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View Full Version : Shamu gets a Cobra motor or my road to ruin



Tom Doan
02-27-2006, 02:31 PM
Uncle,Uncle I give up all ready,I will try to answer your questions. Since enquireing minds are calling me, I relent, the wife wants her phone line back.
Yesterday was "Shamu's" coming out party at the CAM meet, Here is the link to the pictures, http://www.mercurymarauder.net/forums/showthread.php?t=25242
Things got crazy and I went over board:
I started with a MM that I allmost wecked it the second day I had it, the back end was stepping out when it I hit 2nd. gear on a stock motor with 302hp. Which lead me to this place for information on will I have to live with a shakey rear end. So it's all your fault and I could use some money from each and every one of you.
Zack and Mac came to the rescue with the rear controll arms and saved my precious butt, Thank You. IMHO rear controll arms and better brakes are the first thing that should be done to this car.
Next came DENNIS, Lord have mercy, I was car number 17 and it was good.
I had him drop my shift point and redline to 5200 rpm at the peak torque spot to keep my motor in one piece, now I could romp and stomp and take my foot out of It at full throttle without streching a rod, I went to a smaller pulley to match my lower red line and added Snow Performance Water Injection for the times when I punch it with too little gas in the tank and it could go too lean. I don't know what my boost was without having a gauge and I didn't care, nor have I cared about RWHP numbers, they tell you nothing about how well the car runs and drives. I told Both Dennis And Jim D'Amore not to tell me the dyno numbers and that I would tell them if "Shamu" runs as well as my '69 Roadrunner 448 landrocket road racer (april 1995 Muscle Mopar mag.) My little kids are growing like weeds and I found the MM in the paper for 25k with 43 miles on it from a limo company that had it one day before their crew was doing donuts with it.
With the horror stories that cropped up on this Net. I looked at what Billy, Mac, Zac, Marty, et al were doing to beef up the bottom ends on this type of motor ( this is my first Ford ) and the price didn't seem that bad, I wish I had listened to Dennis, I would have saved alot of money.
I got a good price on a long block with a Cobra type build up and went shopping for installers since I was leaving for China and ran out of time to do it myself, talked to many places and went with JDM Engineering in N.J. of Muscle Mustang mag. fame because of Jim D'Amore's enthusiasm for doing the first Cobra swap without cutting the frame or moving the ABS brake system parts. He is a Ford SVT engineer from their offroad program and specializes in the Ford Lightning trucks for drag use and sponcers the heavy division at Ford Fun Weekends and said he wanted to do a Marauder.
Many Moons Later...
I get stuck in China all year, being driven around in a little mini mini van with a 1.2 liter motor, it had an exhaust pipe 12mm in dia. I had the need for speed.
I get the news that after 250 hours of very expensive labor the whale was running and his engine compartment was clean as a cat's ass as far as all the custom parts that had to be made, come and pick'em up.
WOOOO WHOOO to BOOWHO
I am tring to get time to get up there and rent a car when I get THE CALL...
Tom your motor just blew up while it was sitting here idleing, the rpm's just kept going down, down, down and she locked up. turns out number 7 rod bearing siezed. Where did I get that motor? I ain't telling, I don't burn bridges and I might need more stuff from them. So I got a real expensive lawn ornament now and the wife has got smoke comeing out of her ears. Jim says I can build you a good motor but it will take more time that you got. I have to go back to China on Mar.19th,. Visa card sends me a note about how much money I have blown in 2005 and congradulations we're raising your limit to 19k, just in time. I grab a factory crate '03 Cobra motor for 11k and JDM does a quick thrash engine swap and away I go.
I put in a set of custom JDM cams, SCT MAF, Accufab TB, quick change pulleys, ARP head studs, and 5 pages of misc. parts to finish the job.
I have got 326 miles on it as of to day so there are lots of questions I can't answer. JDM says they will do one for you but THEY build the engine and no a'la'cart parts or half steps, it their way or no way, and since they have all the part numbers and custom patterns the price will be half of what I payed. So gang I took the hit and payed for allot of R&D on how to do this swap, and the pictures don't do the craftmanship justice, these guys are wacked on fit and finish all the way down to the type of clamps and fasteners and the SVT way of building cars. I can't say it's been worth it. I was trying to build a cheap replacement for the Audi RS6 I had waited 2 years for and the dealer tried charge me 92k for, (go look up the numbers on that beast). The end result is after 3 years of broken rears, broken trannys,broken engines, doing things over and over, towing bills, my stpidity, being stuborn, thinking I knew more than the people here that are helping us to do things right, I got 90k into this project, and Jim D'Amore says "you want to go 10's and go on the drag circut with us?"

O- NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOoooooooooooooo.....


Thanks for reading, and check out all the go fast parts I got in the classified section. Tom Doan 301 236 5738 east coast time

ps. don't think about stealing Shamu, I got a real long driveway and a .50 BMG, my kids can't wait for somebody to try " Dadeeee it's my turn to shoot and Chris didn't leave any woodchucks for meeee."

jimlam56
02-27-2006, 03:01 PM
Beautiful job Tom, now tell us about the 6-speed!

MarauderMark
02-27-2006, 04:19 PM
Absolutely beautiful peice.:up:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y193/Defyant/DSC00321.jpg

Donny Carlson
02-27-2006, 06:19 PM
The end result is after 3 years of broken rears, broken trannys,broken engines, doing things over and over, towing bills, my stpidity, being stuborn, thinking I knew more than the people here that are helping us to do things right, I got 90k into this project....

Wow, I feel MUCH better about the money I spent on my MM.

I always considered modding a hobby, and a big part of the enjoyment was talking about mods, hanging out with the techs while they did the work, handing out with other owners while they had work done, and of course, the fun of driving the car right after a mod had been installed.

I'm sure you and I are on way different pay grades, but one of the things I did after running up my cards on mods was to go on a strict policy that mods had to be paid for cash from overtime funds. I still am paying down a couple of cards for parts bought for my MM, and I don't own it anymore.

Good luck, enjoy yourself.

SergntMac
02-27-2006, 06:27 PM
Sorry I'm one of a few who tied up you phone, Tom. But, I was so impressed with such a professional conversion, I could not hold back.

I've not seen a cleaner engine bay anywhere, or, a more natural looking high performance install. Congrats, my friend, and...Thank you.

Zack
02-27-2006, 07:12 PM
Awesome. I knew it could be done.

martyo
02-27-2006, 07:27 PM
Jim:

First off, nice job!

You should bring that car down to FFW Atlanta in weeks. There is a private test and tune session that weekend and it is a great day to get to know your car. I am pretty sure the boys from JDM will be there. Plus it will give me a chance to see your car up close and personal. :D

STLR FN
02-27-2006, 08:24 PM
Looks real good reeeaaalllll good.

A guy I work with keeps telling me to drop in a Cobra motor. I keep telling him no way too much work. Guess I was right.

DEFYANT
02-27-2006, 08:44 PM
Very nice job indeed! This Marauder is awsome. With all the mods available to the 03/04 Cobras now available to this Marauder, Marty better get comfy in second place. :P

When will it go to the track?

Dan
02-27-2006, 08:47 PM
Beautiful job Tom, now tell us about the 6-speed!

Yes, please tell us about the 6 speed install.

Shora
02-27-2006, 09:23 PM
That is the best looking engine bay that I have seen in a Marauder. I am bone stock engine wise :( but I have seen some really nice set ups at the SSM Picnic. The cars at the picnic were so nice it was an honor just to park next to them. However, this would be my ideal set up. Considering the price, however, it would be cheaper just to buy a clean Cobra Mustang or another Marauder for everyday use.

If someone can get this set up for a reasonable price many "kits" would sell I am sure.

Tom Doan
02-28-2006, 08:20 AM
Gang, I do not know how the rummor started about the manule tranny but I got the same auto slush box that you do, but done up by Performance Automatics Inc. there in the mags. And speeking of mags. after writing this last night my March issue of MM&FF comes and whats on the COVER? How not to get ripped off buying mail order engines,!#@$@%$^&@*@(#!!!!!
Thanks to all of you, I don't write much and sit on the side lines but It's ALL YOUR FALT. And no, phone calls are great because I can't type or figure out this confounded machine. Tom

O's Fan Rich
02-28-2006, 08:34 AM
Thanks to all of you, I don't write much and sit on the side lines but It's ALL YOUR FALT. And no, phone calls are great because I can't type or figure out this confounded machine. Tom

Why? Cause it's not in Chinese?:P

BTW, is the food there anything like the Chinese around here?

Haggis
02-28-2006, 10:35 AM
Why? Cause it's not in Chinese?:P

BTW, is the food there anything like the Chinese around here?
Ask Tom about the message parlors. ;)

TripleTransAm
02-28-2006, 10:39 AM
Ask Tom about the message parlors. ;)

Is that what they call their Post Offices there?

O's Fan Rich
02-28-2006, 10:47 AM
Ask Tom about the message parlors. ;)

I'd be afraid to.... he might throw his 6 speed at me.

Bluerauder
02-28-2006, 10:52 AM
:rofl: :laugh: :rofl: :laugh:

Gang, I do not know how the rummor started about the manule tranny but I got the same auto slush box that you do ...
Paging Mike Poore ... is there a Mike Poore in the house ??? :director:
Your little zinger has been found on Aisle 5 !!! :D

Haggis
02-28-2006, 10:58 AM
:rofl: :laugh: :rofl: :laugh:

Paging Mike Poore ... is there a Mike Poore in the house ??? :director:
Your little zinger has been found on Aisle 5 !!! :D
B U S T E D !!!!

Mike Poore
02-28-2006, 05:55 PM
B U S T E D !!!!

WHO, ME? :rofl:

jimlam56
02-28-2006, 06:16 PM
WHO, ME? :rofl:
You would think I would have learned by now...
(sigh)