Mustangscotty
08-24-2010, 02:13 PM
Ok, so many of you know of the "issues" I've had involving the build on my 03 Cobra. Robert's built it the first time and after it was done I had some tuning and fuel issues. Amazon dyno-tuned it for me and the tune was a good one. All I wanted was a safe tune for the street.
As the miles went by, the car ran smooth but never cooled like it should. I burped the cooling system, replaced the thermostat and the engine fluids have always been good. The car overheated at the track during testing. Seems that every time I did some full power boost runs (18psi), the engine would overheat. Cause at the time: Engine was not burped, to me that was an elementary thing to overlook. Chock one up to my in-experience with modular motors and I won't mention what Robert's should have done in the first place. The $350 fuel pump burned up because someone installed the fuel filters backwards inside each filter housing. It was discovered by Aeromotive via video I made during some full throttle gear banging.
Nonetheless, when at Low Country Dragway the Roberts crew was at the track helping me dial the car in. In that regard I can't thank them enough for being there to help. After that day at the track, I deployed immediately. After returning I took the car to Orangeburg for more testing. The track was new and hooked much better than Low Country track did. No or significantly less tire spin allowed the car to launch better and sent the car towards the wall when shifting into second gear. Cause: bumpsteer and a kit was ordered to fix the issue
Mr. Tootee (one of the owners of Orangeburg raceway) inspected the roll bar and other mods done by Camtech. I found out Camtech did not install the drive shaft loop I provided them. Tootee's in Orangeburg hooked me up for free ! Those guys love the Air Force. It wasn't long before it was time to plan for retirement that was right around the corner. Retirement from the military means many things and one of them, in my case, was to stop racing or my budget would be threatened.
So here I am, the engine rebuild just completed and the car runs better than it ever has. Turns out the cooling issue was a head gasket blocking some cooling jackets on the drivers side head. I believe it was the reason one piston partially melted. The additional heat caused the piston face to become warped and barely contacted the head to create a gentle sounding ping.
It was also at this time we discovered the block is a "Windsor" block and not a Romeo block as all Cobra engines were Romeo blocks I began to wonder if Robert's mixed my block up with another 4.6L build that was taking place at the same time my engine build was. I only remember because I sold my pistons and connecting rods to the owner of the other 4.6L (2 valve motor) build that was taking place next to my engine build. At this point I have no reason to suspect fraud of some kind, rather negligence for f'ing up my engine build by mixing parts. A question comes to mind, did Roberts also mix up the head gaskets between the engine builds? To me, its entirely possible. Additional issues discovered during the rebuild; QA1 coil over shocks were improperly installed and missing one bushing on each side causing them to make a loud knock when hitting a bump in the road, rear axle was over serviced, Fidanza flywheel teeth were dangerously loose due to failing rivets and no, you shouldn't put 10qts of oil in an engine that has a 7qt oil pan, and yes, you should check to makes sure you have the proper dipstick when installing the after market oil pan.
So when Robert's was done installing the motor in the car, I had to have the car back because they had the thing for something like eight months. There were issues with the engine, fuel system problem. Anyhow, I had a set of fuel rails made and modified the tabs that secure them to the lower intake, installed the regulator and fired up the car.
Lessons:
Would I go back to Camtech? Yes, but I would take inventory of all the parts I provided and ensure they are on the car before driving home. Inventory because the install and fab work took a while to complete. Their welding is excellent as are the chassis and roll bar set ups they do.
Would I go back to Roberts Automotive? Hell no. Disorganized, chaotic, messy shop, questionable work, ethics issues and I'll stop there.
Would I go back to Amazon? Yes, but only for a safe street tune.
As the miles went by, the car ran smooth but never cooled like it should. I burped the cooling system, replaced the thermostat and the engine fluids have always been good. The car overheated at the track during testing. Seems that every time I did some full power boost runs (18psi), the engine would overheat. Cause at the time: Engine was not burped, to me that was an elementary thing to overlook. Chock one up to my in-experience with modular motors and I won't mention what Robert's should have done in the first place. The $350 fuel pump burned up because someone installed the fuel filters backwards inside each filter housing. It was discovered by Aeromotive via video I made during some full throttle gear banging.
Nonetheless, when at Low Country Dragway the Roberts crew was at the track helping me dial the car in. In that regard I can't thank them enough for being there to help. After that day at the track, I deployed immediately. After returning I took the car to Orangeburg for more testing. The track was new and hooked much better than Low Country track did. No or significantly less tire spin allowed the car to launch better and sent the car towards the wall when shifting into second gear. Cause: bumpsteer and a kit was ordered to fix the issue
Mr. Tootee (one of the owners of Orangeburg raceway) inspected the roll bar and other mods done by Camtech. I found out Camtech did not install the drive shaft loop I provided them. Tootee's in Orangeburg hooked me up for free ! Those guys love the Air Force. It wasn't long before it was time to plan for retirement that was right around the corner. Retirement from the military means many things and one of them, in my case, was to stop racing or my budget would be threatened.
So here I am, the engine rebuild just completed and the car runs better than it ever has. Turns out the cooling issue was a head gasket blocking some cooling jackets on the drivers side head. I believe it was the reason one piston partially melted. The additional heat caused the piston face to become warped and barely contacted the head to create a gentle sounding ping.
It was also at this time we discovered the block is a "Windsor" block and not a Romeo block as all Cobra engines were Romeo blocks I began to wonder if Robert's mixed my block up with another 4.6L build that was taking place at the same time my engine build was. I only remember because I sold my pistons and connecting rods to the owner of the other 4.6L (2 valve motor) build that was taking place next to my engine build. At this point I have no reason to suspect fraud of some kind, rather negligence for f'ing up my engine build by mixing parts. A question comes to mind, did Roberts also mix up the head gaskets between the engine builds? To me, its entirely possible. Additional issues discovered during the rebuild; QA1 coil over shocks were improperly installed and missing one bushing on each side causing them to make a loud knock when hitting a bump in the road, rear axle was over serviced, Fidanza flywheel teeth were dangerously loose due to failing rivets and no, you shouldn't put 10qts of oil in an engine that has a 7qt oil pan, and yes, you should check to makes sure you have the proper dipstick when installing the after market oil pan.
So when Robert's was done installing the motor in the car, I had to have the car back because they had the thing for something like eight months. There were issues with the engine, fuel system problem. Anyhow, I had a set of fuel rails made and modified the tabs that secure them to the lower intake, installed the regulator and fired up the car.
Lessons:
Would I go back to Camtech? Yes, but I would take inventory of all the parts I provided and ensure they are on the car before driving home. Inventory because the install and fab work took a while to complete. Their welding is excellent as are the chassis and roll bar set ups they do.
Would I go back to Roberts Automotive? Hell no. Disorganized, chaotic, messy shop, questionable work, ethics issues and I'll stop there.
Would I go back to Amazon? Yes, but only for a safe street tune.