Shelby American At 50
In 1962 a small car company from California, unveiled a gaming changing car at the New York auto show, the car was the A.C. (Shelby) Cobra. At first glance, the Cobra was outdated, based on the A.C. Ace that had been in production nearly 10 years, the automotive press seemed more interested in the story about the upstart Texan that wanted to compete. In an auto, show full of expensive roadsters like the Jaguar E-Type and the Chevrolet Corvette. Both were roughly the same price as a Cobra, but featured modern amenities like roll up windows and a folding roof, however, they could not compete in one key category… power.
Carroll Shelby had taken the A.C. Ace and with the help of automotive legend, Dean Moon (of Mooneyes Fame), fitted the Ford Small Block V8 in the place of the anemic A.C. 2.0 Inline Six. From 1962-67 just 998 Cobras were built making a real one so dear that countless clones were built by both professional builders and home hobbyists alike. Perhaps best known for the Cobra, Carroll also created the Shelby Mustangs, Beat Ferrari in the FIA world Championship with his Daytona Coupe, and lead Ford to victory at LeMans with the equally iconic Ford GT.
2012 marks the 50th anniversary of Shelby American, a company, who like its founder has reinvented itself many times over the years. Today Mr. Shelby is still involved in the business, and Shelby American is still building Modified Mustangs. The first was a hopped up version of the Mustang 2+2 called the GT350, the next milestone car he will unveil, the Shelby 1000. The Shelby 1000, is a performance package that takes the standard 2012 Shelby GT500 from 550 to 950 horsepower. The best part is that parked next to it the new Shelby 1000, is the car that started it all back in 1962, the first Cobra.
The sexy lines of the Shelby Cobra we know today might have turned out quite differently, his first plan was to use an Austin Healey Chassis and the new General Motors V8, however, both companies turned him down. As luck would have it the A.C. car company had recently lost its engine supplier for the Ace, which it had been building since 1953. In February 1962 a bare metal Ace that had been modified for the Ford 260ci V8 arrived in California, soon the streets of Santa Fe Springs would have the first Cobra being tested on its streets.
The early Shelby team roster is a dream team of now legendary racers, builders, and designers, Ken Miles, Phil Hill, Bob Bondurant, Dan Gurney, Phil Remington, and Peter Brock to name a few. The second Cobra off the line was the first racing prototype and many days at Riverside International Raceway followed. It was out at Riverside, just east of Los Angeles, that the Cobra would prove Carroll’s instincts were right. The car worked, and boy did it work.
Shelby would go on to revamp the Cobra in 1965 with Ford new 427ci V8, the 427 Cobra quickly became the poster car on my boys walls. The cars flared fenders, side pipes, and standard rollover bar, made it look far more menacing than its 289-powered forefather. However, the cars are like the man, are legendary, and today more than ever, the cult of the Cobra is strong. Ever the branding genius, Carroll Shelby has partnered with companies like Jada Toys™, Sony™, M&P Speed Apparel™, and Ubisoft™, to keep the Shelby brand at the forefront of automotive culture.