Trainman

Today I drove an hour and a half to test drive a black 03 Cobra. The car was black the color I thought I wanted with 25,*** miles bone stock. I must say these cars are really fun to drive, but there are a few issues I thought it had. With the traction control on it just took off like a mad man no spinning what so ever. And when the boost kick in I was really cookin. Then I tried a 15 mph roll with the traction control off, no wheel spin at all same as above just took off. I was like wtf. The tires are in great shape just the factory goodyears. Is this normal? I kinda thought it would be all over the road. Another thing that concerened me was a very light ticking sound coming from both side off the motor that were so faint you had to put your headdamn nearon the valve cover to hear. I need some input guys. I'm looking at a white 03 stock with 16*** miles on it Sunday. I'm looking forward to see how it runs compare to the one I drove today. Thanks Joe

IROLLSALEEN

look for the blue stipe on the head if it's an 03

xxkazp3rxx

The blue stripe doesn't mean anything really.

If you hear ticking.. run away and run away fast.

Trainman

Thanks, yea the light ticking has got to be a bad sign. No blue stripe on the head. What about the fact it didn't even break the tires loose with the traction control off at a 15mph punch in first gear?

IROLLSALEEN

find a different one! the stripe means the recall/correction has been made to the car, if its an early 03 you want the stripe!

xxkazp3rxx

No it doesn't.

THE STRIPE MEANS NOTHING. I will find the svtperf thread. You guys are wrong. THE STRIPE MEANS NOTHING!!

xxkazp3rxx

http://svtperformance.com/forums/sho...ht=blue+stripe
http://svtperformance.com/forums/sho...ht=blue+stripe


They went around and around with this... the blue stripe means nothing.

xxkazp3rxx

yeah that's a known problem with the Cobras... it's known as the "tick"... is from the cylinder walls being to small. The heat expands the head when they get to hot, and you're hearing that... That's what I remember hearing about it.

What is the tick?? - this is from Cobra Bobs FAQ's

http://stangshiftergaskets.com/2003_...m#_Toc35092459

"Here is a great explanation from Ike (WDW MAKER) on SVTPeformance.com. "The sound is simply a worn valve guide allowing the valve stem to move. This is caused by overheating of the area due to poor coolant flow in the part of the head. The lack of bronze valve guides in our heads makes them even more susceptible. The Jan05 heads come with revised coolant passages keep the exhaust valve guides cooler. This may also help to keep #7 and #8 cylinders running a bit cooler.

Will running a car with the tick result in some sort of catastrophic failure? Highly doubtful. It's mostly an annoying sound that you have to live with. I'm sure the worn valve guide causes a bit of inefficiency due to blow-by around the seals. I doubt it's enough to notice until it has been run like that for quite a while. I personally wouldn't and didn't want to live with it. Others chose to leave well enough alone and have yet to see any significant issues."

LDC sells a cooling mod that improves coolant flow, which in turns helps to prevent this issue from occurring.

This problem sounds like a light ticking coming from the driver’s side valve cover, and is most noticeable when the car is warm. If you can hear the noise inside the car while idling, you most likely have the problem, otherwise, the ticking you hear is most likely injector noise (normal). The only permanent fix for this issue is installing the latest factory heads, released in January, 2005. The part numbers are:
Left side head
Part # 2C5Z-6049-BAB
Right side head
Part # 2C5Z-6049-CAB

As of 11/10/06 the discount cost of these heads (complete with cams and valve train) is $1,358.00 plus core charges, from FORDSVTPARTS (Steve) on SVTPerformance.com. Steve can be reached by PM on that website, or by E-mail FORDSVTPARTS@HOTMAIL.COM. You can also call him at 1-800-328-9552.

Drivers head $616.00 plus a $150.00 core charge
Passenger head $742.00 plus a $150.00 core charge"[/align]

http://stangshiftergaskets.com/2003_...m#_Toc35092316

Off of Cobra bobs FAQ as well.

"This is a question that has been tossed around more than a mixed salad. The popular rumor is that the blue stripe means that the head was replaced by the dealer (or at the factory) to fix the tick issue. First, some facts. The tick issue can occur on any 2003 or 2004 Cobra, and also Mach 1s. The latest head, and the one that fixed the tick issue, wasn't released until 01/2005. Second, the blue stripe has appeared on 2003 and 2004 Cobras/Mach 1s from the factory. It has appeared on both the driver side and passenger side heads. So it has no correlation to the fix issue that we're are definitely aware of. However, since some 2004 Cobras have reported to have 9 spark plug threads (only head that is known to have 9 threads is the latest head), it is possible that the head part number is the latest head. This hasn't been proven yet.

As far as what the blue stripe means, JB from SVTPerformance.com belongs to a local Cobra club and they toured the factory a couple of years ago. This was the explanation given at the factory. "Assembly plants use just-in-time inventory, meaning parts are not stored up but are delivered daily. The paint markers provide a visual confirmation of when particular batches have been purged from the line. They show up on other Ford engines besides the '03/'04 Cobra. The bottom-line is that the blue stripe doesn't mean a head has been replaced by a dealer"."



I would definatly check out CobraBobs FAQ page... they really helped me before i bought mine.

Trainman

Thanks alot guys, Cobra Bobs page is real helpful too. I printed it out and will take it with me as a check list when I go to look at some more Termie's. The guy with the car said it has done since the day he bought it 2 years ago. Also he only put 3,000 miles on the car in that time frame. I didn't hear the ticking inside the car but did hear it outside with the hood down and standing 10 feet from it. That was enough to not make me want it. Its gotta be 100% perfect for me to spend that kinda money, and black shows too any flaws anyway. As far as the 10-15 mph punch (described above) with the traction control off, whats up with that? Thanks again Joe

antiv6

on a lot of the 03s the injectors tick also its very noticeable