By Dean Larson

In our 30K Cobra Shootout this winter, we brought you seven Cobras that could be had for $30,000, proving that there are some really great cars out there on a budget. But it’s springtime now, and you might be looking for a spring-cleaning special, so we upped the ante and scanned the market for the best Cobras for 25K.

Predictably, we weren’t so spoiled for choice when we dropped our price another $5,000 and all the qualifying cars seemed to fit into one, or more, of three boxes. Most cars in this price bracket tend to be older builds, SN-95 mustang donor builds or higher mileage cars.

The car in our third place slot is appropriately priced at just $25,000 and located in Spring Branch, Texas. This early Factory Five Cobra was completed back in 2003 using a Fox-body Mustang donor car. The fuel-injected 302 mill under the hood is a common sight on budget Cobras, but this one has been equipped with centrifugal supercharger. The seller doesn’t list any specifics on the supercharger, but from some advanced zoom and web searching techniques, we believe this to be a 6-psi unit from Powerdyne. The rest of the driveline appears to be stock Mustang parts.

The seller reports that he acquired the car from the original owner back in 2016 after it had been sitting since 2012. Some basic maintenance items were done to get the car back on the road and a new clutch was installed.

We think this Cobra has a couple pros to consider. The supercharged 302 engine has to be a fun package in a lightweight Cobra and it will probably provide many miles of uninterrupted driving pleasure, as the engine is a production unit and it is only being fed low amounts of boost. Parts will also be a-dime-a-dozen thanks to the Fox-body donor car. This Cobra does have a few negatives that bump it to our third place slot. The appearance of the Cobra needs some help. The seller notes that the paint driver quality and we think this shade of white may be a little to white. The four-bolt Cobra Mustang-style wheels could be upgraded also, and we’d suggest taking some of that saved money and buying this set of Halibrand knock-off wheels with tires for $1,400 and new hubs.  

There isn’t a lot of information to go off of for the Cobra in our second place slot, but it does appear to be a fairly well equipped Factory Five. The Ford 351 engine and four-speed transmission make this the highest displacement Cobra on the list, but the seller did not include any other information on the origins of these parts. Anything from a built Windsor block and Richmond T-10 trans to older stock Ford parts are possible here.     

The interior of the Cobra presents well despite having a mix of authentic and updated features. The AC wood-rimmed steering wheel, reverse sweep speedometer and shifter are done in the conventional Cobra method, but the racing seats and large-diameter tachometer have a more modern look.

Our second place Cobra is finished well and doesn’t give us much to complain about. At 27,500, you’ll have to part with a larger stack of Benjamins than our third place Cobra, but this example does present much better and any good negotiator could bring the price down a thousand or two. This Cobra most likely has its odometer to thank for placing on our budget list, as it currently shows 7,400 miles. 

If we were buying a Cobra in the $25,000 range, we would be on a plane to Kansas City to buy this nice looking Factory Five MkII. Listed for $28,000, it’s the most expensive car on our list, so you’ll have to drive a hard bargain to get this Cobra as cheaply as the others, but we think it offers enough over the others to justify the extra effort.

Starting as a SN-95 Mustang based build, this Cobra has had many of its SN-95 parts replaced or upgraded. The EFI 302 engine has been built to a reported 300 hp and the suspension has been upgraded with a rear coil-over conversion and adjustable FFR control arms up front. The owner has also recently added new wheels, fuel tank, drilled rotors, wiring harness and other items to the car. From a mechanical standpoint, we would definitely put the most trust in this car for a long road trip.

The Cobra’s red exterior shows the best out of all the cars on the list and we would assume the same could be said about its tan interior. While we may have just named the lowest horsepower Cobra number one on our list, (it would be an interesting race between cars 1 and 3) we it offers the fewest downsides for a Cobra in the entry level market. Lets not forget these cars are priced equivalent to a nicely optioned Honda Accord!