Mark VIII/ Cobra interchanges...

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formerknown

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I may purchase a Gen-2 LSC very soon. I have seen alot of Marks with the Cobra upper intakes and valve covers. Is this a direct swap? What years are compatable?

Any information or links to a tech article or two would be greatly appreciated...
 
evillally said:
I may purchase a Gen-2 LSC very soon. I have seen alot of Marks with the Cobra upper intakes and valve covers. Is this a direct swap? What years are compatable?

Any information or links to a tech article or two would be greatly appreciated...
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OK, since no one has jumped in on this one I'll give my little bit of knowledge on the subjuect. I don't believe you can use the Cobra intake without using the Cobra heads because the port design is different from the Mark 8 and they won't meet up correctly. This is purley off of memory, I've never tried it myself. I don't think the gains are worth the money unless you plan on doing major engine work. But at that point you might just want to get a crate motor. My plans are spraying the hell out of the car with :nos: , wait for the motor to blow and then get one built for my needs, which is mind blowing power!!!!
 
There is absolutely no way I would waste my money on an intake and heads
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for a Mark for the tiny gain you would get. Lots and lots of better places to spend your money and get way bigger gains.

Gears,
Chip,
Spray,
Blower,
Exhaust,
just to name a few. Send me a check for the money wasted on the intake and heads and I'll set you up with a 12 sec everyday car.
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MonsterMark said:
Send me a check for the money wasted on the intake and heads and I'll set you up with a 12 sec everyday car.
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No fair, I answered firtst! Give me a check and I'll give you an attaboy and a pad on the back!!!
 
Ya, but I can make your 1st post disappear.
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I guess will have to wait till he gets a nice Gen2 and then have him bring it to the Midwest for a little touch up and go.
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Either way, I think everybody agrees that there are better places to spend the money to make more hp than a head and intake swap for the same money.
 
MonsterMark said:
Either way, I think everybody agrees that there are better places to spend the money to make more hp than a head and intake swap for the same money.
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No doubt, like I said, I plan on just spraying mine for the time being until the engine blows and then I can get a crate motor built for my needs. I guess its all a matter of if you want the power now or later. I spent a lot of money on accessories that don't do much for HP (TC, gears, fuel pump, etc) but once I start to spray it'll all come together.
 
The intake from a 96-98 cobra will bolt on the mark VIII motor with some modification of the fuel lines and egr tube.

Phil
 
Ya, it depends on what year Cobra manifold your talking about.
The 96-98 WILL work, and if ported and shortened runners it WILL make more power then the stock manifold.
To put on the 99 and newer intake you would have to swap the heads.
And it IS a good mod IF the heads you put on are ported.
A good set of ported heads and a good ported intake when tuned will give you 50-75 HP as long as you have headers to get the spent gas out.
I would do this and THEN spray it with a 75-125 shot and never stop smiling!!!!!!!!!!!
 
You are right Phil, the intakes are a pretty straighforward swap. I thought he wanted heads but re-reading I see he is only looking to put on some 'Cobra' covers for esthetics, I assume. My bad.

Most of the guys that have done the swap have been for boost reasons. I will have to check some archives for numbers but unless you pick up 20-30 rwtq, where this car really needs it, why bother? I would put $500 into gears and chip and make the car much more streetable. IMHO.
 
MonsterMark said:
... I would put $500 into gears and chip and make the car much more streetable. IMHO.
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Gears and chip for $500? :confused:

Sign me up!! I have more than that in parts alone to get 4.10s. And I saved $100 by buying a used traction lock and a rebuild kit. On top of that you may have labor costs.

Further, a good chip will set you back half of that $500 alone. Yes, you can find used chips, but they still demand good prices and you need to match the codes or pay for a reburn.

I'm not knocking anyone, but i don't want someone reading this to be unintentionally misled. You are right however, the gears and chip are the bigest bang for the buck :biggrin:
 
Hey driller,

No problemo. We need all the opinions we can get.

When I spoke of $500 for both, I should have elaborated a bit I guess.
A) There are lots of used chips can be had for around $200-300. Lots of guys going to 4 bank chips, programmable, etc so as I start, I see no need to go for a new chip intended for a stock Mark running on the street.
B) I feel a decent upgrade is to just swap the gears without going to traction lok. Especially for guys running the 3:08's. Yes, you wind up with one-tire-fire syndrome but if depends on how you want to run the car. If I am a strip animal, I would probably do the traction-lok with 4:10's. If I like to run twisties, I would stay with the IRS the way it is and just toss in some 3:73's for best handling and to maintain a reasonable throttle response in relation to shift points.

So, if someone wants me to spend their $500, I'll come up with a decent chip and some new gears. Sometimes, it is not how much you spend, but how you spend it. I upgraded my exhaust on the '98 with a dual in/out stainless Magnaflow placed after the 3rd cat with Magnaflow stainless resonators replacing the stock mufflers, all welded. For under $225, (my buddy is a dealer so I get to buy at cost) I wound up with the sound I wanted and I picked up a little of that all important seat of the pants feeling. I actually probably lost less than a 1/10th on the bottom and picked up a little more than 2/10ths on the top. But the reason I went that route is for the sound, not performance.

So I guess I agree with Chris. The intake alone is a waste of money like I said. I think you can get some "cobra" badges to put on the covers instead of installing new ones. Maybe I'm just too cheap, but you know what they say about a fool and his money...
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Like I once told Joey, I'm a deal freak. I like a deal, no matter what it is. Even on a pair of socks.
 
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