the rubber boot and the movement of the shifter. The throw is pretty short now so I think a cutout slightly larger than the diameter of the boot should give more than enough room for the shifter.

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g36 monkey · Nov 14, 2016

I reckon that would work!

MustangChris · Nov 14, 2016

clean body.... good car to work on!

ReplicaR · Nov 15, 2016

Man, I do love the MGW shifter. I've been considering one for years, but it's hard to give up the Pro 5.0 with Roush handle, that I have now. I think I need to drive a car with MGW to make up my mind. I've heard that the MGW base and pivot ball have the tightest clearance on the market, which means that they should operate quieter than Pro 5.0, which uses grease in between the pivot ball and base to muffle the rattling.

LongLostLatz · Nov 15, 2016

Yeah it's a really nice shifter and I can't say it's loud. I just noticed some sounds that I didn't hear with the stock shifter. Chopping off the leather boot probably didn't help. I ordered an 1/8" sheet of carbon to try and make a shifter surround to clean up the look and hopefully isolate a bit of the sound. I was planning on coating the backside of the carbon with rattle can bed liner or something like that. I also found a matching Recaro passenger seat but the center insert is pretty scratched up. I was looking to have the seats reupholstered anyway so that might work out. Anyone have a good upholstery shop recommendation in Los Angeles?

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ReplicaR · Nov 16, 2016

http://advanceautoupholstery.tk/

These guys fixed my Acura seats, as good as OEM. Doesn't get much better than that in my opinion.

LongLostLatz · Nov 16, 2016

Ok awesome I will check in with them when the passenger seat arrives. The quotes so far have been from 350-800 per seat with the same fabric specs.

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