1963 Shelby Cobra Classic Cars for Sale
Find new and used 1963 Shelby Cobra Classics for sale by classic car dealers and private sellers near you
$925,0001963 Shelby Cobra
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- Red
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Automotive history has had its fair share of interesting characters and Carroll Shelby will go down in history as one of the most colorful of them all. He had a successful albeit short-lived career as a world-class racing driver but his influence as a manufacturer and deal-maker is still felt today. He is among a small group of Americans to have found success in European sports car racing and he is part of an elite group of American drivers to stand at the top step of the podium at Le Mans. While his motorsport aspirations as a driver were cut short due to a heart condition his off-track exploits and creative business partnerships are what made him a household name.With a Le Mans victory numerous SCCA wins and several world land-speed records under his belt Carroll Shelby was no doubt a keen driver with the experience and fine-tuned ability to identify a truly good car. Inspired by the likes of Sydney Allard before him had the ambition to sell a European-style sports car with American power that he could aim directly at US enthusiasts eager to participate in sports car racing. Shelby briefly considered Healey but Donald Healey had a perfectly good relationship with Austin. AC s beautiful and fine-handling Ace Bristol deeply impressed Shelby and he thought that if he could wedge a V8 in there he might just create the ideal sports car for American buyers. The timing was perfect for AC as well whose supply of proven Bristol engines was soon to dry up and Ruddspeed-tuned Ford Zephyr six was proving to be quite fragile.Shelby had the persona of a down-home Texas chicken farmer but he was a shrewd businessman with a keen sense of engineering. He had done his homework carefully measuring various engines and the AC chassis to ensure his plan was even feasible before approaching Detroit executives. After his idea was rebuffed by GM brass who didn t want to infringe on the Corvette Ford was all-ears to the concept. The new Challenger small block V8 had just been introduced and the new head of passenger cars Lee Iacocca was eager to erase Ford s stodgy image. A deal was struck Ford shipped a new 260 cubic inch thin-wall V8 to AC Cars of Thames Ditton and the first prototype soon came to life. While it may be easy to say the rest is history there was a considerable amount of engineering work on behalf of AC Cars to properly develop and strengthen the John Tojiero-designed chassis to handle what was in essence double the output of the original AC six. The Cobra legend was born when Dave MacDonald obliterated a field of Corvettes Jaguars and Porsches at Riverside Raceway to give the new car its first victory. Soon American sports car enthusiasts were scrambling to get their hands on this pretty little Anglo-American hybrid. Like the man who created it the Shelby Cobra became an icon.In July 1964 Mark C. Tower purchased this car CSX 2197 from Crater Lake Motors in Medford Oregon. According to the Shelby Registry the car was delivered in red over black leather and equipped with the Class A accessories package which included chrome rocker covers white sidewall tires luggage rack radio and 5-quarts of anti-freeze which brought the invoice total to $5493.05. Mr. Tower owned the car briefly and by 1966 CSX 2197 was held by Howard Nettleton of Tacoma Washington. Shortly after that it went to John Stevens Jensen of California where it was registered VNN 794 . Mr. Stevens owned the car for several years until he was killed in a road accident in another Cobra. From 1981 it passed through several more known short-term owners. Along the way it was noted to have just 9700 miles on the odometer though it did show some signs of past front-end damage. In the late 1980s CSX 2197 would find a long-term home with Bill Kemper a highly respected Cobra expert and restorer. In the early 1990s he embarked on a long-term restoration working on the car as time permitted taking the utmost care as it was a personal project.According to Mr. Kemper the car had been unused since suffering a relatively mild accident and he believed the sub-10000 miles on the odometer to be accurate. He reported that the Cobra was entirely stripped down the chassis properly repaired and precisely reinforced and updated based on Kemper s specifications by Baurle Auto Sport of Addison Il. The body was completely restored with great care given to preserving as much original alloy as possible. The front outer panels from the doors forward were replaced but the doors rear clip footwells and engine bay panels are said to be comprised of original metal painstakingly restored to a very high standard and returned to its original red color. Today it presents in stunning condition having been used gently in the hands of its most recent owner.Kemper of course had the engine balanced blueprinted and completely rebuilt along with the gearbox and rear differential. It extremely well-presented with much of the original hardware restored and replated and detailed with correct labels and markings. It retains its correct early-type Harrison aluminum radiator as well as the generator which was unique to these early Cobras.The interior is finished in black leather as originally equipped and features correct Smiths gauges with the wonderful Rotunda Tachometer to the left of the column (Shelby switched to Stewart-Warner gauges and Ford electrics approximately three cars later). The steering wheel and shift knob are also correct for the car s original specification. This fabulous Cobra has seen only light use since its world-class restoration was completed and the leather and upholstery remain in excellent condition. Included in the sale is a full top and side-curtain set as well as the original early-type jack firewall mounted grease gun and a set of restored King Dick spanners.Fully detailed and immaculately presented this is an outstanding early Cobra with well-known provenance from new. It benefits from a meticulous 3000-plus hour restoration by a highly respected marque expert. Beautiful highly correct and an absolute thrill to drive CSX 2197 is an exquisite Cobra ideally suited for rallies and tours.
$147,9951963 Shelby Cobra
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- Black
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In 1963 Carroll Shelby took his Shelby American team and specially prepared Cobras to race at the Sebring 12-Hour Grand Prix of Endurance in March of that year. These cars have since become known as the "Sebring Cobras." The Team factory cars were raced by the renowned Shelby American team drivers in 1963 and 1964 and at almost every major race track in the U.S.A.Sebring Edition Shelby Cobras cars are as true to the originals as you can get and are configured exactly as the Sebring Cobras were in 1963 at the 12 Hours of Sebring. The engineers meticulously researched the subtle differences in each car's appearance and configuration at the time they were raced and consulted Allen Grant, Dave MacDonald's son Rich as well as Dave's two personal mechanics, Wally Peat and Ted Sutton to ensure the car's accuracy. The Sebring Cobras feature an original-style steel tube frame chassis and suspension along with an aluminum radiator, Shelby disc brakes, and a Salisbury 3.54 aluminum Shelby differential. The Sebring Cobras also featured a number of unique features on the exterior including a third hood latch, front and rear brake ducts/scoops, front spats and rear flares, 15-inch kidney bean pin drive style wheels, an FIA-style fuel filler cap, race-correct early Cobra badges, hood scoop attached with rivets, and trunk bungee cord. The interior includes either chrome or black FIA-style roll bar, special competition style dash layout, grab handle, non-adjustable foot box vents, 3-way fuel transfer valve, mirrors for side and rear view, push-button start, and vinyl seats with carpeted back.Sebring Edition Cobras will be limited to a production of just 15 cars both Aluminum an Fiberglass Bodies and will be available in four driver liveries - Ken Miles (red painted body with #16 painted roundels), Dan Gurney (black painted body and yellow stripes with #15 painted roundels), Allen Grant (yellow painted body and black stripes with #96 painted roundels) and Dave MacDonald (black painted body and yellow stripes with #198 painted roundels). Each car will come with a commemorative Baume & Mercier Shelby Sebring watch numbered with the customers Cobra CSX number. The recommended power source is an engine from Shelby Engines that will be serialized to your CSX Rolling Chassis.CSX2709 has been finished in Dan Gurney's #15 Livery. The rolling chassis starts at $147,995. Please see the attached order form for more details and available drivetrain options. Please contact us at sales@HillbankUSA.com or call us at (949) 900-1960.Pictures are of previously delivered CSX2000 Sebring Cobra. Same Livery as CSX2709.
