I bought this mustang in on Jul 21st, 2025. This was purchased not just because it is a rare King Cobra but I needed a daily driver so I could insurance my other Mustangs. Insurance companies were rightly so when they figured since my Jeep was totaled that I would use my 71 Mach 1 as a daily driver even though I may drive 5 miles a week. They were right to think that as I was going to. I lucked out and found a better place than Haggerty which started out as $20 month then increased to $30 and then to $90 all within 11 months. I switched to Openroad Insurance and now my 71 Mach 1 only cost less than $20 a month and my new 78 KC daily driver only cost about $30 a month. That does not include the discounts for having a Mustang of America Club membership and a multiple vehicle discount.
This car was made in Dearborn Michigan on May 8th, 1978, with the following options.
- 5Q Dark Brown Metallic Paint, Ford #5477-A
- Chamois Vinyl Luxury Buck Seats
- 3.00 Conventional Rear Axle
- C-4 Automatic Transmission
- Air Conditioner – Manual
- Orange King Cobra Tape Treatment
- T-Roof
- California Emissions Testing
- 164/70/x13 Raised White Letter Radial Tires
- Digital Clock
- Console
- King Cobra
- Interior Luxury Group
- Front License Plate Bracket
It was purchase in 2005 from a Pharmacal Executive for $3200 including shipping. It was the factory Brown back then and was in bad shape from what I gathered by all the meticulous notes, receipts, emails and everything he had done to this car he put in a 5-inch binder, and it is full. He had a custom built 302 with 280 HP Hi performance balanced engine from an engine builder in Phoeniz AZ. It had 280 hp @ 5,000 RPM’s and 315ft lbs of torque @4,000 RPM’s. This engine was built by a now defunct company called D&J Machines & Performance Engines. The email is no longer in use and the eBay name says it no longer active.
- 3.000″ stroke nodular iron crank
- 5.090′ forged rods with APR rod bolts
- 9 to 1 compression pistons
- Block was vatted, magnafluxed for cracks, thermal cleaned and steelabrated, bored honed and plateau honed to fit new flat topoversized pistons.
- Deck head gasket to surface on block to ensure a good long lasting seal.
- New CompCams Hydraulic flat tappet cam with .500″ valve lift
- HEads have 3-angle valve job
- Heads have 1.780’Int/1.450’Exh valves
- Both heads have been resurfaced to ensure a good long lasting seal
- New Hardened exhaust seats for use with leaded or unleaded fuel
- New High performance springs set up to match cam
- New Valve seals, guides.
- Screw-in rocker studs with guide plates. 1.6 roller tip rocker arms with balls and nuts
- Oversize piston and rings
- Hardened push rods for use with guide plates
- Heavy duty double row timing set
- High Volume oil pump
- Revolutionary 10pc design molded rubber oil pan gasket with load limiters to prevent over-tightening and higher temperature resistance than standard cork-rubber gaskets
- Brass expansion plugs
- Oversize main and rode bearings to fit reground 3.00″ stroke crankshaft
- Edelbrock Performer aluminum intake manifold
The new owner who lived in Missouri installed an Edelbrock 1806 AVS 650 with his new engine at the time, but strangely enough he did not go with the recommended air cleaner assembly that Edelbrock recommended. Instead going with a tiny 9″ by 2.5″ one. Much too small for this type of setup. I ordered a correct size one that has a spot to notch out the crank case pvc to hose to valve cover opening. Right now it is just open on the small air cleaner lid and the valve, which is drawing in unfiltered air to the carburetor.
Before photos of the engine and engine bay