Registering a Kit Car

[ecotourist]

A friend and I are thinking of each building an AC Cobra Kit Car. The Factory Five Mk4 Roadsters look terrific and the kits appear to be high quality and seem fairly complete.

https://www.factoryfive.com/roadster/mk4/overview/

Does anyone know how you go about registering a Kit Car (ideally in British Columbia)? The power train and running gear are to come from a donor Mustang GT. Does the donor car also contribute the registration?

My friend has contacts in the US and we may have to go their to get a pair of wrecked (or flooded) rust free Mustang GTs. Is there a problem importing a (presumably non drive-able) car into Canada?

Has anyone built a kit car? Comments?

 

[VWRand]

My neighbor built a FF Cobra about 20 years ago. He drives it all the time and has put a lot of miles on it. His has a 351. In Michigan he originally had it titled as a 65 Mustang somehow for many years, but the state wouldn't renew it one year. He had to get it titled & registered as a kit car which required an inspection by police. They were pretty easy on him, but made him add a horn (he just got a portable air horn) and wipers; he added a hand operated manual wiper which was acceptable. Michigan is pretty lenient compared to other states, so it will vary

 

[tnt_motorsports]

A friend and I are thinking of each building an AC Cobra Kit Car. The Factory Five Mk4 Roadsters look terrific and the kits appear to be high quality and seem fairly complete.

https://www.factoryfive.com/roadster/mk4/overview/

Does anyone know how you go about registering a Kit Car (ideally in British Columbia)? The power train and running gear are to come from a donor Mustang GT. Does the donor car also contribute the registration?

My friend has contacts in the US and we may have to go their to get a pair of wrecked (or flooded) rust free Mustang GTs. Is there a problem importing a (presumably non drive-able) car into Canada?

Has anyone built a kit car? Comments?

There are forums out there to help answer these questions. Personally, I would start with the FFR forum. Lot's of good info on there... I think doing this is harder in Canada than most US states, but it can be done.

Factory Five Forum

Just my $0.02

 

[DuckRyder]

No one except in BC can really answer this, it varies from state to state even in the us (and people often have to educate the DMV.

Agree check out FFF and probably club cobra.

 

[eljefino]

Yeah I'd follow your province's rules for a rebuilt title, find out before you put money down. You could get snarled on something like the FF steering wheel not having an airbag if the original car did. (Though a 1987 Mustang wouldn't have one.) Generally you finish with a used car with the donor VIN but could also have a state-assigned serial number.

I know a guy who built a weird roadster out of a Buick Riviera and a bunch of Ford Tauri, the state gave him a new VIN for his door jamb but made him keep the one under the windshield as it was in the records as well.

 

[DuckRyder]

Also, apparently the MK 5 is about to come out, and has more room for different powertrains.

 

[Exit32]

Chapter 15 of this "Birth of a New Machine" book describes how a Cobra builder registered his ERA Cobra:

Birth of a New Machine

 

[DuckRyder]

You might be interested in the following on you tube.

First Look at Factory Five Mk5 Cobra - Engine Power S11, E18​

 

[DuckRyder]

Mk5 Reveal on Live feeds from FFR on YouTube.