Oct. 02--This week's Car Crush is a 50-year-old two-seat roadster that is a perfect jewel of the motoring past, with a 427-cubic-inch (7-liter) V-8 engine jammed into a little British roadster by AC Cars. It's fully equipped to challenge today's monster muscle cars by going 0-60 mph in under 3 seconds, according to Barrett-Jackson, which auctioned it off last week in Las Vegas for $134,200.
You can land another one from Planet Shelby Cobra, an authorized Cobra dealer and modification shop that specializes in Carroll Shelby cars. This one had a manufacturer's statement of origin (MSO) -- a certificate of authenticity from the automaker to the dealer -- signed by Shelby. The fiberglass body (aluminum is available) sports a blue and white LeMans coat.
Few other engineers bear the venerated status of Carroll Shelby (1923-2012), a chicken farmer and race car driver who would become one of America's most emulated but never duplicated automotive designers. This legendary Cobra would influence the Ford Mustang GT 350 and GT 500 for the next 50 years. Ford still honors Shelby with the return of a 5.2-liter V-8 Shelby Mustang GT 350 for 2016.
But this Cobra is a thing of beauty. Even though it failed to capture much of the market, the Shelby Cobra beat the Corvette -- it beat everyone -- on the track in 1962 and fueled an era that put the muscle in cars.
1965 Shelby Cobra CSX6000 Roadster at a glance
Bid price: $134,200
Engine: 427-cubic-inch side oiler
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Potent notable: Planet Shelby Cobra's fiberglass 1965 is capable of hitting 60 mph in under 3 seconds, faster than most of today's muscle cars.
Last week's Car Crush: Janis Joplin's 1964 Porsche 356SC Cabriolet
Car Crush is a weekly feature in which we highlight a car we'd love to have, especially as a have not. Send us your Car Crush.
