Shelby’s Dream Car

The iconic speed stripes and sidelines of the S/C! Photos by Frank Zinkewitz for Castheads

Oh, the Cobra! What a force! The epitome of the American sports car of the 60s and 70s. Ford, Shelby, racing and unbridled driving experience. But is it that … really?

Let’s dig a bit deeper into the Cobras history, which actually started out in 1904 when two Brits founded the “Autocarriers Ltd”. You probably guessed it already: Autocarriers quickly turned into the shorter AC!

After producing commercial vehicles and light three wheeled trucks, AC Cars, went on to show sportier ambitions with the AC Ace, which was based on a sportscar design they’ve acquired from John Trojeiro in 1952. Which they made clear, when the car made an impressive third place in the Sebring race. In addition, the vehicles were so strong that they soon achieved class wins in almost all major races, so they needed to step up a class. With that, the AC Ace became known in America and quickly called the Texan Carroll Shelby, named at the beginning, onto the scene!

The 427 S/C was built only 50 times worldwide and if it is an original one, it has an approximate worth of about 5,500,000 $. Photos by Frank Zinkewitz for Castheads

Since Shelby’s dream after retiring from active racing was to build his own racing car, he had already identified a new, light V8 engine from Ford for his plans and was looking for a suitable chassis.

After brief negotiations, AC built the body in England and Ford supplied the engine and transmission, for which they were allowed to put the legendary “Powered by Ford” on the sides of the car.

In February 1962 the first car equipped in this way arrived at Shelby in the USA and was given its legendary name. There are several legends about how the name »Cobra« actually came about. According to Shelby himself, he dreamed a name one night, wrote it down, and the next morning found the word Cobra written on it. To me there was no doubt, that the name is referring to the shape which to me actually looks like a Cobras head!

Fast forward to the third generation of the Cobra: The 427!
This is where another motorsport legend comes in: Ken Miles!
In order to continue the motorsport successes of the first Cobras and to trim the car even more towards racing, Miles built a 427 CID engine with almost 7 liters of displacement into the vehicle, which is why it had to be fundamentally changed and leads to the legendary design that made the Cobra a real aggressive beast. The frame, the suspension, the chassis, the track – everything was revised with the most modern technology of the time to offer a home to the brute engine. The fenders were also widened by 8 inches (!) And the bonnet got a ventilation slot: What a sight!

It is a true beauty from every angle, from the outside as well as from the inside! Photos by Frank Zinkewitz for Castheads

Since Ford was already concentrating on the GT40, however, no more Cobras competed under the Ford flag, which is why Shelby introduced a 520 hp small series called “Semi Competition”, which should secure the racing success for its own name. The racing stripes and the side pipes were defining its unique style. So now we have finally arrived at the model we see here built by Solido.

I have to say once again Solido proves that they have found a great sweet spot for legendary cars paired with an attractive price policy. The model not only comes with the hood and the doors that can be opened, but also with an optional hardtop / roll bar and can therefore be converted from a roadster to a closed racer. This works wonderfully easily and also looks absolutely right! Since I’m a big Cobra fan and collector myself, the fast snake immediately earned a solid place in my collection.

Would you prefer with or without a roof? You’ve got the choice on this remarkable Solido model. Photos by Frank Zinkewitz for Castheads

A little anecdote on the side: which describes what a warrior Carroll Shelby was: For the first presentations to press representatives, there was only one single model of the AC Cobra, which was quickly repainted before the events to give the impression that series production has already started.

No rear view mirrors? I don’t need to know what’s behind me, it will stay behind me anyways! Photos by Frank Zinkewitz for Castheads

Subscribe to Castheads Magazine www.castheadsmagazine.com for this and more not-the-usual stories, lore and legends. We are also on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter without forgetting YouTube. There you have it. Please follow us. We’d love your comments on this post and others on our site.

Frank Zinkewitz (IG: @Franks_Showcars) for Castheads.