5.0 Cobra or 4.6 Cobra...

[utvolman99]

All, I am not wanting to get into a full blown 5.0 vs. 4.6 debate (I have never visited this site but am sure it happens a lot) but I am in the market for a 94 - 98 Cobra and am torn between getting a newer car with less miles and getting a 5.0. I am very familiar with the windsor motor and know that it is rock solid. I just don't know that much about the 4.6 except that with the DOHCs on the Cobra they have more power stock.

What are the advantages of the 94 - 95 Cobra as compared to the 96 - 98 Cobra? I am going tomorrow to look at a 98 with 55K miles for $11,500. If I like it I may pick it up but I wanted to see what you guys thought first.

One advantage I can think of is that I would have NO problem overhauling the 5.0 but I am not sure about the 4.6.

I also posted this same question on the 5.0 and 4.6L boards. I wouldn't normally spread the same post around so much but I may be making my buy tomorrow!

Thanks for your help

 

[LaserSVT]

If its a solid car go for it! The 4.6 Aero Cobras are great cars, I love mine

 

[utvolman99]

If its a solid car go for it! The 4.6 Aero Cobras are great cars, I love mine

What about longevity of the engines? I know the 5.0 will last forever, do the 4.6s have any issues?

How about power upgrades? I would assume that it is cheaper to pump up a 5.0 also?

 

[LaserSVT]

What about longevity of the engines? I know the 5.0 will last forever, do the 4.6s have any issues?

How about power upgrades? I would assume that it is cheaper to pump up a 5.0 also?

If you take care of it, it will last a long time. At 104k the previous owner got a blown headgasket from a supercharger. He checked evrything on the bottom end and all was good, no reason to even replace piston rings. He put new heads b/c of a good deal and just swapped over all the valves and lifters and cams. I have 114k on her and she runs really strong. I have had it to 150 mph and still pulling real hard, car has bigger balls than me As for mods I have the basic bolt ons, cat back, O/R h-pipe, chip and removed the intake silencer and my car puts down 299.8 RWHP. It will lite em through second and chirp them in third. Can add a KB twin screw for $3800 and have over 400 rwhp

Thw space is really limited in the engine bay. For example to pull the passenger side valve cover you have to pull the intake pipe, t-body, heater core line, fuel lines and the strut tower brace (not standard in 98). Tune up is way easier than the 5.0.

Then there is the sound of a 4V When you get to 6grand and shift at 7grand the sound is sweet!

 

[John00Stang]

don't think you can go wrong with either. Yes the 5.0l is cheaper and easier to work on. As stated, things can get really cramped in the 4.6 engine bays. Its all about what you want. You can post all day long, but i think your gonna get 50/50 results from people on these boards. Personally, id go with a 96+ throw some gears nitrous and a few bolt ons on it and call it a day...*which is what i did*

 

[kck6894]

I would say go drive one and see what you think. They are both a good base to work with. Decide what you want to do with it. I think the 5.0L would be a better all motor hi power option. It you want to do power adders I thin I'd definitely lean towards a 4.6 car. The 4.6 DOHC motors are definitely a neat thing IMO. There are not a lot of cars out there that have a 4 cam V8 in them. I just think you need to decide for sure how you want to mod it and then look at which engine family is going to be the most friendly to those mods. good luck and happy shopping!

 

[thomas91169]

IMO for me, it depends on goals. If i want the best bang for buck without going Forced Induction, i would go with the 5.0. you can hit 300whp pretty cheap without much effort. However if ForcedInduction is in the plans, both motors wont last long enough to keep you happy (8-10psi from a blower only gives you smiles for so long before you want more) in which case, depending on type of forced induction, id go with the 4.6L since its 4V heads give it an airflow advantage.

 

[VR4]

the 5.0 will be easier/cheaper to mod but the 4.6 will give you more of a return and is my personal preference.



hi bill

 

[skratpiece9450]

Racers will agree. The 4.6 is a heavier engine and places more weight over the wheels than a 5.0 does. The weight is not beneficial.

 

[tomustang]

Racers will agree. The 4.6 is a heavier engine and places more weight over the wheels than a 5.0 does. The weight is not beneficial.

Racers will agree. The Mustang has enough adjustable aftermarket to correct that. '


So, what else do 'Racers' agree with?

 

[wythors]

Racers will agree, this topic has been done to death numerous times in this forum and a quick search will yield many results.

 

[TheDukeOfEarl]

Easy solution. 5.0 Cammer! Now its 5.0 and 4V

 

[LaserSVT]

Easy solution. 5.0 Cammer! Now its 5.0 and 4V

VR4: Hi Steve Sell the DSM and get another Cobra, its better on the dark side

 

[Gearbanger 101]

With regards to longevity, the 4.6L DOHC will last every bit as long as the 5.0L. I can't count the amount of ultra high mileage Mark VIII's I've seen running the roads. Their main issues at that level seem to be a tendency to burn a little oil....which when you think about it is no different than that of a high mileage 5.0L.

As far as which to buy.....I'd go the later model Snake all the way. True, the 5.0L is less expensive to modify....to a point. I wouldn't say it's any easier to work on. Changing plugs and general maintenance it far simpler with the DOHC. And although parts can be had to add more "kick" to the 5.0L and bring it up into the 300rwhp range, these parts include tearing into the engine, since the stock GT40 heads on their own aren't able to move enough air to make this happen. A DOHC Cobra already has a good 40-50rwhp head start over the 5.0L and can accomplish the task without simple bolt ons.

It seems a lot less troublesome to me when you can do accomplish the feat with the newer Cobra without even cracking a valve cover? Beyond that level, your going to have to get deep into either engine unless you plan on going with some form of power adder, so really all bets are off.