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The story:
I bought and built this car as a kit brand new from Shell Valley located up in Columbus, Nebraska. I have done all
the building and work on the car except the paint, body work and building of the short block. I originally built
it with a SB Chevy in it and ran it a year or so in the gel coat as I wanted to work out all the bugs before having
the car painted. Once it was ready for paint, I took the car back up to Columbus, NE to have it painted. If you
were to buy a rolling chassis from Shell Valley and have it painted, they would use the local Chrysler dealership
who has a large body shop to do all their work for them. At the time, they had painted close to 100 Cobras from
Shell Valley. I liked this because they know exactly how the cars come out of the mold and how to make them look
the best. They are also experts on how best to align the doors, hood and truck.
After running the car for a couple years with the SB Chevy in it, I decided it was time to make it right and put a
Ford power plant in it. After some research, I decided to go with a small block rather than a big block to keep a
better front to rear balance. I started with a new block from Ford and had a southern California speed shop build
up the short block. Because it was a new block, it didn’t need to be bored but I did want it to be stroked.
Most SB Ford stroker motors are either 331 or 347 cubic inches. A 347 is a .030 over block with a 4.00” stroke.
Like I said before, this new block didn’t need to be bored so the cubic inch comes out to be 342.
I did some more research (SEMA show in Las Vegas) and decided on several things. TKO 600 over a TKO 500, a dual
disc clutch, Vortech and Acell DFI with a wide band controller. The Acell DFI works very well and is fairly
straight forward to program. The wide band O2 sensor really helps with the tuning and I am fortunate to have a
friend that owns a dyno shop. I would take the car to the dyno and just drive on the dyno. This made tuning much
easier than driving on the street with the computer in your lap. After tuning and driving the car with the blower
on, you quickly realize 500+ horse power in a 2100lb. car can be quite the handful and sometimes nerve racking on
the street. I decided this past year to try it for a while without the blower and I have to say I enjoy driving it
more. Maybe the responsibility of two kids makes me like the toned down version a little more. So as it sits
today, the blower is on the workbench and the car has both tunes in the computer. The blower can be bolted on in
an hour or two and the program can be switch in the computer in a few minutes and you can be back to blowing the
rear tires off it.
The good:
The car is mechanically sorted out and looks great. The paint looks very deep and wet, the stance including the
wheel and tire fitment are perfect. The car itself with its style and classic looks demand attention so I decided
to go with a deep pewter color, rather than a bright red or blue. I work for Toyota Motor Sales and we use to have
a gorgeous color on the 4Runners that came out in the early 2000s called Thunder Cloud. So the paint code is for a
2001 Toyota 4Runner in Thunder Cloud. The black stripes are a Chrysler color with no pearl.
I spent a lot of time with donor wheels and tires getting the backspacing and tire size just right as I hate to see
a nice car and then the wheels don’t fit. Too much fender well or tires sticking out of the fender can kill a
look and I didn’t want that.
The fitted car cover that it sits under when not in use comes with it and provides great protection.
I keep a battery tender on it, so you can go down to the garage anytime, unhook it and take it out for a spin.
Little road trips and overnighters are no problem.
The glove box being autographed by Carrol Shelby can sometimes get more attention than the car.
I have a clean Kansas title in hand. If you are considering a kit, this is a major time saver as you don’t have
to mess with inspections, highway patrol or the DMV. I did all that and you won’t have to with this car.
It’s stupid fast, you will need to exercise control and responsibility each time you take it out.
The not so good:
I believe in being completely honest and transparent with all things
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