Beschreibung:

'The Cobra was Carroll Shelby's dream car. And Carroll Shelby – and maybe only Carroll Shelby – was the person who made it happen. Granted, he came along at the right time, but he followed through. When opportunity knocks, you don't want to be outback in the outhouse.' – Richard J Kopec, 'Shelby American Guide' 1978. Rightly regarded as one of the all-time great classic sports cars, the muscular, fire-breathing Cobra succeeded in capturing the hearts of enthusiasts like few of its contemporaries. Convinced that a market existed for an inexpensive sports car combining European chassis engineering and American V8 power, Le Mans-winning Texan racing driver Carroll Shelby concocted an unlikely alliance between AC Cars and the Ford Motor Company. The former's Ace provided the simple twin-tube chassis frame - designed by John Tojeiro - into which was persuaded one of Ford's lightweight, small-block V8s. It was discovered that the latter was lighter than the six-cylinder Ford Zephyr unit that AC was using yet with vastly greater potential. To cope with the projected power increase, the Ace chassis was strengthened with heavier gauge tubing and supplied fitted with four-wheel disc brakes. Weighing a mere 1½cwt more than a Bristol-engined Ace yet endowed with double the power and torque, the Cobra turned in a breathtaking performance, racing to 60mph in 4.4 seconds and reaching the 'ton' in under 12, exceptional figures by early 1960s standards and none too shabby even today. The 260ci (4.2-litre) prototype first ran in January 1962, with production commencing later that year. Exclusively for the USA initially, Cobras - minus engines - were sent from England to be finished off by Shelby in California, and it was not until late in 1963 that AC Cars in Thames Ditton got around to building the first fully finished cars to European specification. After 75 cars had been built, the 289ci (4.7-litre) unit was standardised in 1963. Rack-and-pinion steering was the next major up-date; then in 1965 a new, stronger, coil-suspended chassis was introduced to accommodate Ford's 427ci (7.0-litre) V8, an engine that in race trim was capable of producing well in excess of 400bhp. Wider bodywork, extended wheelarch flares and a bigger radiator intake combined to create the definitive - and much copied - Cobra 427 look. Keeping ahead of the competition on the racetrack had been the spur behind Shelby's adoption of the 427 engine, though some cars to 'street' specification came with Ford's less powerful 428ci hydraulic-lifter V8. Competition and semi (or 'street') competition (S/C) versions used the 427. Only 1,000-or-so Cobras of all types were built between 1962 and 1967, 356 of them the ultimate 427 version. Chassis number 'CSX3249' is listed in the Shelby World Registry. Originally finished in green with black interior, the car was invoiced to Shelby American on 10th June 1966. The Cobra was then despatched to Ford of Belgium for well-known endurance racer Claude Dubois, Shelby American's official distributor for that country, who was billed on 17th October 1966. Dubois later became Shelby's agent for Europe, selling 120-125 Cobras between 1966 and 1972. This car's only owner recorded in the Register is G Blaton of Brussels, it being noted in the late 1970s that the car remained dark green with Sunburst wheels and that the engine had been changed, a 289ci unit being installed in place of the original 428 to reduce fuel costs. We are advised that this change of engine was carried out by Claude Dubois in August 1972. The Register states that 'photos of 3249 from this period show a very original-looking car featuring a black hard top, a bonnet scoop and a trunk-mounted luggage rack.' In the early 1990s the '289' engine was replaced with a correct 7.0-litre '428' unit by Fox in England. Although the aforementioned luggage rack has gone, the car still retains its hardtop and convertible hood. Recent work, carried out in 2008, included refurbishment of the