Part 2 – The Factory Five Mk4 Roadster
This kit car is a dead-on replicate of a 1965 Shelby Cobra
Project: 1965 Shelby Cobra Replica
Car Kit: Factory Five Mk4 Roadster
Cost: $12,900 USD and 300 hours of your time
NOTE: This car comes in a box!
The Factory Five Mk4 Roadster is the world’s best-selling, best-engineered, and best-performing replica of all time.
The Mk4 Roadster is designed to accurately reproduce the looks of the legendary 427 Cobra. Fabricators Factory Five vows to keep its essence intact while using modern technology, parts, and materials to improve performance, reliability, and comfort.
The Mk4 Roadster Base Kit costs a mere $12,990, and does require a Ford Mustang donor car). You can also throw another $7,000 on top, for the “Complete” kit, which includes ALL factory-new parts, where all you’ll need is your own engine, transmission, rear end, wheels, tires, and a slick paint job.
Just remember, the base Mk4 kit, and a running 1987 through 2004 Mustang GT donor car, is enough to keep you busy in the garage all winter. But when you emerge, you’ll be able to drive your own, totally convincing Cobra replica.
According to Factory Five, most purchasers of the MK4 kit have an average knowledge of automotive systems and parts. They also have an average set of automotive tools. That being said, the time-to-completion is about 300 hours. This estimate will vary widely depending on your individual knowledge, tool accessibility, the number of people building and working on the kit, the relationship of the people working on the kit, whether or not alcohol is included in “garage time”, what kind of music is playing, and finally, whether or not the builder “follows instructions well”, or likes to “wing it”.
If you’re considering a project like this, we’ve learned that Factory Five is possibly the most dedicated replica producer ever. Here are a few nods to their design and production methodology.
They use an authentic 4” round tube design, a period correct, 4” round tube frame, which is exactly like the original legend, including the tubular ladder-style frames used in the 1960s. While originality is key, Factory Five used CAD technology, better materials, and more consistent manufacturing methods to make their frame more than twice as strong.
The MK4 frame sports over 800 welds, with hundreds of individual pieces of steel. And it arrives completely welded assembly and requires no welding or cutting.
The entire cockpit, trunk, and engine bay of the Factory Five Mk4 is precision laser-cut 6061-T6 aluminum. 6061 is a demonstrative cut above conventional 4000-series aluminum, with far greater strength in tension.
The composite body is a one-piece, hand-laid vinyl ester fabrication, that is engineered to perfectly hug the aluminum and steel chassis. The hood, doors, and trunk have molded liners and come complete with hinges and pre-drilled mounting holes. The body shell is laminated to a thickness of 3/16” all around, with a .015” red gel coat outer finish.
Even better, the composite body is shipped pre-assembled to the frame! BUT the parts are unfinished and definitely require bodywork.
The Mk4 Roadster Kit is delivered ready to accept bolt-on rear suspension components from a donor car. Interestingly, Factory Five offers an Independent Rear Suspension (IRS) option, which is designed for those looking for the most comfort, authenticity, and performance.
The IRS can be added to either the base or the complete kit. It includes a welded-in cage, upper and lower tubular control arms, high-end KONI mono-tube rod-end coil-over shocks (matched to the fronts), and custom-assembled axles and CV joints. The IRS option for the Mk4 kit requires the 8.8” center section, rear spindles, and brakes from a 2015 or later Ford Mustang.
So, maybe you’re thinking, 12 grand is a lot of dough for a “kit”, and then you have to find a donor Mustang. Well, to be brutally honest, it’s not. It’s an incredible value for what you get. (While all of this is from the Factory Five website, here are the highlights of what is included in the BASE kit:
The Steel Frame:
Complete jig-welded original style 4” round tube frame. Includes all mounts ready to accept small block Ford and 1987-2004 Mustang running gear. The kit can be ordered to accept a wide variety of engines/suspensions.
- Includes 3-point roll bar, powder-coated gloss black
- Includes passenger-side roll bar mounts
- Chassis powder coating optional
The Aluminum Chassis Panels:
- 40 laser-cut, pre-formed 6061-T6 aluminum panels for the cockpit, trunk, and engine bay.
- 1,200 pre-packaged rivets; 1/8” short and long, 3/16” short and long (Did we say 300 hours?)
- Complete Mk4 aluminum cockpit with block-off plates and patch covers
- Engine bay aluminum assembly with aluminum nose sections and splash guards
The Body:
- Hand-laid 3/16” laminate composite body and panels made with vinyl-ester resin.
- Driver and passenger doors with molded door liners and integral steel door frames
- Hood with molded
hood liner and separate hood scoop - Trunk with molded trunk liner and improved mount face for license plate light
- Includes secondary body fasteners assembly
- Adhesive-backed foam weatherstrip
- C-channel door edge trim and fasteners
- Plastic end caps and body mount fasteners
- Trunk and engine bay push-on rubber bulb seal
- Rubber hood and trunk bumpers
- Includes multi-adjustable door hinges with bronze bushings and fasteners
- Includes adjustable hidden trunk hinge kit, hinge mount plates and fasteners
- Includes competition hood pin set with mount plates and fasteners
- Includes original design quick-jack competition bumpers with stainless steel sleeves and fasteners
The Front Suspension:
Front suspension comes ready to use. Mustang lower control arm/spindle and brakes, including:
- KONI brand high-performance mono-tube shock absorbers
- Coil-over kit for KONI dampers including spring hat, threaded seat, and 500 lb. black powder-coated performance springs
- Adjustable upper control arms with ball joints and fasteners
- Spindle adapter bracket
- Grade-8 mounting hardware
The Rear Suspension:
Their 4-link and 3-link rear suspension options include rear axle brackets, fasteners, and axle straps to mount your Mustang 8.8” rear solid axle and brakes. Comes with all hardware required for installation.
Brake/Fuel Lines:
- The base kit comes with pre-flared brake and fuel lines, (3/16”, 1/4”, and 5/16”) and fasteners to use the OEM Ford Mustang fuel tank and system.
- Includes polished vintage Aston LeMans flip-top gas cap, integral modern fuel pressure cap and adaptor kit.
- Fuel lines, connectors, filler neck, and fasteners included.
Steering Kit:
- The steering adapter kit to utilize the Mustang steering rack includes an upper shaft, pillow blocks, flange bearings, fasteners, lower shaft, and U-joints.
- Features a collapsible column, vintage wood, and aluminum steering wheel with an aluminum boss, center section, and center section badge.
- Lower steering shaft with 1987-1993 rack adapter (3/4”-36 spline)
- Upper steering shaft, spring washer, and fasteners
- 14” vintage wood and aluminum steering wheel with boss and FFR center section and fasteners
- Steering bearings and hardware, including flange bearings, pillow block bearings and fasteners
Cooling System/Parts:
- Electric cooling fan and mounting kit with connectors
- Radiator mount kit and fasteners
Misc. Engine Accessories/Side Exhaust/Mounts:
The Mk4 base kit is configured to accommodate big-block Ford engines, small-block Ford Windsor engines, and modular 4.6L and 5.0L Coyote engines.
- The kit comes with an alternate drive pulley assembly, oil filter relocates kit, and exhaust assembly to adapt the Mustang engine and headers to vintage side exit exhausts.
- 4-into-1 side exhaust, bare steel with rubber hanger brackets, gaskets and
fasteners - Oil filter relocate mount with fittings, hoses, barbs, and fasteners
- Spin-on engine block adapter for SBF or BBF only
- Alternate drive pulley, spacer, pulley wheel, and fasteners
- SB performance air filter, conical
- A/C replacement pulley kit and custom-length fan belt with fasteners.
- Accelerator cable assembly: includes the cable, return spring, and retainer
Battery mounting kit:
- Trunk mount battery hardware, cables, and hold-downs with fasteners
- Battery ground strap
- Insulated line clips and hardware
- Cable ties, wire loom, and flex grommeting