Bryan Anderson's ’66 427 Cobra Replica

The public often thinks that when you run a kit car company, you can build any car you want at any time you want. From a business perspective, that is rarely true, as business must come first.

But sometimes, circumstances work out so that a car you must build to help create sales is so special and fits so well that the manufacturer really gets to enjoy the car privately, though the public often pulls as much seat time as the builder. That’s what happened with the ’66 427 Cobra replica you see here—a demo car that puts a genuine smile on the face of the driver.

A five-week build was undertaken to create this demo car, but Bryan Anderson, co-owner of B&B Manufacturing of Granby, Missouri, takes pride in a car he drives more than he demos. After 27 years of automotive involvement, Bryan knows cars and he knows what he likes.

Built in the 25,000-square-foot B&B facility, the car was a complete in-house build, with all of the assembly work, hand-laid fiberglass construction, and paint handled on the spot.

It all began with the B&B frame and a crossmember designed to eliminate diagonal twist. A 4-inch dropped floorpan eliminates additional twist and adds legroom for comfort—if you’re over 6 feet tall, as is Bryan, you appreciate the additional legroom.

The body sits on a Ford 8.8-inch rear, and houses urethane bushings and stock Ford rear brakes with GMs in front for stopping power. Mustang II spindles and a Ford master cylinder add to the “Fordness” of this kit. The body is painted off of the frame to eliminate overspray, and it is installed after the engine and trans assembly are dropped in to avoid body scratches.

Safety features include a 12-gauge steel floorpan, double cowl bars of 2x1-inch steel welded to 2x4-inch outriggers for additional protection, steel reinforced doors hinged to the frame, and a three-point, 1½x0.120 steel tube rollbar mounted to the frame. Simpson seatbelts complete that portion of the Snake.

Tubular front suspension and tubular rear trailing arms in back upgraded this car, and Bryan chose Carrera shocks and springs, 16-inch Team II wheels, and BFG tires for a smooth ride—and since this car puts on 10,000 miles a year (customer rides as well as Bryan’s own), that smoothness is appreciated.

The silver-and-black exterior was all done by B&B in Chrysler Platinum, and was wet-sanded, buffed, wet-sanded again, and wheeled to a luxurious shine. Finish Line taillights and rearview mirrors were added for that classic look.

The interior features include a stock B&B dash, Allante insert, Faria gauges, and MotoLita steering wheel, all synched together with Haywire wiring.

Charcoal-gray upholstery from Allante and charcoal carpeting completes the job. But Cobras are about more than looks—they are also about performance. Under the hood, Bryan put in a ’75 Ford 351W engine with machining done by Indy Mustang.

Forged TRW 10.5:1 pistons, McLeod flywheel, Spal 16-inch cooling fan, Ford 65-amp alternator Edelbrock intake, and Holley carburetor finish off the setup, which is linked to a Ford World Class T5 trannie, McLeod clutch and pressure plate, Joplin Driveline driveshaft, and a four-core U.S. Radiator radiator. The combination has been blueprinted, balanced, and dyno’d at 450 hp…not bad for a demo.

Bryan smiles when he gets behind the wheel, and of course, he smiles when a prospective buyer gets behind the wheel as well. Either way, this car produces smiles, and is a pretty dynamite deal for a demo.