Ac cobra how many were made

The steering column was also upgraded with one from the Volkswagen Beetle. As a result, the mph time fell to 4. A total of Mk2 Cobras were built. The Dragon Snake is among the rarest and most sought-after of all Cobra models.

Shelby knew drag racing was hugely popular in the USA, so he came up with a package to make the Cobra an ideal competition car in National Hot Rod Association events. The pack included improved Koni shock absorbers, Goodyear slick tyres, a different rear differential for improved acceleration, and air scoop on the bonnet. The battery was moved behind the passenger seat for more weight over the rear wheels and a roll bar was installed.

The engines came with alloy cylinder heads and the internals were carefully balanced. Shelby produced six factory Dragon Snakes and a sole version, though several customers bought the pack to fit to their own cars. Now, he wanted to win the event with his own car. So, Shelby came up with the Daytona Coupe based on a standard chassis. Power came from a bhp version of the engine and six cars were built.

They finished fourth overall in the race but an outright victory eluded Shelby. Willment had already run a Cobra, with the famous registration 39PE, so he knew the standard car was not sufficiently aerodynamic. Using drawings from Shelby, the Willment car looked very similar the Daytona Coupe but it had a lower roof.

Other differences were the Willment car used Lucas electrical components and Girling brakes. Called the A, it was a one-off project and qualified for the Le Mans race.

However, the biggest problem the A faced was sabotage when someone stuffed newspaper into the fuel tank during the race. The car retired after seven hours, but one of its drivers, Jack Sears , became the only person to drive all three Cobra-based racing coupes. The Big Block was the first dabble with larger engines for the Cobra. However, this ci 6. It made its debut at Sebring with Ken Miles at the wheel. The talented British driver declared the car almost undriveable.

In this form, it left the competition trailing at its next outing at Nassau , but it retired soon after with brake problems. Keen to show well in auto test competition, Shelby came up with the Slalom Snake to show the Cobra was about more than just straight-line speed. To improve the handling, the two Slalom cars built had Koni shock absorbers, front and rear anti-roll bars fitted, and Goodyear Blue Streak Sports Car Special tyres.

Both cars were finished in white with red stripes and red leather upholstery. They also had seat belts fitted, along with cooling ducts for the brakes and side exhausts to give better ground clearance on rougher autocross courses. The of is the Mk3 Cobra and the one most people think of when contemplating the car. Not least of these is the ci 7.

With bhp , the could hit mph and it was the fastest accelerating road car in the world with mph in 4. Underneath, there was yet more to the revisions for the with a new chassis, coil spring suspension all round, and a wider front air intake to feed cool air to the radiator.

After his experiment with a racing coupe based on a Cobra, John Willment turned his attention to a road car project. Fancying a road car, he married this rolling frame with the abandoned body of a Fiat 8V with coachwork by Ghia. This car was known as the Supersonic in Fiat form but became known as the Willment Cobra. Power came from a Holman and Moody race-prepared engine with twin four-barrel carburettors. Willment lost interest in the car before it was finished, but it was later completed and still exists today.

It was a roadster with a removable hard-top and was shown to the public on a few occasions, but it then disappeared and rumour had it the chassis had been reskinned with a regular Cobra body. Ford bought the rights to the Cobra name in the mids and this left AC unable to use the famous badge on the cars it produced in the UK for domestic and European buyers.

AC had also carried on building the narrow-hipped style of body even when Shelby had moved to the shape, so it made sense to call the British model a Sports. While all of this meant little to customers who continued to call the car a Cobra, it placated Ford that AC removed all snake badging from its cars.

In any case, the Sports still used a Ford V8 engine, though sales were modest with just 27 sold between April and February However, the race engine remained and it was enhanced with twin Paxton superchargers. The result was a claimed bhp. Even if that power output was a bit of Shelby spin, the reality was the Super Snake could breeze past any other performance car in a straight line. A second Super Snake was built, but it ended up in the Pacific Ocean when the throttle stuck open.

The Cobra might have been out to pasture since the late s, but British firm Autokraft saw its potential in the s. Largely similar to the in shape and design, the Autokraft machine had a slightly reshaped body to afford more comfort.

It also had independent suspension, a five-speed manual gearbox, limited slip differential and improved brakes. Power for the MkIV came from Ford as per the originals, but this was a ci 4. It was still good for mph in 5. Weight was reduced by lb to kg lb and power for the ci 4. The engine featured alloy cylinder heads, Holley four-barrel carburettor, and the catalytic convertors were removed to make the exhaust more free flowing.

It quickly introduced two new models and the Superblower was the range-topper. With a supercharged ci 4. It was not the sales star that had been hoped for and only 22 were made. Today, an unrestored original Shelby Cobra for sale will start at over one million dollars. As these cars get older, inevitably a few will be lost from theft and forces of nature.

Because there were only Cobras built by Shelby American, to call them scarce is an understatement. At the time of press, the Shelby Cobra price is just shy of one million dollars. AC Cobra prices have stayed under seven figures because of continuation cars, so they will remain in the shadow of the Shelby Cobra price.

As of March , an original Shelby Cobra price was nearly six million dollars. So to answer the aforementioned question, Shelby Cobra original prices were expensive and that limited the supply. Six decades later the Shelby Cobra price represents a car and an automaker that tugs at the heartstrings of all automotive enthusiasts.

It was initially offered with leaf spring suspension and an anemic straight-six. Carroll Shelby was a racer who was looking to take on the world. Ford supplied their V8 and the combination was christened the Shelby Cobra.

Small block Cobras are fun, but there was a limit to their power. So after a few experiments with the Big Block, Ford realized the potential of the Shelby Cobra horsepower. Coil springs replaced the leaves and a massive radiator was used to keep the beast cool. For a proper Shelby Cobra review, imagine incredible power, sound, heat, and vibration in one package. It turns well for an old car, but you really feel the lb engine as the center of gravity.

Being so nose-heavy, plan your maneuvers well in advance, and be ready for adversity. A 5-point harness and a helmet are recommended. Considering the original AC Cobra prices reflect their leaf-spring chassis, the coil-spring design that underpins every Cobra makes it much more confident over broken pavement. Nothing beats the feeling of a Shelby Cobra specs. That is because it has a massive engine while only weighing 2, lbs. Depending on differential ratios, the nominal Shelby Cobra top speed is mph.

Surprisingly quick for the era, most Shelby Cobra is 3. When purchasing a Shelby Cobra for sale, you receive a capable chassis wrapped around a monster engine. The Shelby Cobra engine was designed for racing and heavy-duty environments. Known as priority oiling, it kept the bottom end cooler than competitors. While the Shelby Cobra competition models used aggressive camshafts, the showroom model was very conservative. It is a hydraulic flat tappet with lift and only 78 degrees of overlap.

This allowed the Cobra mpg to be on-par with other exotics of the era. The engine and its condition can make or break the Shelby Cobra price. Perhaps the rarest aspect of the Shelby Cobra engine is that some of them were larger than reported.

Considering Ford was supplying the side-oiler to many teams, Shelby American was forced to deliver cars with the larger Cobra Jet V8. Much like most performance cars of the era, the was only available with a manual transmission. Beefy synchros can be felt through the shifter, and the close ratios make it easy to drive without using the clutch.

It is doubtful that a modern manual gearbox could withstand the Shelby Cobra horsepower. Late-model Ford transmissions offer five and six speeds for those who desire closer ratios. Adding one or two overdrive gears to your Shelby Cobra transmission is a stealthy way to make the car more livable on the highway and more fun when driving deep into triple-digit speeds. Aside from adding carpet, the original Cobra interior was carried over from the AC Ace.

It offers two leather seats without headrests, a massive wood steering wheel, all necessary gauges, and an ignition switch. A rollover hoop was optional for the driver. An offset pedal box and lack of a roof are common grievances. Prototypes of the AC Cobra all had inboard brakes. This offered the lowest unsprung weight possible.