This will probably be a thread best answered by Nelson.

I have always had a closet love for Mustangs ever since being a kid and I'm thinking about finally making the move from DSM's maybe. I have had a few 350hp+ AWD DSM's so a stock Mustang would be out of the question because it would probably feel slow as piss to me. I'm afraid of making the transition and not being impressed like I use to be as a kid in my uncles 95 Cobra and fairly stock fox bodies. My definition of fast has certainly changed over the years so I don't want to be let down.


If I do go through with this my mind is set on either a 94-95 Cobra or 96-98 Cobra. A fox body would be nice but as the years go on their appearance just isn't appealing to me anymore.
An 03/04 Cobra would be fantastic, but the price is wayy out of my range.

My question is between the 94/95 5.0l and 96/97/98 4.6l Cobra's, which is the better choice? I want a motor that will (eventually) respond well to boost in the form of a s/c or turbo. 400-450 to the wheels would be nice, but which motor would get there easier and cheaper?

If your going to boost. I'd go with the 4v 4.6, hell even if you were staying n/a I would lol.

IMO if you want numbers like that and dont feel like killing a block I agree with neil. There are people who see that number all day long in a stock block 5 liter and others that pop the block with lower numbers.

i know where you can get a blown 98 cobra that makes 382rwhp with much more potential left in it for cheap

4v motor alllllll day if you can afford it. 5 liter is great and has plenty of parts but the 4v's love boost and will make big numbers easy

That's what I thought, thanks for the quick answers!
Now if I could only find someone who owns one willing to make a trade with me.

Also the sn95 4v's and IIRC the mark VIII's both have the teskid block.

Earlier years have the sought after teskid block.


Very early year Mark's have them also.

I thought they changed to the WAP block for the new edge cobras?

96-98 > 94-95

They did unfortunately. I think 98 got shafted with it also though. I know that the mark viii's didnt have the teskid for all that long as people are looking and paying good amounts of money for the older 93-96 blocks.

96-98 and most 99's all had the teksid (99 being first year of new edge). IIRC the 01's got it too. They switched to an iron block for the terminators.

5.0s are cheap and easily fixed/modded...and time bombs (in the form of stock lowers) when you add boost....4.6s will handle a lot more..you said you're gonna be needing a lil more power so i'd go 4v.(i would never i enjoy broken 5.0s personally for some odd reason haha) We were just having a convo about this in another thread..Go supercharged seems to be a much cheaper build as opposed to the turbos.. check out the more recent posts in this thread http://www.reklessracing.net/forums/index....mp;#entry255480

As most have said you should go with a 4v. If you wanted a 5.0 they make blocks stronger than factory ie boss 302, dart etc. It all depends on how much money you want to spend to obtain these numbers.

a 4.6 teksid block is one of the 10 best built engines , if you get a Turbo or S/C you can make some big HP for cheap money....if you go NA there are parts to make over 400hp...1996 to 1998 Cobras (some 99 s) would be the best bet over the 5.0......also i ve had 5.0 s.. so i'm not one sided
look here

don't get me wrong I love 5 liters and will more than likely end up with another and they can handle 500hp on a stock bottome end when tuned properly....with main supports, etc...they can def handle a bit more. Thing is you will be spending a few dollars to get the 5 liter to where you'd want it to be in comparison to the 4v which a blower and some bolts ons can be had for relatively cheap money.

come om man ! you need another sn 95 cobra nelson !!! lol

5.0 cars tend to feel faster, and are easier to drive because they tend to make power evenly through the rpm range. 4v Cobra motors are GREAT engines, but you have to beat them to death to get them to race good, and they are useless under 4500rpm. 500hp to the tires can be had with either engine on the stock bottom-end (5.0's will break blocks/cranks, 4v's will break pistons) as Nelson said, TUNING IS IMPORTANT!!!

In the end it's up to you....drive them both and see what you like!

^^ take this guy's advice seriously, i've seen his work first hand and he knows his shit!

Pick up a 94-95 with a 5.0 motor and go for a 347 stroker or swap it out for a 351w. Modular motors are great motors, but a pain in the ass to work on in my opinion. I'm sure if you're really familiar with them they aren't too bad. But a 5.0 is a whole lot simpler to modify/work on and the parts are considerably cheaper and more variety. I think good aftermarket heads just came out onto the market in the past year. If you get a 96-98, better plan on getting PI stuff from a 99+ Mustang, it will be slower than your grandpa's balls otherwise. It's easier to get a 5.0 and H/C/I with supporting mods and make your power, cheaper and less labor intensive as well.

i have a fox for sale.

pre cast piston 5.0, or 01+ 4v

nothing in between

the 5.0s are cheap to find parts for their a dime a doz but the 4.6 4v is the way to go im makn 452 to the wheels with more left in her

Nice Cobra! What does it have for mods?

us 4.6 guys stick together...lol

ahem, us 4.6 4v guys stick together lol

Cough.. 351.. Cough.... thats where the real power is.

I am putting down over 550 hp. I have a built motor and a procharger bolted to it. And I still have the cams to install.

which cams did you get? That thing will really wake up with cams in it.

I have the comp cams stage 2 blower cams waiting to be installed. I have all the shit needed to complete it too. And I plan on doing it right the first time so I am going to get ported heads.

exactly the cam set i was looking to pick up, but not cheap in the slightest haha

no sir and you still to buy the springs and retainers for another $600. unless you want the titanium retainers for another $400. And I spent over $300 at Ford for all the rest of the shit you need to do the job right. So its over 2k so far and that's just parts. And they say it's a 20 hour job.

20hrs at a shop with full tool access lol. at 85 an hour you're looking at 1700 just in labor...ouch

yes sir that's exactly why it's not done yet! So that boils down to what almost 4k just for cams! Man we are fucking nuts!

yes, yes we are. that's what happens when you try to shoehorn a watermelon into a dixie cup....and succeed!

$4K for cams?

4cams (1200-1500), plus valves springs and retainers (750-1000), plus 20hrs install at a shop if you don't have the tools (1500 minimum)

Ugh. I'll stick to my old OHV carb stuff. My ENGINE was less than that.

oh yeah it's crazy money that's why nobody does it. But It should pick up like 60 hp. then with the heads I want to do I will be in the high 6's for rwhp.

with those cams and heads you should see more than 60hp increase...that'd only be 72 at the crank.

4k for 60hp? wow! i'm with paul on this one, ill stick with the pushrod crowd, all 3 of my trucks arent even worth that much put together!

If I end up doing the ported heads. From a few estimates 60 is about the average gain with my heads.