Classic Car Insurance for AC Cobra

The Classic AC Cobra

The original AC Cobra came about in 1961, when legendary American racing driver and car designer, Carroll Shelby, wondered what a powerful American V8 would do for a lightweight British sportscar. Chassis number CSX2000, the original prototype, was built in 1962, with AC relocating the car’s steering box to make way for the oversized engine before adding a beefed-up differential and inboard disc brakes from a Jaguar E-type.

Shipped to Shelby in Los Angeles, the prototype got a 4.7-litre Ford V8. The result was a car that accelerated like nothing else. Production began in 1962 with AC exporting finished cars – minus the engine and gearbox – to Shelby, who promptly squeezed a 4.3-litre V8 under the bonnet of the earlier models. The larger 4.7-litre version of the same Windsor engine would later be fitted. Shelby used to bet customers they couldn’t reach forward and grab a $100 bill from the car’s dashboard as it accelerated from 0-60mph. Few could.

The Mk2 was launched in 1963, bringing rack and pinion steering before the Mk3 car came along in 1965 with wholesale changes that included a new chassis designed by Ford Complete and a 7.0-litre V8 shoehorned under the bonnet. It produced 492PS (362kW) for a 185mph top speed.

Unsurprisingly, the Cobra became a successful racing car winning the 1965 FIA World Sportscar Championship and World Manufacturers Championship – the first American car to do so.

Shelby built 655 leaf and 343 coil-sprung Cobras before the car went off sale in 1968.