Many cars have been created for the sake of being competitive in a constantly evolving car market. It was all about which company was making what – and why. However, the Shelby Cobra had a little bit of a different story as it started out being just the name of a young man with a set of dreams that never quite took off…until they did. It all started with Carroll Shelby. Let’s take a blast to the past!
Who Was Carroll Shelby?
Shelby’s story wasn’t anything particularly unique, especially for the times. He was born in the early 1920s in Texas and lived a typical American life. Though he always had a love for cars, he found himself behind the “wheel” of bombers more than cars as he joined the Army Air Corps during World War II. Once the war ended, Shelby began his racing career and had the opportunity to drive the nicest cars on the market but was unimpressed by the unreliable engines. Though he had many business ventures in mind, upon the conclusion of his racing career, Shelby partnered with Ford to start bringing life to his visions for a fast car with a reliable engine. This partnership allowed Shelby to take the AC Ace model from England and add an American V8 engine to it. Thanks to teamwork, the Shelby Cobra was introduced in 1962.
What Made the Shelby Cobra Special?
The inspiration behind the Cobra was not so much just another pretty car on the market, but rather what it would look like to take the small, lightweight body of a car and put a powerful, American engine in it. This pairing created a vehicle that could easily compete against the Corvette. It was Shelby’s goal to make a faster car, which he successfully did. The Cobra wasn’t just fast by 1960 standards, but also by today’s standards as it could go from 0 to 60 mph in just over 4 seconds. Imagine trying to control that car…it’s pretty difficult and one of the reasons that so many Cobras were crashed.
Did you know?
- As previously mentioned, Carroll Shelby needed to partner with a car company to accomplish what he had in mind. He went to GM initially so he could use the Chevrolet V8 engine. However, the C2 Corvette was going to hit the market at the same time, which left GM unsupportive and unwilling to work with Shelby. His second pick was Ford, who jumped at the chance to build what would come to be known as the Shelby Cobra with the Windsor V8.
- Many wanted the fastest car on the market, and that was the Shelby Cobra. However, many didn’t realize quite what they were getting themselves into and weren’t able to control the car because of just how fast it could go. If the Cobra wasn’t wrecked, it was usually sold because the owner realized they bit off more than they could chew.
- In 1964, it was announced that Shelby Cobra Dayton Coupe was in an accident while on its way to the 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, it was found that this was quite the fib as the real reason for the car not showing up as expected was because the car wasn’t finished in time for the famous competition. Now that’s some serious procrastination!
Dreams Do Come True
For Carroll Shelby, his entrepreneur mindset paid off and he was able to create one of the fastest cars on the market. It’s proof that anything is possible and that limits can always be pushed. Now if you see a Shelby Cobra rolling around, you’ve either found a replica or are looking at a $1,000,000+ car.