Ford Cobra outed: 302kW and white hot!

Hot on the heels of the yanks breaking Mitsubishi's world embargo for the all-new Evo X, Ford Australia's Sydney motor show stars have had the sheets lifted from them prematurely.

The embargo was broken by a magazine this week. And if Ford and FPV insiders aren't happy, at least their consumers and True Blue fans are!

As predicted by the Carsales Network as early as July, Ford's Sydney stars are the FPV Cobra and long, long awaited F6 X Territory (see separate story here). The new hero models come on top of the recently announced BF Mk II XR limited edition and a Craig Lowndes 'signature' ute (more here).

The FPV Cobra brings the Boss 302 engine upgrade with 302kW/540Nm that Ford insiders and fans had been wanting for the BA Mk II upgrade in October 2004. Although perceived by some as three years late, it is exciting news as the new model revives the proud Cobra and Boss 302 heritage.

The original Cobra -- a runout model generated by Edsel Ford II during his tour of duty in Australia -- was launched to clear the last of the XC Falcon Hardtop bodies in September 1978.  Even if the XC Cobra wasn't around for Ford's amazing one-two 1977 Bathurst quinella, the 30th anniversary of this occasion is a good enough excuse to celebrate with a new Cobra.

The introduction of the Boss 302 engine upgrade revives great memories of Allan Moffat's 1969 Mustang Boss 302 and marks the availability of a 302ci/4.9-litre engine in the original 1978 XC Cobra. The new FPV model marks a departure from the original in that it arrives as a four-door sedan that also carries a GT badge and a ute.

Just exactly why FPV has waited to launch its first V8 power and torque increase since 2003 on the eve of the current model's replacement is curious. It didn't appear in 2004 as it was going to cost too much money. Maintaining existing power outputs with the 2006 switch to Euro III emissions requirements, left no funds for such a power increase.

The 12kW and 10Nm improvements now confirmed for the FPV Cobra Boss 302, have required new camshaft profiles, valves and springs and a higher compression ratio. These changes are not superficial as many are suggesting and are not normally reserved for a projected runout edition of 400 sedans and 100 utes. 

These changes must continue into the new Orion-based FPV range. The big question is whether FPV will stop at 302kW/540Nm for the Orion when HSV is already delivering 307kW/550Nm. HSV's switch to the LS3 6.2-litre V8 which must occur sometime before mid-2008 will bring 321kW and 575Nm if the base Corvette specification is adopted.

Even if FPV does increase power and torque for Orion-based models, this special edition Cobra will remain a standout model as it will remain the most powerful and quickest of a series that spanned 2003-2007. Such Ford models traditionally are quite collectable.

The FPV Cobra specification will closely mirror the FPV GT 40th Anniversary limited 200-build model which sold out instantly leaving pent-up demand for the Cobra. Apart from the expected blue stripes over white exterior, there's leather, R-Spec suspension, 19-inch GT-P wheels and Cobra graphics.

Unlike the GT 40th Anniversary which lost its SuperRoo graphic at the last minute, the Cobra will wear a Cobra graphic that recalls the original.

The only controversial feature is the white highlights in the GT-P wheels. We reckon it's a neat touch that recalls the white wheels on the John Goss Special hardtop and Brock/HDT's first Group A homologation car.

Cobra pricing, as for the GT 40th Anniversary, will fall between the $62,210 GT and $70,410 GT-P with the embargo-breaking coverage in MOTOR quoting the same $65,110 figure as the GT 40th Anniversary.

The $61,200 figure quoted for the Cobra ute is higher than the $59,200 Super Pursuit figure, suggesting that the Cobra limited edition ute will represent more of an upgrade over the $54,170 Pursuit utility than the standard GT sedan.

Unlike the GT 40th Anniversary which took several months to go into production after its March reveal, the Cobra is already in production for a November on-sale date. Further production will keep the FPV facility busy after the January shutdown when it is expected to be joined by the FPV F6 X Territory. 

The launch of the Cobra limited edition and F6 X Territory (more here) will mark the beginning of a busy period for FPV when the company will then need to swing into full Orion production to build up pre-launch stocks.

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