MK VIII, Cobra, Which is Which?

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DixieRambler

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Being new to the forum I have noticed posts that talk about Cobra MK VIII and so forth. Does this mean there are MK VIII's with Cobra parts or was there a Cobra MK VIII? The LMS site shows a Lincoln decal with a Cobra snake in the background. Just confused as to what it all means in terms of what to call them. Not sure I know what a Cobra MK VIII. Sorry to sound so stupid when it comes to this!
 
Mark VIII's have the same motor as a Cobra(4.6 DOHC) with a few slight differences.
 
93dohcgt said:
Mark VIII's have the same motor as a Cobra(4.6 DOHC) with a few slight differences.
Click to expand...
Mark VIIIs were running around with the Cobra motor 3 years BEFORE a Mustang even dreamed about wearing a 4.6 DOHC. So I guess you could say the Stang guys copied us.:D
 
theres quite a few diffrences, but not enough to say its a diffrent motor. Remember they are modular engines, so most everything bolts up. Theres a few people out there that have gone to all cobra parts under the hood, or atleast mostly. Though, we do have a much better block. :)
 
What is a SVT Cobra MK VIII? What does SVT stand for? Sorry for the stupid questions. I probably should know these things since I'm working on my second Mark VIII.
 
SVT Cobra are designations that Mark VIII owners often give their car.
These aren't factory labels, they are just examples of owners personalizing their cars, or making them a little more distinctive, refrencing the shared engine with the Cobra.

No need to overthink it. They only produced the Mark VIII and the Mark VIII LSC. Everything else is just personalization.
 
We did an actual Lincoln Mark VIII SVT R model in 1998. It's featured in MM&FF here.

We just made a Mark VIII as if Ford would have if they did a performance version of the Mark VIII.

We added the chrome delete, 17x9 CobraR wheels, extensive bolt on mods, SVT badging both on the trunk as well as the interrior, wood grain delete...etc.
 
From what I understood, one of the biggest differences was the Mustang Cobra got a forged crank and better rods and pistons.

And whats with this cracked rod thing I hear people talk about?>

Also, I remember reading that article when it came out. Nice job guys
 
Cracked rods are a "new" way to seperate the crankshaft side of the connecting rod. After the part is cast, its sat on it's side, and a press pushes down in the middle of the radius, and "cracks" the crank journal in two. Instead of having a perfectly flat mating surface, there is an irregular surface that will only go together one way, and actually holds under load better.


Mike
 
I got the hotrod lincoln mark 8

376171_222_full.jpg
 
stang99x said:
From what I understood, one of the biggest differences was the Mustang Cobra got a forged crank and better rods and pistons.

And whats with this cracked rod thing I hear people talk about?>

Also, I remember reading that article when it came out. Nice job guys
Click to expand...

Rods and piston are the same junk in both engines. They have the better crank and intake. 94m5 explained cracked rods well, downside is they cannot be re-machined. Thats ok, you dont want to use them anyways.

The closet thing to a true SVT mark viii was the tasca supermark that geno now owns. That was a factory effort that laid the groundwork for all current mustang tech.
 
All the Mark blocks were Teksid. These blocks had much better controls at the foundries and were not prone to core shift like the later Ford blocks. The 96 - 98 Cobra got these same blocks. In 99 Ford started producing their own to save money. To this date they still haven't been able to produce a better aluminum block in the US.

The main differences between the Mark and Cobra DOHC are the Cobra got the forged but heavier crank. The Mark heads received smaller OD valve guides. The Cobra got more performance oriented guides and seals. In 96 both got the beehive springs. Prior to this the Marks had a different design. The Cobra's springs are slightly different than the Marks. The exhaust cams in the Cobra are more aggressive. The intakes between the 2 are totally different but will bolt on to each other as long as you have the B heads from 93 - 98. In 99 the Cobra went to C style heads. The IMRCs on the 93 - 96 are vacuum operated where as the 96 - 98 Cobra had electric operated IMRCs. The 97/98 Mark uses the same electric IMRC operation. The rods and pistons from the 93 Mark all the way through to 98 were the same as the 96 - 98 Cobra. In 99 Ford went to the less stronger 2V rods and a harder piston for closer piston to cylinder wall clearances. This meant a more brittle piston.
 
so from what you just said if i had a lets say a 93 mark motor and a 97 cobra motor in front of me what would i want to take from each to make the best motor? Im not doing this but im just wondering what stock parts could i use to make the best most power possable?
 
The Cobra intake cams are the ones that are more aggressive, the exhaust cams are the same. Also, a lot of the 99 Cobras and a few 01 Cobras got the Teksid block as well. I can't confirm if this is true or not but I read somewhere that the 93-95 Mark VIII's got the weaker 2V rods. The 96-98 Cobra cams are the best stock cams you can use. The 97/98 Mark VIII's and the 98 Cobra have the best stock IMRC's which are plastic and have better flowing ports.
 
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