Gear and Clutch Recommendations for 97 Cobra

[Canada]

Looking to switch to a 3.73 FDR and to pick up a new clutch and flywheel.

Ford Racing has a 3.73 ring and pinion for $190. I can get a rebuild kit from Ratech for $120 (ALL new bearings and seals).

For a clutch....I'm also looking at Ford Racing....their HD King Cobra unit...they say it can handle another 40% torque and still be as 'nice' as the OEM clutch.

I'll also probably pick up a Fidanza flywheel.....roommates have them in all of their cars and are quite nice.

I'll probably order the above from Summit Racing (kinda weird owning a car that you can modify from a catalog)....unless you guys have something better to suggest.

Oh...to help give a better idea of power output....the current modifications to the car are...

K&N Drop-In Filter
BBK Shorty Headers
BBK Fuel Pressure Regulator and Gauge
BBK Underdrive Pulley Kit
BBK Heavy Duty Subframe Connectors
Dynomax Catback Exhaust

 

[SVT98Snake]

Looking to switch to a 3.73 FDR and to pick up a new clutch and flywheel.

Ford Racing has a 3.73 ring and pinion for $190. I can get a rebuild kit from Ratech for $120 (ALL new bearings and seals).

For a clutch....I'm also looking at Ford Racing....their HD King Cobra unit...they say it can handle another 40% torque and still be as 'nice' as the OEM clutch.

I'll also probably pick up a Fidanza flywheel.....roommates have them in all of their cars and are quite nice.

I'll probably order the above from Summit Racing (kinda weird owning a car that you can modify from a catalog)....unless you guys have something better to suggest.

Oh...to help give a better idea of power output....the current modifications to the car are...

K&N Drop-In Filter
BBK Shorty Headers
BBK Fuel Pressure Regulator and Gauge
BBK Underdrive Pulley Kit
BBK Heavy Duty Subframe Connectors
Dynomax Catback Exhaust

3.73's are a waste of money. 4.10's at least.

With that, I say about 280-285 rwhp. Less if you have a stock h-pipe...that was assuming you had a o/r pipe.

You will never know though until you dyno it....my car made 279 rwhp with h-pipe and a cat back, but those numbers are rare for just those mods from what I have seen...so every car is different.

 

[5.0's 4 ever]

I would suggest at least 4.10s also but for some people they do not like driving around with the rpms so high and having to shift so often.
The ford racing king cobra clutch is the same as the oem clutch that originally came in the 96-98 cobras. That 40% increase is over the stock GT clutch. I personally think they are garbage. I had one in my 96 back when I had the t45 still in it. It only lasted 3k miles before the clutch material just ripped of the disc for no reason while I was shifting. Maybe valeo had a bad batch but I personally know of two other cobra owners who had the same exact problem with the king cobra clutch. All the failures were below 5k miles and they were all just basic bolt on cars. Some other stangnet cobra owners also had the same exact problem.
I run a 11" McLeod in my cobra with a billet fidanza flywheel and love that setup. I got mine from www.ddperformance.com