1996 Cobra SVT

[poncho@home]

There is a clean looking 1996 Cobra for sale local to me. My '17 GT is my first Mustang, so I don't know too much about them. Any value in 1996 Cobras? Price seems fair, and car looks really clean with 1 repaint 10 years ago. I'd like to buy it and flip it to the USA since I am in Canada and the exchange rate is very favorable to selling Canadian cars to the USA.

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[Cobra Jet]

I owned a prior 1996 Cobra.

Things to be aware of:

1) The 96’s had a recall due to poor cooling performance in hotter regions of the US. The recall replaced the radiator, AC condenser, front grille and some other components. Obviously any remaining 96’s today are closing in on being 22yrs old, so any affected should be fixed by now. You can have any Ford Dealership run an OASIS report to see if the car had the recall OR to see any repair/warranty history if it was taken to any Ford Dealer throughout its life.

2) The T45 5-spd transmission used in all 1996-1998 Cobras could not tolerate quick shifts from 1-3 if revving out to 7-7500 rpm - it would grind gears in between shifts. It was just not a strong transmission backed up to a DOHC engine that was capable of max rpm of 7500... most folks replaced it with a TREMEC. Obviously if the car was just a daily driver and taken care of, sure the T45 might be ok. But for those who want to hear a DOHC scream at WOT... it’s a weak trans.

3) All 1996-1998 Cobras had or will have issues at some point with the intake IMRC plates. The remedy back then was to remove the factory IMRCs and install the IMRC delete. Of course you could just buy the Ford IMRC again, but it’s only going to fail at some point again in the future.

4) The rear diff was standard traction lok with 3.08’s. The 3.08’s were a shitty rear gear ratio to put into a DOHC with the T45 gearing and a vehicle that could rev to 7500. The car would lug real bad if in 5th gear doing 50-55mph. Most guys (including myself) upgraded the rear diff to 4.30’s, with some folks even doing one up to 4.96s. The 4.30’s are perfect for street and drag use. Think of them as being the equivalent to 3.73’s. The 4.30’s will pull hard all the way through 3rd, but yet actually improve fuel mpgs since the car would no longer lug when in 5th...

5) Changing the thermostat was a bitch... some engineer thought it would be cool to put the thermostat housing BELOW the engine in between hoses.

6) Factory oil cooler sucked and became problematic over time. Most removed it and just installed the larger Motorcraft oil filter.

7) Ford leather from 94-early 2000’s sucks big time. It cracks and deteriorates very easily. In my 94 Cobra I replaced my leather with the rarer cloth seats.

8) The 1994-1998 Cobra gauge illumination is very hard to see/read when it’s dusk - white faced gauges with a light blueish/green back lighting.

9) Make absolutely sure that the harmonic balancer is not bad. This was an issue with all DOHC Lincoln MK VIII’s and the Cobras. The way to check: Pop hood, safely start vehicle with parking brake on and in neutral. Go to engine bay and watch the revolutions of the harmonic balancer. It should be smooth and even running at idle. If you see ANY shimmy or wobbles or excessive run out from the balancer at all - replace the balancer immediately. If it is not replaced it will shear the front of the crank off. If you are looking at the car while it’s on a lift, check the harmonic balancer’s rubber isolation ring. Pull towards radiator and twist the balancer side to side up/down to check for any wobble. If there is excessive movement or if you see any cracking or bulging of that rubber ring, the balancer needs to be replaced.

The BASF Mystic paint was only available for the 1996 model year and only x-amount of Cobras were built with that color.

All 1996-1998 Cobras used the same interior, exterior, chassis and drivetrain parts - so parts can be easily swapped between the years.

Other than the above - IMO, the DOHC was a very stout and well performing engine in stock form. I never had any mechanical problems with mine at all - my 96 Cobra had in excess of 80k on it before it was traded in on another vehicle.

 

[poncho@home]

Hey, thanks for the incredibly detailed response.

If I go and look at it, I will keep your points on what to check.

This one happens to be a 1 of 16 1996 Laser Red Cobras with the black cloth interior. In pictures it looks clean.

I can see also there is an aftermarket intake on the car, and it has the SVO sidepipes as well as not the stock wheels. It has 1 repaint 10 years ago.

Mileage is up there, around 110 000 miles.

Any ballpark on value, if everything is sound mechanically and there is no rust, holes or other detrimental issues?

 

[poncho@home]

It is also missing underhood insulation & strut tower brace

Here are some pics from the ad

 

[Cobra Jet]

Cool - my prior 96 was also Laser Red - color is beautiful when really clean and the metal flake really sets it off in sunlight.

Ok - the missing STB - nothing special about it and you can source those out on any Mustang forum or eBay. It was just a plain black hollow tube STB. Expect to pay anywhere from $50-$100 depending on who has it and shipping costs.

The missing hood liner - again no big deal, common item and even some of the vendors may still have those in stock. If not, again the forums or eBay is your best bet - price probably around $50 used, new I’d guess closer to $100+.

The SVO side skirts - those are rare today and no longer in production. If they are the originals sold through the then Ford Racing catalog, they were made of fiberglass and had to be painted to match. The fiberglass gets damaged real easily, so check over for any cracks. If I recall, the exhaust setup was Borla - and that kit combined with exhaust was in excess of $1k at the time. Some like it, some don’t - just personal preference really.

I see it still retains the honeycomb front grille. The coolant recall required the Ford Service Centers to remove and discard the grille. Some did, some didn’t. I would run the VIN through OASIS at your local Ford Dealer to see if the recall was done on it. Again, the recall would only be completed IF the owner took the car to get it done...

The Cobra R chromies were common upgrades back in the 90’s/early 2000’s. The original rims were the 5-window with dark charcoal overlay.

On every body panel w/hood up, doors open and trunk lid open - you should see or find the Ford VIN decals. Those decals will have the complete VIN and prove the panels are original and will be in these locations:

Hood has (1)
Driver & passenger door will have (1) under it
Trunk lid will have (1)
Each rear 1/4 panel in the trunk drainage area near weather stripping will have (1)
Each front fender will have (1) seen when hood is open
Front bumper cover will have (1) under rad support between fog lights
Rear bumper cover will have (1) under on edge of lip

The front rad support, on driver’s side directly behind the headlight there will be a metal BUC tag stapled to the front of rad support. On this is should have the word “COBRA”, as well as last 6 of VIN and other codes.

I’m telling you above because people try to fake Cobras...

If ANY of those VIN decals say “Ford DOT-R” with NO VIN, that means the body panel is a genuine Ford replacement panel.

As for value - with the miles that are on it, the fact that it has cloth interior (and black), plus good overall condition (from pics) fair asking price would be $8k, pushing $10k, maybe on high end of $12k. It depends on region, the Sellers emotions and who is looking to buy. If seller needs cash, probably lower than my guesses... it’s all about the right buyer coming along you just never know what the final price will be, with ANY Mustang.

The problem is, the later gen Cobras were produced in higher volume than prior years. If I recall, the 96-98 years were around 10k units per year.

If you have the SVT Cert to confirm it’s build number that’s a plus - if you don’t have it you can still get them through Ford for like $50 or something.

Why the repaint - any reasons given?

 

[poncho@home]

Hey, thanks for the great info!

It really will come in handy if I decide to jump into this and buy it.

Honestly I don't know anything other than what I already mentioned and I haven't gone to see the car yet.

I am also looking at a 2008 F150 Harley Davidson edition for sale near me at I think a great price. I think that might be easier to sell on the market than the '96 Cobra.

I also came across a really cheap '11 Mustang GT Automatic with high mileage (highway), but I thought this one would be great to convert to a drag dedicated car.

I will try and go see the F150 this week and take it from there.

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