Oh, no. Il Commendatore would not have liked this one bit. Scuderia Ferrari's now-retired seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher has gone and bought himself a Shelby Cobra. Initial reports identified the car as one of six super-rare Daytona Coupes, but corrected reports confirm it was actually a 1967 Mk II Shelby Cobra 427 roadster.
Shelby set out with the mission to beat Ferrari in GT racing, and made the Daytona to achieve those ends. Only six were made, five in Italy and one in the US, and they're currently valued at about $4 million apiece. The Daytona met significant success in 1964 and 1965 before Ford and Shelby shifted their focus to the even more successful GT40. The Cobra roadster didn't have the same mission, but for the tifosi the Shelby name represents the antithesis of the Prancing Horse.
Schumi apparently bought himself the Shelby as a 38th birthday present. The exact sum the champ paid wasn't disclosed, but you can bet it was a big figure. Whatever it was, though, he can afford it: even after retirement, Schumacher is still one of the top-earning F1 drivers alive.
[Source: Motorpasion and Le Blog Auto]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
John P. @ Jan 5th 2007 7:26PM
Ahh, so much great history Ford has. If only they could leverage it with Modern/Non-Retro cars that evoke the spirit of all that great stuff.
Half-Assed attempts aren't going to cut it anymore, and they cheapen the brand. Ford, Get Your Ass in Gear. I am pulling for you.
Schumacher has pretty good taste I must say, though the Shelby Daytona Coupe seems more his style to me. Maybe he couldn't afford one. hahaha
vectorbug @ Jan 5th 2007 7:28PM
Interesting that he sought out the Shelby version instead of an original AC.
Mr_Oak @ Jan 5th 2007 10:15PM
2. Interesting that he sought out the Shelby version instead of an original AC.
------------------------------------------------------
This was an ordinary roadster until Shelby got hold of it. Then it became a super car. I'd buy the original AC, for my nanny.
MikeW @ Jan 5th 2007 10:42PM
What no Weineck Cobra?
http://www.supercars.net/cars/3448.html
The numbers are complete BS, but it is german for a german
John P. @ Jan 5th 2007 10:58PM
Yeah, when Shelby got hold of it it turned into a real beast, something schumacher might actually want to drive.
nagmashot @ Jan 6th 2007 12:42AM
reply to 3
The AC Ace was at its production end as Shelby showed up at the AC factory. The AC Ace was in production from 1952... 10 years befor Shelby had the idea to put a V8 inside. The Ac Ace raced two times LeMans BEFOR in 1957 and 1958... it was a little bit more as a ordinary roadster... Shelby only gave it a second life...and the combination of low weight and lot of power great look made it famous.
reply to 4
The numbers are real..Weineck Cobra 780cui has a 1100hp 1300ftlbf. engine...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDE2jqyFmNA
A video about Wenieck company and a 850hp Wenieck Cobra with tested 6.5s 0-125mph...
Peter @ Jan 6th 2007 5:07AM
Yes, the Weinecks are crazy, but for real. Here's the big one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3gYNxmzJNw&NR
The Doctor @ Jan 6th 2007 9:48AM
The Cobra, a car as American as the P-51D Mustang was British...
MikeW @ Jan 6th 2007 1:31PM
Naturally apirated engines do not make 100ft-lbs per liter.
So maybe 1300 meter-newtons from a 12.9 liter engine, 957ft-lbs from 12.9 liters. ~74ft-lbs / liter [1760 m-N * 0.73756, then again]
How do you get a 12.9 liter engine to spin at 8000rpm? Look at mean piston speed, F1 ~25m/s 19,000.
So if 25m/s is at 8000rpm, then the maximum stroke would be 93.75mm, so to get 12.9 liters, the bore would have to be 148mm b/s of 1.58, very oversquare.
Those cylinder look very close together, but 148mm isn't happening.
supposedly the engine block is from
http://www.donovanengineering.com/
So say 25m/s @ 7000. 107mm stroke would be 138.5mm, 1.29:1 b/s, very reasonable.
+ if the engine really did make ~1300ft-lbs@5600 rpm, that would be 1384hp. More power than peak power? No.
F1 is limited to 98mm maximum bore and 19,000 rpm so very oversquare 98x39.75, so at 19,000 the mean piston speed 25.175m/s
Nascar is comparable, 4.185" bore 3.25" stroke ~25m/s at 9000rpm
MB @ Jan 6th 2007 2:15PM
Schumi has a nack for American things. I know he loves to vacation in the US for the anonymity. He has ridden a Harley on a cross country ride before. I could see his attraction to this car. We can all bash the American cars and post after post of European quality, design, and poise, but in the end, if you are a man who has driven the fastest car on earth and see those European cars on a daily basis, a Shelby Cobra is pretty damn rare in Europe, let alone the US. You are more liable to see an Enzo in midwest Iowa than to see a Shelby Cobra tool around Switzerland.
doglet @ Jan 10th 2007 7:29PM
"8. The Cobra, a car as American as the P-51D Mustang was British..."
so a nobel is south african?
the cobra is an american car, they started with the lightest frame they could find and changed everything. the 427 cobra was completly american. they started with the body of a 100 hp british sports car. what was produced was the fastest car in the world at the time. the daytona coupe pwns your face.
the 289 and 427 cobras are just too cool and the british want so badly for it to be british. its not.
Steeda Club Racer @ Jan 11th 2007 7:34PM
Good for him, he deserves it. I just wish he'd bought one of the Daytona Coupes. Either way Happy Birthday Michael!
Suthwaa @ Jan 20th 2007 12:10AM
I agree with doglet (post# 11) Cobra is American and very cool! Do they have Jaguar engines in them??? Nope! Oh but Jag is pwned by Ford so how british are they anyway? :P LOL
The Cobra is just about ultimate muscle car.
- From an Aussie who's best mate is about to buy and build a Cobra replica - with a little help from his friends ;)
Does that mean we can roll with Schumi???
Happy birthday to the fella BTW, I hope he enjoys the ride!
SuperCobra4Me @ Jan 26th 2007 12:08AM
Guys,
Who leak out this story?
get the facts correct.
The Picture above (Red Cobra) is a Replica made by Factory Five Racing Inc. ( http://www.factoryfive.com )
I know because I have built 2 of these.
http://www.cobra4me.com
SuperCobra4Me @ Jan 26th 2007 12:26AM
continuation: also, the picture in the French Blog/website
http://www.leblogauto.com/2007/01/bon-anniversaire-schumi-rectificatif.html (provided above) is also a Factory Five Cobra, that picture belongs to Factory Five, in fact it was taken in front of the Factory Five building ! If you guys have pictures of the actual car that Schumacher bought or have the VIN number we can determine if it is in fact an Original (from the 60's) Cobra, otherwise you are just creating rumors.