Underdog

Yeah the stock 3:27's in the Cobra are real dogs. I happen to own a 01 Cobra and the gearing goes as follows:
1st 0-45
2nd 45-77
3rd 77-115
4th 115-150
5th 150-not sure yet will have to wait till spring. The car still pulls at 150, my guess is 165 or so.(just a guess though). The car really loses momentum when put into 4th gear, up until about 130 then your back into the power curve. ( 4500rpm-6800rpm) Man I wish my car revved to 9k, but if it did I would probably throw a rod right through the hood. I've actually seen this done on an old chevy, it sucked but it was still pretty cool to watch that engine blow. Good thing nobody was near it(except the driver of course) it blowed up REAL goood. Actually I read not long ago that when testing the new Cobra engine they revved it to 10k for long periods of time. The only thing that broke were alternators that burned up. Talk about valve float

suvh8r

Thanks for the info.. I suspected those had poor gearing (I've driven a couple, just never really maxed out 3rd or 4th gears). The s2k's gearing keeps it in the power band at any speed (except under 20 mph ). 4th gear tops out at 118 or so, and 5th gear barely drops it down the power band WITH another NON overdrive gear to go (6th) . If the cobra had the same gearing setup as the s2k, it would probably be a LOT faster. Those speeds in gears are absolutely rediculous and inefficient. Anyone know what the speeds are on a stock GT?

Zoran

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Underdog
[B] Man I wish my car revved to 9k, but if it did I would probably throw a rod right through the hood.

Underdog

Your absolutely correct Zoran,
I think Ford was doing the 10,000rpm test to prove the engine can handle it. I don't think they dyno'd it at that rpm but I'm sure the horespower and torque would drop off significantly. I used to build engines for a circle track driver and my motto was "rpm is what kills an engine", so I used 455 oldsmobile blocks. That way I got all the power I needed at 4500rpm. I still have a hard time revving an engine past five grand. I know technology has come along way but I just can't help but think "rpm is what kills an engine." BTW the guy I built engines for raced on a quarter mile dirt track in the "modified" class. I'm an old "superstock" driver myself and used a Chevy 302.
suvh8r,
Better gears would help us Cobra guys out significantly, from what I hear just installing 4:10's will put us in the mid 12's. But that is just hearsay, I've never seen any slips to prove it so you can take that with a grain of salt. Sorry, I'm not sure what the numbers are for a stock GT.

Slithr

You may be disappointed if you are looking for mid 12s with just a gear change. However, my understanding is that 4.10s actually increase a Cobra's top speed. Stock they top out around 150 in 4th. With the 4.10s the car should top between 160 and 165 in 5th. My car is stock except for exhaust and I have found the S2ks to be very competitive on a road course. There is not much difference in roll-on acceleration. The only downside that I have seen with the Honda is that if the track is slick you really have to watch the back end. I've had a couple of them spin right in front of me. Nice car. I looked hard at it, but needed a back seat.

cravnpup

The theoretical gear speeds for stock 99+ GT's are as follows:

1st: 0-40
2nd: 40-68
3rd: 68-102
4th: 102-135
5th: 135-202

Pretty sucky huh? As you can see 5th gear is pretty much useless when it comes to racing. With 3.73 or 4.10 gears we see much better ratio's but 5th is still pretty lame...

ML320

mt best friend from school has a 2001 cobra, DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THAT CAR. i have seen it run with a 00 vette 6 speed. with the independent rear suspesion (instead of the axle tramp nitemare of a live axle (gt)) the car is easier to launch and with rite tires i think it would be a competition for our beloved S2000. still the owners tend to be unpolite and to ignorant of honda power, prefer the S2000. ofcourse i drive a ML320 so how much can i know rite?

shizon'00

You got that backwards. Live axles are much easier to launch than IRS cars.

ML320

[QUOTE]Originally posted by shizon'00
[B]

You got that backwards.

Slithr

Stock, late model Cobras are no fun to launch. Lots of hop that can result in broken half shafts. The Corvette is also IRS, but that suspension is better sorted out. At least it doesn't hop like a kangaroo when you drop the clutch. From what I read, it sounds like the Honda launches OK from a suspension standpoint, you just have to be excited about the 7,000 rpm side-step.