Today, the Shelby Cobra Super Snake is an iconic classic car. In late 2003, the Frimley factory was under the control of AC Motor Holdings. 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Super Snake Specifications Model: 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Super Snake Horsepower: 800 Torque: 462 @ 2800 Transmission: 4-Speed Manual Pros Cons Shelby Cobra 427 Super. In all 81 of these cars were made between 1965 to 1973 and they remain one of the most desirable, most luxurious, and most civilized of all the Cobras. (4.3 liters). The car was a 1965 Cobra Competition roadster, retained by Shelby American as a PR car and then modified with the addition of two superchargers and a Ford C-6 automatic gearbox. While it isnt cheap, its certainly more affordable than buying an original Cobra. Shelby American sold Cosby's supercharged Cobra (CSX 3303) to S&C Ford in San Francisco, where it was purchased by Tony Maxey. Maxey destroyed himself and CSX3303 by driving off of a cliff and into the Pacific Ocean. (4.95 liter) Ford V8 mated to a Borg Warner T5 Transmission. One 427 Dragon Snake, 3198, was produced. Shelby collaborated with Ford to develop the new chassis - internally designated Mark III - using 101.6 mm (4 in) main chassis tubes, up from 76.2 mm (3 in), and coil spring suspension all. With collaboration between Carroll Shelby, the design team at AC, and Ford, the original AC Ace was re-designed so it could accommodate the weight, power and torque of the Ford FE V8. The trunk lid had to be shortened to accommodate this change. Shelby kept Super Snake CSX3015 for himself, but he handed CSX3303 over to none other than former comedian Bill Cosby. in. in. 5,595 North Dakota GTP_Cowboy RacingCowboy570. Unfortunately the story has a sad ending because one day whilst he was driving Tony Maxey had the throttle of the Super Snake jam resulting in him losing control and the car going over a cliff and into the Pacific Ocean. However, Ford wanted a car that could compete with the Corvette and they happened to have a brand new engine which could be used in this endeavor: the Windsor 3.6-litre (221cuin) engine a new lightweight, thin-wall cast small-block V8. Check out HagertyInsider, our website devoted to tracking trends in the collector vehicle market. This car is insane, even by todays standards, says Greg Ingold, associate editor of the Hagerty Price Guide. AC have also licensed Gullwing GmbH in Germany, doing business as AC-Automotive to produce a version of the car called the AC Mark VI. AC were being given the opportunity to create a car that could rival the E-Type, and in their design work ACs engineers installed the same Salisbury 4HU differential and in-board rear disc brake system as used on the Jaguar. This conversion called for making the original racing model street legal with mufflers, a windshield and bumpers amongst other modifications. On 8 July 2002, a new company was formed in Malta named AC Motor Holdings and was responsible for the branding of the company. On 20 April 2008, AC announced its Heritage Series, the UK operations were granted to Brooklands Motor Company, dba AC Heritage. Shelby would go to them and say he would buy their entire years worth of production and sign a contract. Shelby American later sold it to S&C Motors in San Francisco, who then sold it to their customer, Tony Maxey. Both standard and competition versions were capable of sucking fuel through the Holley four-barrel, 780 cfm carburetor freely enough to bring fuel consumption down into single digits, and driven hard into the low single digits. However, Cosby took the car for a drive and decided it was too much for him. Ford on the other hand had the Thunderbird, which was doing very nicely but was not a proper sports car, and they were willing to provide Carroll Shelby with a couple of their new lightweight Windsor 221 cu. The Shelby Cobra was never built to be a sensible money making project. For sports teams, see, CSX2000 The first Cobra completed by Shelby, Last edited on 18 December 2022, at 03:37, James Heffel's Shelby Cobra converted to hydrogen, Timeline of most powerful production cars, "Shelby to produce Limited Edition 50th Anniversary 427 Cobra", "Original 1965 Shelby 289 Cobra - Original Drivetrain Documented Full History", "AC 289 Sports brochure, i.ebayimg.com, as archived at web.archive.org", "1962 AC Cobra 260 car technical specifications from Carfolio.com 2 door 4.2 litre (4265 cc) V8 263.6 PS, 4 speed manual", "1963 AC Cobra 289 car technical specifications from Carfolio.com 2 door 4.7 litre (4727 cc) V8 274.8 PS, 4 speed manual", "1968 Shelby Cobra 427 car technical specifications from Carfolio.com 2-door 7-litre (7010 cc) V8 359.9 PS, 4-speed manual", "Barrett-Jackson Lot: 13011966 Shelby Cobra 427 "Super Snake", "Barrett-Jackson Classic Car Show and Auction 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Supersnake", "Carroll Shelby's Super Snake Sells For Record $5 Million Dollars", "Winning The Battle Against Vehicle Insurance Fraud: Glossary of Vehicle Insurance Fraud Terms", "Car Trouble? The last remaining Super SnakeCSX 3015, powered by a side-oiler 427, to which Shelby strapped not one but two Paxton superchargershas now returned to the auction block and will appear at Barrett-Jacksons March Scottsdale sale. #4. Numbered COB/COX 61016132 these are one of the best of the Shelby Cobra versions to own if you are looking for a car that is an ideal combination of British chassis and American V8. AC Cars also produced a Le Mans coup. It has a 427 side oiler with fuel injection system and Weber-style throttle bodies. The only modification of the front end of the first Cobra from that of the "AC Ace 2.6" was the steering box, which had to be moved outward to clear the wider V8 engine. Of those, 31 unsold competition models were detuned and fitted with windscreens for street use. Underneath the car sat twoelectric fuel pumps to supplement the standard mechanical unit. Mark III Cobras Shelby made a lower cost version fitted with the less expensive long-stroke 428 cu. There were also newer cars at the Barrett-Jackson that reached seven-figure territory. (The year before, Car and Driverrecorded a 14.5-second run for its 275 GTB tester.). The 289 FIA "leaf spring" race version of the car is reproduced as CSX7000, and the original "slab side" leaf spring street car is the CSX8000 series. After testing and modification, the engine and transmission were removed and the chassis was air-freighted to Shelby in Los Angeles on 2 February 1962,[9] By this time the small-block's displacement was increased to 4.7L (289cuin). The six Shelby Daytonas made racked up an impressive stack of victories during 1964 and 1965 and set no less than 25 land speed records at Bonneville. The Willment race team became interested in Shelby's Cobra-based coupe and inquired on purchasing one. We dont know how far Bill Cosby drove the car, perhaps around the block, but he gave the keys back to Carroll Shelby and politely suggested that hed just keep on driving his tame Ferrari. Despite the different names the two slalom cars were almost identical. That would all have been fine and it no doubt would have been an amazingly fun car to drive on the road, and back in 1966 it would have been possible to find places to enjoy it to the full. It is to be noted that Maxey's accident was largely speculated as suicide. Only six 289 Dragon Snake Cobras were produced by the factory: "2019", "2357" as factory team cars, and "2248", "2416", "2427", "2472" as private team cars. The car was raced at Sebring by British driver Ken Miles who was nicknamed Teabag Teddy for his British propensity for regularly consuming nice cups of tea. . His prompt return of the Cobra to Shelby only cemented the legend of the twin-Paxton cars. The lightweight boasted more engine power with 370 hp @ 5,750 rpm. CSX 3303 was destroyed when Maxey tragically drove it off a cliff and into the Pacific Ocean. Just one Mark III car is listed as having been factory made to Dragon Snake drag competition specifications, this was 3198. Maxey, suffering the same issues as Cosby did with the car, lost control and drove it off of a cliff, landing in the Pacific Ocean waters. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. The engine was a pre-World War II design by BMW which by the 1960s was considered dated. The Ford Mustang Isnt Named After a Horse. The ad pictures the car and lists it as a 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Supersnake. The 1966 Shelby Cobra Super Snake is one of the most important American vehicles ever made. CSX 3015 was shipped to Ford Advanced Vehicles in England as a P.R. Originally built as one of 23 Shelby Cobra Competition Cars, the Super Snake went from the UK to America where it was updated so it could be declared street legal. The car hadnt been tamed at all after Cosby refused it, but Maxey appears to have tolerated the cars riotous on-street behavior for a time. Powered by Gasoline and Caffeine. Firearm Discussion and Resources from AR-15, AK-47, Handguns and more! The AC Cobra was a financial failure that led Ford and Carroll Shelby to discontinue importing cars from England in 1967. He returned it to Shelby, and eventually the vehicle found its way to another customer named Tony Maxey. The new car also had wide fenders and a larger radiator opening. Of these models 14 of the CSX1000 series Cobras were made and two of the CSX 7500 up to 2007. When racing a broken crankshaft or dropped con-rod can be a tad inconvenient, so they got the oil first. After thorough inspection when CSX 3015 arrived home, including comparing it to other competition Cobras, it was determined CSX 3015 is a full Competition Roadster, still . The first, Serial nbr. This became Carroll Shelbys personal car which he also occasionally used for competitions such as the Turismos Visitadores Cannonball-Run race in Nevada. Advertisements from the time state that the Cobra was designed to meet the requirements of Shelby American Inc. Shelby experimented with a larger Ford FE engine, of 6.4L (390cuin) in chassis number CSX2196. All these cars were built on the Mark II Cobra chassis with its lateral leaf spring independent suspension and 289 cu. [2][25], During the continuation period, Kirkham Motorsports were contracted by Shelby to produce rolling Cobra body/chassis units but this did not end amicably. By August 2002, the company was in a financial low and briefly acquired by Private Corp, who closed operations in October 2003. 1962-65 Double Hump Hi-Po Air Cleaner Assembly. Shelby American sold Cosbys supercharged Cobra (CSX 3303) to S&C Ford in San Francisco, where it was purchased by Tony Maxey. In 2009, AC licensed Gullwing GmbH in Germany, dba AC-Automotive, to produce the AC MK VI, with an aluminium coated composite body and powered by a 6.2-litre (380cuin) 328-kilowatt (440hp; 446PS) LS3 Chevrolet engine, or a 410kW (550hp; 558PS) supercharged version. However, all isnt lost for fans who want a Shelby Cobra. These were the days before shipping containers came into mainstream use and so the cars were shipped as break bulk cargo, individually loaded into a ships hold. As half of the competition vehicle, the Cobra has one Windshield, a Exhaust system with silencers and Bumpers. The car lost time until this was diagnosed and cleaned out. Maxey destroyed himself and CSX 3303 by driving off a cliff and into . The body design work was entrusted to Pete Brock whilst the chassis re-design work was given to Bob Negstad. (The final numbers were $5.5 million in 07 and $5.1M in 15.) Tony D. Branda Shelby & Mustang Parts has been your source of restoration parts and accessories for 1965-73 Mustangs, 1965-70 Shelby and Cobras since 1975. . Only 56 of the 100 planned cars were produced. Only 55 427 c.i. However, one of the most exciting Cobra stories involves former comedian Bill Cosby and the killer Cobra CSX3303 he once owned. A new chassis was required, developed, and designated Mark III. The changes were kept minimal, but the decision was taken to do away with the inboard location of the rear disc brakes and to move them to the conventional outboard location. That car was later sold to a San Francisco car dealer, which sold it to Tony Maxey, who drove it off a cliff, totaled the car and died in the horrific accident. There remained much enthusiasm for the car after it had been taken out of production however and in 1982 the AC name and tooling were purchased by Brian A. Angliss' AutoKraft company. CSX 3303 had been crashed heavily by owner Tony Maxey, who later succumbed to injuries received in the accident. Tony Maxey . The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a Ford V8 engine. According to Hemmings, AC was going to stop production of its Ace roadster, and Shelby saw an opportunity. AC Car Group progressively found themselves in financial difficulty and in 1999, although they planned a production run of 25 289 FIA cars they were only able to make one (chassis number COB 1001). The other was driven over a cliff by its owner, Tony Maxey, tragically killing him and destroying the vehicle. Silodrome was founded in 2010 as a website dedicated to Gasoline Culture and all it entails - We write about modern cars, classic cars, motorcycles, racing, gear, gadgets, clothing, boats, planes, airships and the occasional submarine.Read more Silodrome 2023. all rights reserved. It was so much faster and more powerful than the earlier Cobras that Carroll Shelby had to give it a longer chassis, wider wheels and tires, upgraded suspension, and four-wheel disc brakes. The Shelby Cobra Super Snake sold again in January 2015 for $5.1 million. The twin Paxton cars were rated (by Shelby) at 800 HP at 6 pounds of boost. Like this article? They then got into figuring out placements for steering wheel and controls. It was the same unit used on the Jaguar E-Type. Maxey destroyed himself and CSX 3303 by driving off of a cliff and into the Pacific . Unfortunately, The MK III missed homologation for the 1965 racing season and was not raced by the Shelby team. Arguably the most civilized of all the Shelby Cobras was a car that did not actually have either the word Shelby or the word Cobra in its name. Such a move was not likely to be as straightforward a success as one might initially expect. Shelby American sold it to S and C Motors in San Francisco, who then sold it to their customer, Tony Maxey. Jon Branch has written countless official automobile Buying Guides for eBay Motors over the years, hes also written for Hagerty, hes a long time contributor to Silodrome and the official SSAA Magazine, and hes the founder and senior editor of Revivaler. Tony Maxey - who drove it off a cliff. May 30, 2006. The partially completed cars were then sent back to AC Cars for fitting with engines and gearboxes and final finishing work. The car was made as Ford considered whether it would be worthwhile to tool up for producing a stylish sports car using standard mass-production methods, although the prototype was made using hand-built coachwork methods. R&T found the arrangement quite logical, since the gentlest driving nets just about 9 mpg. The magazine dubbed it the Cobra to end all Cobras, and it logged 11-second quarter-mile times. It failed to finish with the engine expiring due to damper failure. The most important modification was the fitting of a stronger rear differential to handle the increased engine power. This page was last edited on 18 December 2022, at 03:37. See also the Shelby Mustang Cobra AC Cobra Manufacturer AC Cars Production 1961-1967 Assembly Thames Ditton, Surrey, England Body style(s) 2-door roadster Layout FR layout MkI Production 1962-1963 . thin wall small block V8 engines to see what he and AC could come up with. AC Cars in Britain were the ones who developed this version of the Shelby Cobra in cooperation with Pietro Frua in Italy. Shelby Cobra GT500 Crash - Full Version 561,595 views Dec 5, 2015 625 Dislike Share Save Julian Groves 2.88K subscribers This version contains the 1st run with traction control on and 2nd run. The most famous and numerous of these were the official works Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupes. Road and Track called this car "The Cobra to End All Cobras." Shelby's Al Dowd called the car a beast after goosing it on a freeway onramp and ending up pointing the wrong way. [Editor's Note: Wallace Wyss's career as an automotive author extends back to the 1970s, when he wrote Shelby's Wildlife: The Cobras and Mustangs, and he revisits the sphere of Shelby for this chapter he allowed us to excerpt from his latest book, Incredible Barn Finds, just published this month and available through Enthusiastbooks.com .] This was car number CSX 3303 and Carroll Shelby arrived in Bill Cosbys driveway one day with this sweet little Super Snake and he gave it to Bill Cosby. 7685000 . This left Carroll Shelby with competition specification cars that he could not sell, so these were modified by the fitting of windshields and de-tuning the engines to make them suitable for use as road cars. Autokraft manufactured an AC 289 continuation car called the Autokraft Mk IV, basically a Mk III with a 4.95-litre (302cuin) Ford V8 and Borg Warner T5 Transmission. 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