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Question of the Day: Have you ever ordered a product online and received a fake knock-off?
Reinvented AC Cobra
- Thread starter FiestaST
- Start date
FiestaST
Honorary Master
New Shelby Cobra: Does it live up to the legend? | Henry Catchpole - The Driver’s Seat - Hagerty
FiestaST
Honorary Master
FiestaST
Honorary Master
Meet your heroes: V8 Shelby Cobra sounds great, drives... not so great
A car built on myth and legend, tested in the UK - time to find out if it lives up to the hype
The Cobra is a car built on myth and legend. Rightly so, given so much about its creation and development was a bit... underhand. But the basics were as follows. It started life as a British sports car, the AC Ace, which arrived in 1953 but was saddled with pre-war straight six engines that weren’t fit for purpose.
By 1961 they’d gone and a tie-up with Ford in America and Carroll Shelby gave access to the Windsor V8. The Cobra was born. And developed quickly. The engine capacity grew from 4.3 litres (260cu in) to 7.0 litres (the famous 427cu in displacement) and Shelby turned his attention to GT racing. His first attempt, using a 6.4-litre Ford FE V8, was nicknamed ‘The Turd’ by driver Ken Miles. Names sounding familiar? It would be to Shelby and Miles that Ford turned to knock the GT40 into shape to beat Ferrari at Le Mans.
The Cobra was the warm up act. It was fast down the straights, but virtually undrivable. The chassis was modified, the Mk III arriving in 1965, but too late to be eligible for homologation that year. Just 56 racecars were produced, but most were detuned for road use. They remained fearsomely potent, the 427cu in engine tuned to 485bhp and good for 185mph. It weighed just 1,068kg. But with the GT40 project looming large, the Cobra’s era was over by 1967.
A car built on myth and legend, tested in the UK - time to find out if it lives up to the hype
The Cobra is a car built on myth and legend. Rightly so, given so much about its creation and development was a bit... underhand. But the basics were as follows. It started life as a British sports car, the AC Ace, which arrived in 1953 but was saddled with pre-war straight six engines that weren’t fit for purpose.
By 1961 they’d gone and a tie-up with Ford in America and Carroll Shelby gave access to the Windsor V8. The Cobra was born. And developed quickly. The engine capacity grew from 4.3 litres (260cu in) to 7.0 litres (the famous 427cu in displacement) and Shelby turned his attention to GT racing. His first attempt, using a 6.4-litre Ford FE V8, was nicknamed ‘The Turd’ by driver Ken Miles. Names sounding familiar? It would be to Shelby and Miles that Ford turned to knock the GT40 into shape to beat Ferrari at Le Mans.
The Cobra was the warm up act. It was fast down the straights, but virtually undrivable. The chassis was modified, the Mk III arriving in 1965, but too late to be eligible for homologation that year. Just 56 racecars were produced, but most were detuned for road use. They remained fearsomely potent, the 427cu in engine tuned to 485bhp and good for 185mph. It weighed just 1,068kg. But with the GT40 project looming large, the Cobra’s era was over by 1967.
FiestaST
Honorary Master
FiestaST
Honorary Master
You can now have an AC Cobra with 1,025bhp and a ginormous rear wing
Want your cult classic with hypercar shaming pace? The GT SuperSport could be your calling
This is AC Cars’ new hand-built spin-off to the Cobra, dubbed the ‘GT SuperSport’, and the first thing you need to know is that it has more power than a Bugatti Veyron.
Yes, a Veyron. Because this tricked-out roadster generates as much as 1,025bhp from its modified V8 powertrain. We’ve no idea how quick it’ll be, but consider the standard 654bhp Cobra GT gets from 0-60mph in 3.4s. Fair bit of tyre smoke, one suspects.
It also receives a series of dramatic changes to the body, like extra vents and a wider track. Aero has also been improved thanks to the new front bumper and a sharper splitter, plus that massive rear wing. The customary side-mounted twin exhausts stay put.
You’ll have a choice of three exterior finishes: blue, orange and white. AC will build just 25 examples of the SuperSport at $550k (£405k) a pop, with pre-existing customers given first dibs. Deliveries will begin in early 2027, which leaves plenty of time to stock up on those brave pills.
Want your cult classic with hypercar shaming pace? The GT SuperSport could be your calling
This is AC Cars’ new hand-built spin-off to the Cobra, dubbed the ‘GT SuperSport’, and the first thing you need to know is that it has more power than a Bugatti Veyron.
Yes, a Veyron. Because this tricked-out roadster generates as much as 1,025bhp from its modified V8 powertrain. We’ve no idea how quick it’ll be, but consider the standard 654bhp Cobra GT gets from 0-60mph in 3.4s. Fair bit of tyre smoke, one suspects.
It also receives a series of dramatic changes to the body, like extra vents and a wider track. Aero has also been improved thanks to the new front bumper and a sharper splitter, plus that massive rear wing. The customary side-mounted twin exhausts stay put.
You’ll have a choice of three exterior finishes: blue, orange and white. AC will build just 25 examples of the SuperSport at $550k (£405k) a pop, with pre-existing customers given first dibs. Deliveries will begin in early 2027, which leaves plenty of time to stock up on those brave pills.
Not a fan of that spoiler man.
FiestaST
Honorary Master
FiestaST
Honorary Master
Why Fake Cobras Are Better Than Real Ones
FiestaST
Honorary Master