Tag Archives: cobra

Ford Shelby Cobra Concept

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2004 Ford Shelby Cobra Concept

Offered by Mecum | Monterey, California | August 12-14, 2021

Photo – Mecum

This is a pretty iconic concept car from the 2000s. Or really from any time period. In 2004, retro-inspired design was all the rage, and Ford was hitting it hard with the likes of the 2005 Mustang and the GT revival. Although Ford was not the original manufacturer of the Shelby Cobra, they decided to reimagine the Cobra for the 21st century anyway. And that said, it did supply the engines and had a close relationship with Carroll Shelby himself.

Carroll Shelby was also involved with this project, although to what degree I do not know. The styling does look vaguely Cobra-ish. The aluminum chassis was derived from that of the GT, and power is from a 6.4-liter V10 rated at 645 horsepower. Ford only produced four of these engines. So don’t break it.

The car is said to be capable of 207 mph but is limited to 100 mph. It was 100% intended for production. In fact, this car was so ready to go that this, the only prototype built, is plated for the street. It was purchased by its current owner, a former Ford VP of product development, in 2017. No pre-sale estimate is available, but this should be one of the stars of the show at Mecum Monterey. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $2,640,000.

Torino Twister Special

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1970 Ford Torino Cobra Twister Special

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 7-16, 2021

Photo – Mecum

What a great looking car. The 1970 Torino is one of Ford’s styling highpoints of the era. This model year had a dizzying assortment of models, sub-models, trims, body-style, and engine combos. The Torino Cobra was the top sport-level trim, slotting in above the Torino GT. It was available as a two-door Sportsroof fastback only.

The dealers in Ford’s Kansas City sales district were selling a limited edition Twister Special of the Mustang for 1970. Only 96 were ordered. Alongside those, the dealers opted to outfit 90 Torinos with a similar package. Only 30 of those had a four-speed manual transmission like this car has.

Power is from a 7.0-liter (429) Cobra Jet V8 rated at 370 horsepower when new. The Twister Special package added some blacked-out trim and graphics. This car has rear window sport slats and spoilers up front and out back. Fully restored, it’s going to sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $236,500.

The First Cobra

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1962 Shelby Cobra 260

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19-20, 2016

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby's

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

This is the very first Shelby Cobra built and it has been owned by Shelby since day one, which makes this an incredible opportunity to acquire one of the most important cars around. So here’s the story: in 1961, Carroll Shelby asked AC Cars of England if they would build him an AC Ace that could house a V-8 engine.

And, luckily for car people everywhere, they did. Shelby managed to source a V-8 from Ford, as Chevrolet wasn’t willing to play ball (something General Motors probably doesn’t want to dwell on all these years later). The engine was a 260 cubic inch (4.2 liter) V-8 from Ford that makes 260 horsepower. Shelby stuffed it in the front of this beautiful English roadster and the rest is history.

This car, CSX 2000, was used as a factory test car, demonstrator, and show car used to get people interested and sell some cars. Carroll Shelby, always the marketer, repainted the car between showings to make people think that production was well under way. It worked, even if a second Cobra wouldn’t be built for another seven months.

It is mostly original (other than the paint) and has been used on and off over the years and has been shown recently at Pebble Beach, among many, many other places. It’s as famous as Cobras come and is being offered from the Carroll Hall Shelby Trust. Only 75 Cobras were fitted with the 260 engine, but this is the one to have. In fact, of all Cobras, this is the one to have. The bidding will quickly shoot into the millions, but whoever comes out on top will have something truly special. Click here for more info and here for more from RM Sotheby’s.

Update: Sold $13,750,000.

427 S/C Cobra

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1967 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C

Offered by RM Auctions | Amelia Island, Florida | March 14, 2015

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Here it is. One of the greatest cars of all time. By 1965, there had already been two versions of the Cobra. First, the 260, and then the 289. But the Cobra’s competitors were getting faster and faster and the 289 didn’t have any more power to give. So Carroll Shelby went to ford to get an aluminium 390 V8 and Ford said no and gave him this old iron-block 427 V8 instead.

The thing was monstrous and heavy and the Shelby team had to redesign the chassis to handle it. This is why 427 Cobras have those wide hips compared to earlier cars. So the Mk III Cobra, the 7.0-liter 427 V-8 powered monster, was built between 1965 and 1967.

What makes this even more special is that Shelby was a racer at heart and he wanted to see these things taking checkered flags all over the world. As the FIA was screwing around with their rules and classifications for different cars, Shelby was just trying to keep up. He ordered 100 competition Cobras from AC. 53 were completed before the FIA changed things again and Shelby put a hold on the order. But the new rules pitted the Cobra and GT40, siblings, against each other. Carroll bowed the Cobra out to run the GT40 program and left these roadsters to privateers, selling 16 of his 53 competition Cobras to private teams.

But he had some leftovers. Instead of racing them, they painted them (and this blue with two white stripes is the absolute best Cobra paint scheme there is) and sold them to the public as “Semi-Competition” (or S/C) road cars. They were the fastest street cars ever produced at the time of their introduction (and for quite a few years afterward).

The engine puts out 485 horsepower in S/C form. Top speed is said to be about 185 mph, which is insane for 1967. This particular car has known ownership history from new and 18,000 original miles. It has light SCCA competition history and is one of 29 authentic factory 427 S/C Cobras built. It’s incredible. You can read more here and see more from RM in Amelia Island here.

Update: Sold $2,117,500.

Super Snake Cobra

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1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Super Snake

Offered by Barrett-Jackson | Scottsdale, Arizona | January 17, 2015

Photo - Barrett-Jackson

Photo – Barrett-Jackson

This car will be one of the stars of Barrett-Jackson’s 2015 Scottsdale auction. It comes from the collection of Ron Pratte and he famously bought it at Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale in 2007 for $5.5 million. What’s changed since that price was hammered down? Well, we lost Carroll Shelby. How about a little biblical history of this car:

Genesis: AC built a car called the Ace. It had a six-cylinder engine. Carroll Shelby stuffed a Ford V-8 under the hood. The Cobra was born.

Exodus: AC/Shelby built a limited run (23) Cobra 427 Competition models. Shelby converted one of these (this car) into the Super Snake – the Cobra to End All Cobras. It was a competition-spec Cobra made street-legal with the addition of bumpers and a windshield. They also supercharged the hell out of it.

Revelation: They built a second one for Bill Cosby who, appropriately, found it impossible to control and drive on the road. He gave it back. The next owner drove it off a cliff. Shelby retained this car most of his life. It’s the only one left.

The engine is a 427 (7.0-liter) V-8. It has two superchargers and puts out 800 horsepower. Ol’ Shel himself claims that the car will hit 60 mph in just over three seconds but I doubt there is any way you could possibly get the power down smoothly enough for it to happen. The top speed is still likely limited to 165 mph based on aerodynamics.

This is a fairly legendary car in both the auction world and the world of muscle cars. You can buy it this coming January, but you better have a big bank account. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $5,115,000.

Dragonsnake Cobra

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1963 Shelby Cobra Dragonsnake

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 12, 2014

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum

The Shelby Cobra is one of the most famous cars of all time. It was among the fastest street-legal cars built for decades after it as introduced. It dominated tracks in America and Europe and they command big money today. But did you know they also dominated on the drag strip?

Shelby offered the “Dragonsnake” drag racing package for the Cobra. It brought a host of options and made the car ludicrously expensive. This car uses the 289 4.7-Liter V-8 making 271 horsepower. And the Dragonsnake you see here is the winningest competition Cobra in history. It won seven NHRA National events and the 1966 NHRA World Championship. It also holds records in a few classes that aren’t around any more.

Only five Dragonsnakes were built by Shelby – three more were built by customers who bought the Dragonsnake package. This particular car sold in 2011 for $875,000 and failed to sell later that year for $825,000. So I guess it’s about an $800,000 car. You can read more here and see more from Mecum in Houston here.

VIN# CSX2093

Update: Not sold, high bid of $1,100,000.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Arizona 2016, $990,000.

Update: Not sold, Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale 2018.

Update: Not sold, Mecum Monterey 2019, high bid of $675,000.

Early August 2013 Auction Highlights

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August is a very busy month for classic cars – just in the Monterey area alone there are five major auctions. So we’ll cover early August as its own thing. First up, Auctions America’s huge and awesome sale in Burbank, California. Top sale was this 1964 Shelby Cobra 289 Roadster for $825,000.

1964 Shelby Cobra 289 Roadster

Our first feature car was the 1951 Glasspar and it brought $52,800. The other car we featured from this sale was an Edwards America roadster which sold for $66,000. Interesting cars was this auction’s bright spot. I’ll just go through them as I come to them… First, how about a 1976 Manta Mirage for $22,000?

1976 Manta Mirage

Then there’s this 1950 Pearson-Kurtis Front-Wheel-Drive Indy 500 car that was never actually raced. It’s got an Offy under the hood and is in barn-find condition – and it still managed $192,500.

1950 Pearson-Kurtis FWD

A rare 1967 Ghia 450SS Convertible sold at this sale. These cars are awesome. This one brought $129,250.

1967 Ghia 450SS Convertible

This 1953 Bohman Special Roadster was built by the son of the “Bohman” in “Bohman & Schwartz” – the celebrated coachbuilder. It was built for the movie “Johnny Dark” starring Tony Curtis. It sold for $104,500.

1953 Bohman Special Roadster

The award for “The Car I Would’ve Bought Had I Been There” goes to this 1924 Dodge Four-Door Sedan for only $5,500!

1924 Dodge Four-Door Sedan

For something a little rarer, this 1939 Steyr 220 Cabriolet should fit the bill. And the bill was $60,500.

1939 Steyr 220 Cabriolet

Check out this super rare 1993 Ford Mustang Cobra R (one of 107 built) with only 600 original miles. The price reflects it: $46,750 (which has to be some kind of record for a Fox body Mustang).

1993 Ford Mustang Cobra R

This I love. The sale was in Burbank – home of movie studios and Hollywood and all that. Well how about this extravagant golf cart? It was used in the Jim Carrey movie “The Grinch.” This car thing is straight out of Whoville. And it sold for $38,500. (It’s referred to in the catalog as a 2000 Cinema Vehicle Services Family Sedan). It’d definitely be cool to cruise in around a small town (on the sidewalks of course).

2000 Cinema Vehicle Services Whoville Family Sedan

Taking a 180 car-wise, this 1912 Buick Model 35 Touring was a car I kinda wanted to feature, but couldn’t squeeze it in. It sold for $28,600.

1912 Buick Model 35 Touring

Concept cars always get my attention – even if they aren’t that exciting. This 1988 Pontiac Fiero Concept was a 232 horsepower Fiero Concept that never made it to production. It’s one of one. It sold for $3,520. And I think that’s enough cars. You can check out the rest of the results here.

1988 Pontiac Fiero Concept

The other early-August auction was Silverstone’s semi-small (at least in comparison to the one above) CarFest North sale. The top sale was this 1973 Jaguar E-Type Series III Roadster which brought $111,600.

1973 Jaguar E-Type Series III Roadster

Check out complete results for that sale here.

Russo & Steele/Mecum January Highlights

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I’m combining two auction highlights into one post: Russo & Steele’s Scottsdale sale as well as Mecum’s Kissimmee Sale. First up, Russo & Steele. Their top sale was a 1958 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster. It sold for $727,100.

1958 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster

Our featured car from this sale, the Yenko Camaro, failed to sell. On the interesting sales front: this 2008 Mulsanne GT, a sports car based on the Factory Five GTM, sold for $57,750.

2008 Mulsanne GT Coupe

This 1937 Hudson Terraplane Pickup is a rare sight. It brought $41,800.

1937 Hudson Terraplane Pickup

Actually, my favorite car from this sale (and the one I would have rather featured) was this 1957 DKW 3=6 (which is not the most intelligent-looking name for a car I’ve ever seen) sold for a downright affordable $8,800. Russo & Steele had a lot of cool cars for really good prices. I’m keeping that in the back of my mind for their next sale. Check out full results here.

1957 DKW 3=6

On to Mecum’s Kissimmee sale. The top sale there was a white and blue 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Roadster for $735,000.

1966 Shelby Cobra 427

The interesting sales were topped by this 1952 Dodge Model B-3 Power Wagon. Trucks really don’t come any meaner. It sold for $57,000.

1952 Dodge Model B-3 Power Wagon

From the pretty iconic and iconically pretty department: this 1951 Studebaker Commander Convertible sold for $37,500.

1951 Studebaker Commander Convertible

And finally, one of my favorite cars of all time – the Chrysler B-Body convertible. In this case, a wonderful 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Convertible with a 440 Six Pack underhood. It sold for $195,000. Our featured Fuel-Injected Corvette Big Brake Tanker sold for $242,000. Complete results can be found here.

1970 Plymouth Road Runner Convertible

Gooding & Company Scottsdale 2013 Highlights

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Auctions held by Gooding & Company are usually packed with the highest quality examples available of a wide variety of cars. Yes, some are even affordable. They only hold three sales a year but they are always mind-blowing in their scope and quality. This was no exception. The top sale was a 1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider for $8,250,000.

1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider

The second, third, fourth, and fifth top sellers were all feature cars here on the site. The Porsche RSK went for $3,135,000. The one-off Maserati 150 GT Spider sold for $3,080,000. That downright gothic Mercedes 500K Cabriolet A was sold for $2,750,000. And the Duesenberg from this sale sold for $2,695,000. Next up was a 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Coupe Speciale by Pinin Farina for $2,365,000.

1958 Ferrari 250 GT Coupe Speciale by Pinin Farina

Our featured Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux sold for $451,000 and this 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante went for $2,035,000.

1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante

The next two cars on the million-dollar list were a 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster for $1,540,000 and a 2003 Ferrari Enzo for $1,485,000.

1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster

2003 Ferrari Enzo

Then there was a wonderful 1932 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Series V Gran Sport by Zagato that sold for $1,375,000. Our featured Ferrari F50 sold for the same price.

1932 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Series V GS

The final million-dollar car was a 1965 Shelby Cobra 289 Roadster that brought $1,320,000.

1965 Shelby Cobra 289

Our featured White Yellowstone Park Bus was withdrawn from the auction. And the Cisitalia 202 we featured sold for $650,000. The interesting cars front included this 1960 Abarth 850 Record Monza for $89,100.

1960 Abarth 850 Record Monza

And, last but not least, this 1926 Hispano-Suiza H6B Tourer sold for $363,000 – well above it’s high estimate of $200,000. Check out complete results here.

1926 Hispano-Suiza H6B Tourer

RM in Arizona Highlights

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RM’s 2013 sale in Phoenix, Arizona had some impressive results: the top sale was our featured Ferrari 250 GT Competizione for $8,140,000. Second place went to my favorite type of Shelby Cobra, a 1967 427 S/C. It brought $2,007,500.

1967 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C

There were a handful of other million dollar cars. Two of them were Ferrari 275s. First (first below) was a 1967 275 GTB/4 for $1,842,500. The other (second below) is a 1966 275 GTB, which sold for $1,320,000.

1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/r

Our featured Delahaye 135 MS by Figoni et Falaschi sold for $1,540,000 while our featured Lamborghini 350GT failed to sell. Another of our feature cars, the Duesenberg Model J Derham Tourster, sold for $1,320,000. Two more Ferraris rounded out the million dollar club. First, a 2004 Enzo brought $1,320,000. Then there was this 1954 250 Europa for $1,017,500.

2003 Ferrari Enzo

1954 Ferrari 250 Europa

Other interesting results included this 1953 Allard JR “Le Mans” Roadster which sold for $605,000.

1953 Allard JR 'Le Mans' Roadster

And finally, this kind of lumpy-looking 1959 Lister-Chevrolet. It sold for $528,000.

Our featured Pierce-Arrow Touring sold for $181,500. Check out complete results here.