http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Nos-B...item3a551db9f2

 

There are something like 300 unique Boss 429 parts in one of those cars. Buying a basket case missing a lot of parts with plans to make a top level restoration out of it would be insane. I saw a production battery with special caps in new car take out condition (probably wouldn't even hold a charge but looked great) somebody advertised for $12,000 a few years ago. Boss 429 stuff makes truly original Cobra parts look like yard sale bargains. I got tired of paying insane money just for service parts to drive my old Boss 429 to work a long time ago. Even in the mid-1970s missing or broken parts were very hard to find and pay for.

PS Woody Anderson Ford's parts department was almost zero help with engine parts. R&R Speed Shop could get bits and pieces easier than them. I also bought NOS stuff from Steve Strange (think that is correct). I went into WAF's parts department to order some valve cover gaskets. The parts manager (W.R.) tried to tell me Ford never made such a car. I said is that so and told him and everybody in ear shot that if they would join me in the parking lot I would show them the car Ford made, WAF sold new, and WAF maintained for the original owner just a couple of years before. R&R had the gaskets from Ford and Mr. Gasket in stock, I bought the Ford ones.

 

My biggest fear of buying a truly rare car is not knowing all the little trinkets that are unique. I admit I don't know but there are people out there building what they call "replicas" of all sorts of cars that think if the body and paint somewhat represent the original then their value must also represent that. Remind me that if I ever decide (read have the money) to even consider something unique as a Cobra, Boss or Pantera that I need to take one of you with me to smack some sense into me and point me in the right direction.

Bill

 

Thats about like the BOSS 351 dipstick with the purple handle on the bay recently for around $1200. kennyg

 

thats cheap, i thought all fuel pumps go for over 1 k

 

Indeed, there are many cars that look great after being fixed up for resale but looking great does not equal factory configuration if that is important to you. If originality matters to you it is extremely important to take somebody along that thoroughly knows the particular car you are looking at. I met a man in 2006 that gave $850,000 for a Cobra that was worth at best $200,000 because it was very far from O.E. specifications. It was a Cobra but it was not the “factory race car” he was told it was. It was a nice street car that got rebuilt into something that looked more like a kit car pseudo racer by a old car dealer. Every “race” part on it was a reproduction or after-market speed part. He knew zero about Cobras but after an auction where a genuine ex-factory racer sold for over a million he just couldn’t let this “factory racer” escape at the bargain price of $850,000. His ignorance of Cobras and lust to get a deal cost him a lot of money. He was quite embarrassed by it all but determined to make people believe he could sell it in a year or two and get his money back. Nope.

 

Even worse:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...m=250536175764

 

I guess you see why sellers want $200,000ish or more for complete Boss 429s. You can do the math, a car missing a lot is worth more as a parts car to use to complete others than it is as a car. It is not unheard of for an owner to buy several cars to get enough parts to make one complete car. (People did that with Shelby's, Cobras, 427 Cobras, and Boss 302s in the 1970s and 1980s quite frequently. I talked with a man that went through 13 each 1965 GT350s to end up with one complete one and another guy that went through more than 20 Cobras. The end affect was the raise the prices for everybody.)

Even in 1974 when I bought 0F02Z124202 spark plug wires were expensive relatively speaking. I want to remember that even Ford service wires, if you could find them, were hundreds of dollars. If you come across pictures of my old car when owned it you'll notice that for most of its time with me I had aftermarket wires on it. I bought a roll of lead wire and reused the boots. I got new insulators from Steve Strange and even those were pricey and took a consider portion of my income at the time. Boss 429s were expensive to play with day one and only went up.

 

Dan, I work for Long Lewis in Muscle Shoals and I tried to look those gaskets up on my old microfilm. The difference between me and those guys is that I DO know that Ford built that car, along with many other rare variations on Mustangs and other Fords. Problem for me was that the microfilm is slap wore out! The area on there where the numbers were is completely illegible now. I wish we had updated fische to look some of this old stuff up on. BTW, I saw your old car in Mustang Monthly this month; I'd LOVE to see some of your other old Fords, if you still have any. That old 429 Boss is great! Cars are only original once, huh?

 

[/quote=MARK;5771829] I'd LOVE to see some of your other old Fords, if you still have any. That old 429 Boss is great! Cars are only original once, huh? [/quote]

The only toys here now are my father's favorite a 1930 Ford Model A two door Phaeton Deluxe and my Cobras. I worked through a list of mostly unrestored cars to move up from a 1966 Mustang two door hard top to the 1964 Cobra.


I don't get to your area much as the long time friend I use to visit and play cars with got Parkinson's disease and is now out of any car play. I am told he doesn't recognize family anymore. Terrible thing to happen.