I surely want to believe you O7, sound like the Cobra and Mach will be kicking some major tail :spin: :headbang:

 

given the comments earlier this week on ford bringing in an IRS as an option on the mustang line, not necessarily just the cobras, and how old this writeup on the cobra is in comparison...Im willing to lend a little bit more credibility to it...

 

It doesn't make any sense to call the new car anything but the Cobra. SVT has spent alot of time and hard work on a car whos name is now instantly know and respected. Besides having owed classic Mustangs, I personally have owned three Cobras since "93", and will only buy a Cobra. Calling it anything else would be a mistake and a disappointment, especially if the new car picks up were the old one left off. What I mean by this is, if the new car has everything that has become and expected to be the Cobra and Ford calls it by another name, who are they kidding. Are they afraid to offend the great Carrol Shellby? I say let him do his thing and let SVT do there thing. Is it because Ford plans on building the new Shellby concept Cobra? If the consumer can't separate the two they need to be buying Hondas or some other generic cookie cutter type of vehicles.
I say the SVT Cobra nameplate has been around this long and deserves to stay. Also you could look at it like this, If Ford had built the new Lightning and it performed and looked as you would ecspect the next Lightning would, but Ford called it something else, everyone would think that would be just stupid!!!

Anaki

 

I think there's actually a great possibility that SVT could be working on more than one Mustang. Who's to say that SVT is only allowed one version of the Mustang? Now if the Cobra isn't going to be released until MY2007, why in the world would they be unveiling it more than a whole year ahead of its release to the public? That's like Ford showing off the final convertible at last years NAIAS instead of recently just a few months before its on the lots. By the time its out all the hype for the Cobra will slowly die down within a year's time of not being out, while the V6 and GT sales will suffer a bit because a great crowd of people will hold off more than a year for the Cobra. That's not intelligent marketing.

For now we know "an SVT version of the Mustang" will be unveiled at the NYAS, maybe it will be a concept, maybe SVT has taken over production of the Mach1? It would be much smoother for both Ford and SVT to roll the Mach1 and Cobra out on the same line if based off the same engineering mechanics. I can picture SVT using the 5.4L in the Mach1 with its own stripes, shaker, and minor body work to push sales in between as a SE, and to bridge the wide gap in power from the GT and future Cobra. Then building the Cobra alongside Mach1 for MY2007 with the 5.4 S/C and all its glorious special upgrades. I'm not saying this is for sure what is going to happen, but it's a possiblilty that SVT is working over time with the Mustang to make up for dropping the Lightning for now.

 

this is whati have been waiting for - i plan on the 07 Cobra coupe as being my next new mustang purchase - sitting here counting the days

 

I'm assuming many of you also received the SVT Enthusiast mag that I got in the mail last night. It specifically references (I forget which author-Jones, maybe) the 07 Cobra. It would be cool to see a couple versions ('base' Cobra and Shelby Cobra upgraded version).
It also makes sense for them to show a concept Cobra or Shelby version in NY this March and then show the actual production car next Jan in MI. The 03 Cobras went on sale in Feb 02. It would be fairly easy for them to release the 07 Cobra as early as Feb 06 or as late as Sept 06 and still call it an 07MY.
It also makes sense for them to use the 5.4 SC 3-valve since it's in the Ford GT and (minus the SC) in the F-150. The development of this engine would make it easy to put in the next Lightning. (Also ref in the SVT Enth.)
I'm filling my piggie bank now and I can't wait to add an 07 Cobra to my garage.

 

Can you please scana nd post the article? I don't get SVT enth.

 

Not only does the article reference it, but SVT's own website says there is going to be an 07 Cobra. Read this on the "Power Lease" option that was available this past summer.

 

Anyone have an estimate for the 07 Cobra's hp? Just tell me what you plan on. 04's have 390. will 07 have more?

 

A minimum of 430; more likely to be 440-450.

 

I scanned the two articles using OCR, cleaned them up a little, and I am pasting them below. A little long, but interesting stuff. Future of Lightning was written by Scarpello and Still Truckin' was written by Tom Jones.
One of the things I like best about SVT Enthusiast is that it dispels/proves many of the rumors that I see on the net. Sometimes I read stuff here before I've heard it anywhere else and other times it's old news.

There's another reference to the 07 Cobra in an article about a track event. Nothing specific about the car, but another reference of it's existence as a 2007 Cobra.

[from Jan/Feb 2005 SVT Enthusiast]

p14
"Next the audience heard from Brian Roback, the SVT powertrain engineer for the '07 Cobra. Roback answered what questions he could about the new car while still keeping true to his vow of secrecy to SVT."

Future of Lightning

The news of the postponement of the next-generation SVT F-150 Lightning brought about a strong reaction from current Lightning owners, as well as owners of other SVT products concerned about what this decision might mean for the future of SVT.

The media quoted our PR manager, Alan Hall, as stating that this was a "business decision." That quote unfortunately sounds somewhat simplistic, and does not capture the complexity of the situation with this SVT vehicle program. Central to the decision was that the resource requirements to develop the next generation F-150 Lightning - an all-new vehicle to be built at a new (for SVT) assembly facility - are substantial. Also, SVT program mangers face significantly higher engineering costs in order to meet their goal of expanding on the current performance potential of full-size pickups.

At the same time, SVT is working on the development of the next-generation Mustang Cobra, which intends to re-define Mustang performance and establish a platform on which Cobra can continue to evolve over time. The goal of developing a powertrain, body and chassis architecture that will be suitable for future generations of Mustang Cobras - coupled with the fact that it is also an
all-new vehicle at a new assembly facility - make this program extremely complex and expensive as well.

Finally, Ford's desire to keep the F-150 line fresh and competitive means that some changes are in store for that model which would affect an upcoming SVT version. A postponement allows SVT engineers to take advantage of these changes which would prove to be a benefit to the SVT F-150 Lightning program as a whole.

By any measure, the SVT F-150 Lightning has been a very successful product for Ford. With a total of 39,687 SVT F-150 Lightnings produced since 1993, the Lightning is the longest-running, bestselling sport truck nameplate in the industry. Over the years, the SVT F-150 Lightning has earned Ford a tremendously loyal
customer base. There is no question that Ford places a high value on the Lightning customer, and intends to get a new Lightning on the street sometime in the future. Unfortunately, due to the reasons outlined above, it is not possible to announce specific program timing right now.

If you have an opinion on the subjects discussed here, or any other Ford or SVT related subjects, please send your comments to submissions@svtoa.com.
Letters may be published in future issues of SVT Enthusiast.

Going Green

In September of this year, I celebrated six years with SVT. This represents more than one third of my entire career with Ford. It is not an overstatement to say that my time at SVT has had a profound impact on me both personally as well as professionally.

When I came to SVT in 1998, there was great promise for the organization, although there were several challenges as well. With a lot of hard work by some very committed and enthusiastic people at SVT, Ford, and our key suppliers, we were able to transform SVT into arguably the most successful high performance specialty vehicle development group in the history of the automotive industry.

I think what makes SVT different is the competitive spirit of its people. Yes, we all love performance cars and trucks, but we also love to WIN. Everything that we do is geared toward

8 SVT ENTHUSIAST [JANUARY/FEBRUARY 05]

Continues on 31

AT FHE APEX continued from 8

being the best. It goes beyond pride in doing a good job; it's about taking it personally. Everyone who works on an SVT product program feels like it's his or her very own program. When we see customers enjoying an SVT vehicle, we think, "That customer is enjoying MY vehicle." When it goes beyond just doing a
job and becomes a personal mission, that is the magic that makes this team successful.

Our desire to be the best has earned us respect and admiration from customers, the media and our dealers. It has encouraged competitors to copy our organization structure and processes. Unfortunately, we are facing some challenges again today. Which is why it is with mixed emotions that before this column is published, I will have left SVT to take a position at Jaguar Cars U.S. Taking over for me at SVT is George Ayres, who comes from Jaguar and who
brings with him a wealth of experience in the business of specialty vehicles. George is a no-nonsense kind of guy who is a serious enthusiast as well. I wish the best to George, the team, and all of our SVTOA members.

In closing, I want to say that I appreciate the wonderful enthusiasm and loyalty that our SVTOA members have for Ford products and for the SVT organization. SVTOA membership really is at the very core of what SVT is all about. I am thrilled to see how the club has grown over the years, thanks to the efforts of some very special people - specifically the many volunteers who make things work and make it possible for the club to prosper. I truly believe the SVTOA is on the right track and has the potential to grow into something even larger and more valuable than SVT itself.
Thanks for the memories!

Still Truckin'

It was very revealing to read some of the comments from Ford loyalists who came out in support of the SVT Lightning when they got word that the next-generation SVT performance pickup had to be postponed. The best way for me to sum them all up would be to say that they centered mostly on both passion and disappointment. But - as Tom Scarpello explains so well in his final "At The Apex" column in this month's issue of SVT Enthusiast - it was a difficult decision that had to be made.

It's no surprise around here that there is so much support for the SVT F-150 Lightning. After all, it's a great SVT product that has proven its viability in the marketplace for many years now. What's more, its superb blend of performance and functional attributes has earned it the respect of enthusiasts everywhere. The thing that I found surprising, however, was how many people had actually thought
that Ford was now turning its back on the performance truck business or that SVT itself had somehow changed its mind about the value of performance engineering in pickup trucks. That's simply not true.

While there is much I simply cannot tell you at this time about our plans for SVT-badged truck products in the future, what I can tell you is that SVT is as committed as ever to developing and building both cars AND trucks that deliver the kind of performance, substance, exclusivity and value that you've come to expect from
the Ford Special Vehicle Team. In fact, I've long been a proponent of the value of performance engineering in trucks, as I have spent much of my Ford career working in Truck Operations.

First there was my time at Truck Advanced Engineering, when work on the company's project trucks and concept trucks was as much an exercise in creativity as it was in engineering. But then came a stint as the full-size light truck vehicle development manager - a job that involves all aspects of the truck product development process, from durability testing and quality to product strategy
and yes, even racing.

For an engineer, there's really no better place to have any new design tested than in the racing arena. That's because racing puts demands on parts, systems and equipment that often go far beyond anything that we can easily replicate in testing at the factory - or even that customers can ever experience over years of vehicle
ownership. That was originally one of the big benefits of factory participation in stock-car racing - other than the so-called "halo effect" of the "Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday" marketing payback. There's no doubt that racing's a great place to apply good engineering fundamentals and get a solid, measurable development
process in return.

Of course, stock cars in the 1950s and '60s were much closer mechanically to what was actually sold in dealer showrooms. Back then, what was learned about durability and reliability of a vehicle on the track could be applied directly to improvements in the regular production vehicle itself. While it's true that today's NASCAR entry is pretty much a purpose-built race car with few regular production vehicle parts employed in the build, there is still a great amount of engineering
learning that can be applied to production vehicles. But some forms of modern racing - such as Showroom Stock, Grand Am and Off-Road racing - still offer an abundance of real "technology transfer" that can be of great benefit to factory engineers.

In fact, the Lightning was one Ford production vehicle that used knowledge gleaned from offroad racing to make a better vehicle for the SVT customer. High-performance prove-out of some componentry used in Ford's E40D automatic transmission was done with Ford-sponsored entries in off-road races in places such as the Mexican Baja peninsula. That experience was key to the ability

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[JANUARY/FEBRUARY 05] SVT ENTHUSIAST

"RUNNING... continued from 9

of Ford engineers to deliver an automatic transmission that could hold up to life in an SVT F-150 Lightning.

Off-road racing has also played an engineering development role in most every other pickup truck and SUV nameplate that Ford produces. From F-Series to Ranger, Explorer to Expedition, a lot has been learned from competing in series such as Best in the Desert, Championship Off-Road Racing and the Mojave Desert Racing Association. The extreme conditions encountered there have helped
test the endurance of everything from suspension components to Ford's famed 7.3-liter Power Stroke Diesel.

Whether it's through the experience we've gained from Ford Racing or from all of the SVT products that we've already built and sold to high-performance Ford customers since 1993, SVT knows what it takes to make a truck "special" in the minds and hearts of enthusiasts. We also know that for us to be successful, our
SVT-branded products need to fit into the product cycles of the vehicle lines that we're trying to enhance.

With lots of hard work and a little bit of luck, we're looking forward to the day we can again talk about a Ford truck that embodies all of engineering and performance leadership you'd expect from Ford SVT. Just know that until then, like the old saying goes,
"The Best Never Rest."

[JANUARY/FEBRUARY 05] SVT ENTHUSIAST 31

 

That was a great read. Thanks for taking the time to post that.

I especially like the part about ....

"At the same time, SVT is working on the development of the next-generation Mustang Cobra, which intends to re-define Mustang performance and establish a platform on which Cobra can continue to evolve over time. The goal of developing a powertrain, body and chassis architecture that will be suitable for future generations of Mustang Cobras."

Sounds like not only is SVT alive and well but putting all their efforts into turning out something that's going to be pretty darn slick.

Brett

 

If it's true that the next SVT Cobra will be heavily inspired by the '67 Shelby, then I wouldn't be surprised to see them pull the existing fog lights together into the center and simply do a slight redesign of the lower fascia, kinda like below (that would ROCK):

 

There is no real info to support this. All this is, is internet rumors and speculation. I expect that if Shellby is working on an in house project (that will be over priced because his name is on it) that it will be styled to resemble one of his past creations.

Anaki

 

I really like that car and would buy one in a heartbeat, but I don't think they can produce it with those foglamps because of laws passed in the 60's. If I remember correctly, some states had laws that dictated that headlights be X distance apart from one another and that is why the '67 Shelby was made with both "inboard" and "outboard" lights. The inboards were early production models that didn't meet compliance and hence production was stopped. I prefer the inboard look. I'm sure there is a '67 Shelby expert that can lay out all the details, in one of the other forums.

 

I would think it would have to be the Cobra, even if SVT does work on other cars and other versions of the mustang. Isn't SVT limited in the amount of resources it receives and isn't that resource limitation the reason that SVT put the Lightning on hold? Since SVT seems to be limited in resources it is focusing its resources on one project at a time, perhaps has some smaller projects, but mainly focusing on one big project at at time, and that one big project would most likely be the Cobra.

 

Mystic,

Thank you very much for taking the time and effort to scan and post that. That is excellent reading and makes me feel much more comfortable about the future of SVT.

 

Thanks for the info 07.

For what it's worth the info my friend, who has connections with Ford, told me is consistent with the info you got. You got a lot more detail than I did though. Thanks for sharing.

 

Great news cant wait to see it.

Maybe this will finally quash all the rumours that the cobra and SVT are dead.

 

and the link to the info...
http://forum.5lmustang.com/viewtopic.php?t...=asc&highlight=