96-98 Cobra Hood

[1Red95Snake]

I'm being told by someone on eBay that the 96-98 SVT Cobra factory hood is made out of fiberglass. I was under the impression that they are steel. I do know that there are some aftermarket companies producing fiberglass ones. So, any of you 96-98 owners out there want to tell me what the factory hood on yours is made out of I would appreciate it.

Mark The Mailman

[STANGBUM]

They are made of fiberglass

[1Red95Snake]

Thanks for the quick reply! Now if you would answer a couple more questions I have. How is the quality of them as far as smoothness, warpage, cracking, ect? How are they at high speeds for vibration and wanting to fly off?

Thanks Again,

Mark The Mailman

[98banana]

Originally posted by 1Red95Snake
Thanks for the quick reply! Now if you would answer a couple more questions I have. How is the quality of them as far as smoothness, warpage, cracking, ect? How are they at high speeds for vibration and wanting to fly off?

Thanks Again,

Mark The Mailman

The one I had was perfectly straight and I've never heard any problems with them where warpage and cracking are concerned. Mine didn't hold up to well when I hit the wall at Road Atlanta though.

One thing to keep in mind is the weak hood latch on all Mustangs, not just Cobras. I've heard of many people having their hoods pop up at high speeds. It happened to me on the road course. I suggest hood pins.

Tom

[1Red95Snake]

Originally posted by 98banana
Mine didn't hold up to well when I hit the wall at Road Atlanta though.


One thing to keep in mind is the weak hood latch on all Mustangs, not just Cobras. I've heard of many people having their hoods pop up at high speeds. It happened to me on the road course. I suggest hood pins.

Tom

OUCH!!

I was hoping to stay away from hood pins, never have much cared for them.

[98banana]

Originally posted by 1Red95Snake
I was hoping to stay away from hood pins, never have much cared for them.

Let's see what others say about the pop up problem. I know that mine popped up at about 90mph and the car was doing a lot of turning at the time. The tweaking of the frame may have played a part. I know of others that popped up at 120+. The safety latch worked in all the cases I know about so maybe it's not a big deal.

And again, I don't think it's a problem with the Cobra hood only. It involves all of the Mustang hoods.

[1Red95Snake]

I don't think it is a problem on the 94-95's because they used the generic Mustang hood on them which is all steel and heavy. I've had an aftermarket fiberglass hood on mine before and cringed as I drove over 50 MPH and watched it start vibrating and shaking around as I went faster. I was always waiting for it to pop up and fly off going down the freeway at 70-80 MPH!!

I'm wanting to change my hood and rear bumper cover from the generic Mustang ones to the Cobra specific ones on the 96-98's because for one, THAT is what Ford should have done in the first place!! Two they look WAY better. I just don't want to spend all the money on a hood like I did with the aftermarket one I had before, and find out that it's a POS and not like it!!

[98banana]

You would love the 96-98 hood. I never saw mine move in the slightest and I had that car up to ~135 many times on the track. I put on hood pins after the pop up incident, but still never saw any shaking before or after that.

And I would agree to it's looks. I like that hood better than any of the Cobra hoods except maybe the '00 R hood.

[1Red95Snake]

Totally agree

If the 00R would fit on mine, that's the one I'd be getting!

Thanks for all of your input!! If anyone else has something to add here, by all means, go for it!

[lifeat26psi]

I hit 145 for about 15 seconds on the Jersey Turnpike, and i didnt see any shaking whatsoever, but thanks for scaring the **** out of me because of that pop up thing.

[98banana]

Originally posted by lifeat26psi
I hit 145 for about 15 seconds on the Jersey Turnpike, and i didnt see any shaking whatsoever, but thanks for scaring the **** out of me because of that pop up thing.

LOL! A little fear goes a long way. Better to be scared now than have it actually happen.

[lifeat26psi]

im telling u now, i wouldnt be typing this now if my hood opened.

[tnturbo]

If it is really a Ford hood and not an aftermarket knockoff I wouldn't worry at all. There are tons of Cobras running around with them and plenty at the track. At high speeds, the weight difference in a steel of fiberglass hood isn't going to make ANY difference in the tendancy to fly away.

[lifeat26psi]

ok, for my own mental welfare, does anybody on this board, had this happen to them, or know someone who had this happen to them, cause i speed a lot on highways, having my hood fly up is a pretty shitty way to die.

[98banana]

Originally posted by lifeat26psi
ok, for my own mental welfare, does anybody on this board, had this happen to them, or know someone who had this happen to them, cause i speed a lot on highways, having my hood fly up is a pretty shitty way to die.

Well, the only way you will "die" from a hood flying up is if the safety latch doesn't catch it and if you panic. The hood's not attached to the front wheels, so just hold the steering wheel straight if it happens.

Now, to answer your question, it happened to me at Road Atlanta (the safety latch caught the hood though) and it happened to a friend in Columbia, John Poe, and the safety latch caught his too. I've heard of a few others as well but have never heard of the safety latch not working.

And I mean this in the nicest way: bring the car to a track if you feel the need to speed. The highway is not the place for that. I spend A LOT of time on the highway and would prefer not to be killed by a speeding mustang.