For those of us who own a cool car, it can become an extension of our personality. “Hey, nice car!” someone yells, which may give a warm and fuzzy feeling. This is especially true if you’ve put a lot of effort into rebuilding it.

But let’s get real for a moment – cars are not egos, which is why this 1970 Torino Cobra on eBay caught my eye.

For those of you who are not Ford-inclined, here’s the skinny on the Torino Cobra: introduced as a Fairlane for 1969, the Cobra was Ford’s answer to the Plymouth Road Runner, so it was a bare-bones car with a standard 428 Cobra Jet. Available in fastback and hardtop coupe configurations, it was a decent seller at around 15,000 units, but paled in comparison to the Road Runner’s 80,000-plus sales.

For 1970, Ford reshuffled the Fairlane line and made the Cobra a Torino. Standard was the 429/360, sometimes known as the Thunder Jet but simply referred to as the 429 in Ford literature. Next step up was the 429/370 Cobra Jet without Ram Air, although Ford literature refers to it as the 429 Cobra. Top motor was the same but with the Shaker hood scoop, which Ford called the 429 Cobra Jet Ram Air.

On top of either of the 429/370 motors, one could order the Drag Pack, adding some heavy-duty items plus digger gears and oil cooler, making the Cobra Jet a Super Cobra Jet and adding 5 horsepower on paper. According to Marti Auto Works, only 1,475 out of 7,675 Cobras had the Drag Pack. As you can see, they’re relatively rare but nowhere as rare as Hemi Road Runners or Lindsay Lohan’s virtue. A quick peek at the NADA Price Guide will show a #1 condition Torino Cobra with the 429 Cobra Jet Ram Air is worth $52,920.

Now that you’re an expert on the Torino Cobra, let’s compare facts with the claims made in this eBay ad:

• Ford’s equivalent of the LS-6 454 Chevelle and the 426 Hemi ‘Cuda, Charger Daytona, and Road Runner Superbird, but much faster.
  I would think a Road Runner would be a fairer comparison since the ‘Cuda is a ponycar, but the Torino Cobra is not usually considered faster than any of those vehicles – close, but certainly not “much faster.” Additionally, the Charger Daytona is from 1969, not 1970.

• Unrestored, extremely original survivor, still even has its original engine under the hood…This extraordinary Cobra is in excellent original condition.
  The term “survivor” is being abused a lot lately. A survivor implies an original car with most of its paint and other components. How original can a car be when it’s been painted a different color from new?

• Super Cobra Jet engine, ram air Shaker hood scoop, and Drag Pack & Competition Suspension.
  The Drag Pack makes a CJ an SCJ, so listing it as a SCJ and the Drag Pack is superfluous and redundant.

• Priced to sell 20% under market value.
  The seller has it listed at $185,000 “Buy It Now” which is about 250% more than what NADA says a #1 car is worth. Guess we don’t need to heed his warning, “Don’t let this be the one that got away.”

• …this one came with a factory engine option that does not appear on most of the 1970 Ford sales literature or car magazines of the time (the three lesser 429 engines do, but not the 429 Super Cobra Jet).
  As mentioned before, there were three 429 motors, not four. The Drag Pack wasn’t considered its own engine by Ford but, despite the seller’s claims, the Drag Pack did appear in literature as this advertisement will attest.

• Most J-code Cobras did not come with the 429 Super Cobra Jet engine.  This Cobra is one of the rare ones that DID come factory equipped with both factory Ram-Air shaker hood scoop and the Drag Pack with the 429 Super Cobra Jet engine!
  The J-code refers to the 429 CJ with Ram Air (without Ram Air is the C-code per the VIN). According to Marti Auto Works, 212 C-code Cobras were built with the Drag Pack. That means, based on the numbers presented above, 1,263 J-code Cobras were built with the Drag Pack. How many J-code Cobras were built in total? Marti says 3,488. So, yes, most J-code Cobras didn’t come with the Drag Pack, but Drag Pack-equipped cars are still a substantial percentage despite the implication.

• 1970 Cobra 429 SUPER Cobra Jet was basically a factory race car that Ford discouraged selling to the general public.
  I suspect most muscle car fans, if not Ford fans, will feel that the SCJ Cobra was not street-friendly due to digger gears, but to suggest it was a factory race car? The Boss 429 Mustang had a detuned race engine, but the CJ was pure street motor.

• The 1970 429 Super Cobra Jet Cobra is so rare that there has not been even one with all factory installed options this Cobra has go through any Barrett-Jackson, Mecum, RM, Russo-Steele, or eBay Auction, let alone one that still has all of its original engine and driveline intact.
  As pointed out already, the SCJ Cobra is not “super rare.” Additionally, if you view Barrett-Jackson’s roster, you’ll find a few SCJ Cobras have been on stage. (And, in a bit of irony, the car I’ve linked makes the claim that it’s 1 of 50 Drag Pack Cobras, which we know is not true, right? Chances are that 50 were built in same trim combo with engine/tranny/Drag Pack.)

• In 1970, only 502 Cobras came with the orange paint and the trim this one has (black Deluxe interior with high-back bucket seats, floor shifter, and center console).
  While the seller’s Marti Report shows the number to be true, there’s nothing that suggests that console was mandatory with buckets. Hence, the 502 built could have been column automatic or four-speed without console.

• I challenge anyone to show me a real 1970 Cobra 429 Super Cobra Jet of equal quality, originality, and options as this one has, that has sold for less than $230,000.00 in the last 5 years.
  As you must know by now, these cars are not hard to find, and they tend to sell in the mid-50s in excellent condition. Even the ultra-rare SCJ Torino GT convertible (of which 19 were built) managed to achieve only $165,000 in 2007.

Had enough? Yes, it’s painful to read. And if you think the auction is a put-on, I would argue he is for real because this auction has posted a few times in the past 12 months.