Safety Features

**bomelia** · July 13th, 2005, 10:27 AM

Did not know exactly where to put this...

I have a friend who is adamant about building an FFR (never mind the fact that he has done nothing about it for 10 years)... Every now and again, he will come into my office trying to convince my that FFR is better than Unique. Most times I have enough info under my belt to send him packing (perky butt syndrome, oblong wheel wells. etc), but I did not know how to answer this one. He claims that the FFR frame does a better job of providing safety (for rider and engine) than the Unique aproach. Just how does Unique build strngth into the body to increase safety, etc??

Mike

**Brent** · July 13th, 2005, 11:08 AM

Fuel tank hanging under car, exposed in the rear, not wrapped with 3" tube steel
welded steel floor vs .030 pop riveted aluminum
substantial steel door beam. Unique door weight over two times as much
Uni body design with inner fenders,footboxes,tunnel,firewall,bulkhead,trunk,e tc. all molded together vs a hollow body shell with alot of pop riveted sheetmetal to take up space between the body and frame.
all new performance parts vs sandblasted junkyard parts off a wreck

There are plenty more, but this should shut him up for a while

Brent
427 SC Chassis #4279401
Candy Apple Red/White
402 FE/Toploader/3.54

**bomelia** · July 13th, 2005, 11:52 AM

Thanks!

Mike

**scott** · July 13th, 2005, 05:18 PM

tell your friend to get a copy of "The Complete Guide to Cobra Replicas" 3'rd edition they have an article that shows ffr's true quality

**brfutbrian** · July 13th, 2005, 06:42 PM

just tell him everybody`s entitlted to their own opinion, no matter how stupid it is. i dont think the little bars that compose most of the frame(and maintain the body skin shape) on an ffr will provide much safety in a heavy impact. short of a full cage i dont think either car has a level of safety in a hard impact. i dont think any of us had safety in mind when we built these car. i know i didnt. later , brian

**bittentoo** · July 13th, 2005, 08:08 PM

So true.......

Drive them as you stole them.....

**pgermond** · July 13th, 2005, 08:12 PM

Safety? Comfort? I think the real issue here is quality. You get what you pay for (period)

Phil

427 Roadster, #4279436
Southern Automotive FE
3:31 and Toploader

Roseville (N.Cal)

**gasman** · July 13th, 2005, 08:14 PM

There are a few FFR's around Augusta, the owners feel threatened around anything else....Why? They know why. As much as I hate to say it, FFR's are a wonderful entry level car and if you can get beyond that, they are a boat load of fun. Don't get caught up in that which car fight, just love the cars and having fun with them.

Steve Foushee
Unique #4279389

**bomelia** · July 14th, 2005, 06:01 AM

Well, I am not getting caught up in that argument. From what I have seen, they do appear to be a great entry level car. However, most of my concerns with it were merely cosmetic...perky butt, exposed gas tank and so on. I am sure he will enjoy the car...

Mike

**bomelia** · July 14th, 2005, 08:30 AM

I do not think I would tell my friend to get that book...he would do what I did...go to Amazon and see 3 bad review and 2 good reviews. Sorry...pound for pound, bad reviews outweigh good in any situation. What is up with that? I have never been a fan of the coubracountry website. Started there...but quickly moved on.

Mike

Or, were those bad reviewers FFR owners?? [:I]

**JeepSnake** · July 14th, 2005, 01:33 PM

Sandy and I had a grouchy guy attempt to lecture us on how unsafe the Cobra was at a cruise-in last summer. I assured him that more people had been killed in old Ford trucks (like he was driving) than Cobras, and, just out of spite, told him about Dad trading off a truck like his in 1978 because the brakes were so poor.

I guess the Cobra's ride height gets me a little nervous from time to time. Heck, in our Cherokees or the CJ, objects in the road don't look too intimidating. But, I distinctly remember the first time driving the Cobra that a squirrel ran out in front of me... Lord, that sucker looked like Squirrel-zilla, ready to bash in the hood & windshield!

Zach Butterworth
Apple Mt. Cobra Pit Crew
(Mom & Dad's 427)

**Justin Upchurch** · July 14th, 2005, 05:38 PM

Six one way, half a dozen the other on safety, but their DVD is a good marketing piece. The FFR Spec-Racer however is a different story.

Justin

**ralphscott** · July 14th, 2005, 08:17 PM

I was not there but this is what I understand happened "A few years back when Unique had track events one unique owner T-boned his cobra at 80 mph into a concrete barrier the car's rear end lifed off of the ground and came down." Damage to the car a new fiberglass front clip (centerline of the front axle forward) that's it, driver walked away a little sore. Alan may have more comments on this...
If as described to me that says a lot about the Unique frame.

Ralph

**WYT VNM** · July 15th, 2005, 08:11 AM

[?][?]
Cobra...Safe
Islam...Peace

Dan Fowler, better known in Kit Car as Don Flowers. *427SC *428MSG with goodies *Tremec *3:31 posi *Ford Performance White w/light stripes *Grey interior *completed 1999

**Naumoff** · July 15th, 2005, 01:14 PM

To each there own. But if I wanted a 5.0 Mustang I would have bought a 5.0 Mustang and put the 10grand for the FFR kit into the drivetain and suspension and had one baaadd Mustang. Not a 5.0 reskinned as a Cobra. And a not very appealing Cobra at that.
The 3rd addition complete guide to buying a Cobra put the FFR under a magnifine glass and it ain't Pretty. The bad reviews were probably from FFR guys. there are alot of them.

I think of FFR as the name suggest Factory Five Racing. I think the car was developed to have an cheap kit to build a racer with that you're not to worried about smashing up. And it already looks like its been rear-ended.
So I say again to each there own.

As Brent said build what you want, how you want, no regrets.
and be Happy with it.(something like that)

Tony

Unique 427 #4279480 427s/o Nascar toploader 3.31 Jag IRS

**Slither** · July 15th, 2005, 06:57 PM

I like what Steve said... great entry-level car. For someone that wants to fix up the old donor parts and not have that much $$ in it, the FFR is not a bad starting point. I have driven the FFR, the CMC, and the Unique. Granted, I did not flog any of them. However, I can tell you that the FFR felt better to me than the CMC, and the Unique was far and above better than either of the first two

!

Also, I saw the FFR as a kit, and to me the quality cannot be compared to the Unique, as the Unique is so far above the FFR that, to me, it is like trying to compare naval oranges to cumquats [:O][xx(]. (Sorry to all FFR and cumquat lovers [8D].) However, this is not to say that either are bad! I prefer naval oranges and Uniques

.

That's a big reason why we are all here

.

Paul

289 FIA

2899464

408 Windsor

Toploader (wide)

3.07 rear

**Jim Harding** · July 16th, 2005, 12:35 PM

I don't want to get into a pi$$ing contest with any forum members, but bad mouthing another guys selection in which kit he purchased and probably loves very much is akin to looking down your nose at him for not being as well off financially in order to purchase a higher end car. Comments like..... "But if I wanted a 5.0 Mustang I would have bought a 5.0 Mustang and put the 10grand for the FFR kit into the drivetain and suspension and had one baaadd Mustang. Not a 5.0 reskinned as a Cobra. And a not very appealing Cobra at that." are insulting and not factual. Every Cobra replica out there today is like everyone elses..... It's a kit, the only difference is in who put it together. I've seen cobbled together Uniques that look like hell, and pristine looking FFRs that could put many of our current rides to shame. And in a crash, they will all get wadded up and probably kill you. Enjoy what you have, and what they have, and hope you never have to prove who has the safest car on the road.
Sorry for the rant..............

Jim Harding
La Plata, Maryland

1982 #3004

**Slither** · July 16th, 2005, 03:34 PM

Jim has a good point: personal preference is very important in choosing a car. What is important is if the owner loves the car, not whether we love it [:O].

I made my choice based on the empirical evidence I found. Unique is the right choice for me. The FFR is the right choice for someone else, and that is just peachy with me. I tried to make that clear in my last post without throwin' stones. Good reminder Jim

.

Paul

289 FIA

2899464

408 Windsor

Toploader (wide)

3.07 rear

**Naumoff** · July 17th, 2005, 03:01 AM

Your right Jim,
I'm not looking down my nose at FFR owners and didn't mean to come off that way. I should have said "The perky butt on the FFR is not appealing to me." Instead of the broader statement I made.
When I can I meet up with a majority of FFR owners for breakfast.
And by the way rag on me for putting a FE engine in my Kit.
I admire the time and work they put into their kits and the craftsmanship of the people.
So if my comments seem insulting I apologize.

Tony

Unique 427 #4279480 427s/o Nascar toploader 3.31 Jag IRS

**Jim Harding** · July 17th, 2005, 06:45 AM

quote:Originally posted by Naumoff

And by the way rag on me for putting a FE engine in my Kit.

Only if it spends more time on an engine stand than under the hood

(uh oh..... this could lead to another BB SB war[8])

Jim Harding
La Plata, Maryland

1982 #3004

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