Filed under: Auction Action
2007 Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale: Carroll Shelby's personal Cobra brings $5 MIL
1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Supersnake -- Lot #1301 Sold at $5,000,000
The only surviving dual supercharged factory Cobra, this Supersnake was Carroll Shelby's personal car. "When I built this dual supercharged 427 Cobra in 1966, I wanted it to be the fastest, meanest car on the road," said Shelby. "Forty years later, it will still kick the tail of just about anything in the world." Unfortunately, after selling for a gavel price of $5 MIL, it's unlikely this car will see any more roads, let alone kicking tail.
CSX3015 started out as one of the 19 production Competition Cobras and was then cranked up a notch to produce 800 supercharged horsepower. The twin Paxton supercharged 427 was mated to a three-speed automatic transmission. One other Supersnake was built for comedian Bill Cosby, but was wrecked, making this one the only factory survivor. The huge rush of having this extraordinary vehicle bring such a well-deserved insane top bid could be felt for miles around Westworld. We didn't get a chance to ask Shelby about the car during lunch, but we can guess that he was pretty happy with the result.
[Source: Barrett-Jackson]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Mr_Oak 10:40AM (1/21/2007)
Sweet Jesus. A 40 year old car that will dust 99.9% of all street cars on the planet today.
I wonder what Enzo's of Colin Chapman's personal rides were like?
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kingvolcano 10:47AM (1/21/2007)
I wonder if he is selling it due to his company losing so much money over the years.
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Mr_Oak 10:57AM (1/21/2007)
I doubt that, Carroll Shelby the man i'm sure gets $$ from Ford for using his name on their 'Stangs. He was also involved in the creation of the original Viper, sure he got paid there too. The company and the man, two separate entities.
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C\\\'est Raoul 11:02AM (1/21/2007)
Just curious: Does the plate has any meaning?
MFG: manufacturer?
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BEAUSLX 11:10AM (1/21/2007)
The MFG you refer to is a original California Manufacturers plate, which is most likely very rare itself.
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David Wiles 12:41PM (1/21/2007)
Cosby has a great routine on one of his albums about the Cobra he owned. It is appropriately titled "200 MPH."
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David Wiles 12:46PM (1/21/2007)
As for the 3 speed auto...this is the same period in which Jim Hall was using 2 and 3 speed automatics on some very successful Chaparral race cars. And when you consider the torque and torque curve that this Cobra must have, why would you need a manual?
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big jimmy 12:58PM (1/21/2007)
Two Words: HOLY SHIT!!!!!!!!!
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Ben H. 1:00PM (1/21/2007)
Proceeds as I saw/heard from SpeedTV goes to Carol Shelby's foundation for Kids.
His company has also turned around by a new woman executive. That article is somewhere here in Autoblog. Now they can't keep up with the orders.
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Ryan W. 3:34PM (1/21/2007)
I love how the switches are labeled with those old pressed plastic stick on labels...
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JIm 3:56PM (1/21/2007)
I'm old enough to remember when Carroll came out with the Cobras. First with a few 260s and then about 450 each of the 289s & 427s. First saw one in Lake Charles, LA in 1965. It was at a small track and it lapped the field, including a new factory prepped 396 Corvette Sebring. In 1967 there were unsold models he couldn't get rid of and I believe you could, at the time, buy a new 289 for $5,500 or so, and a 427 for $6,500-$6,700 or so. Tommy Smothers of the Smothers Brothers had a 427 and claimed he never had anyone that was able to grab a $20 he would stick on the windshield header before he got to 100MPH. I was lucky enough to ride in one a friend owned. It was loud, hot has hell, windy, and rode like a buck board, but the noise, oh, the noise. It was like music and made the hair on your neck stand up. It was the most visceral thing I've every ridden, including a new Ferrari which almost made me wet myself with its mechanical song. BTW, those of you reading this may know, Carroll is one of the oldest living heart transplants. Must be coming up on 20 years now. He gives a lot to heart foundations and other non-profits. He's also one of the few remaining "characters" of the old school of auto racing and certainly doesn't mince words. Stories abound. I wish there were a dozen more like him.
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dakota 5:57PM (1/21/2007)
5,000,000????? that's a lot.....what type of blue is that?
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In2uition 8:13PM (1/21/2007)
#13 Guardsman Blue or Viking Blue.....no clue on color code.
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2009 Mustangs 9:28PM (1/21/2007)
That car rocks. It's worth every cent of the five million it received. I couldn't believe it when the bidding slowed down for a bit at $500K. Then somebody jumped in and started bidding again and the rest is history.
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2009 Mustangs 9:30PM (1/21/2007)
BTW I seriously doubt Carroll is having financial troubles. He's got to be making a fortune by allowing Ford to use his name on the GT500, GT-H, and Shelby GT.
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Drew 1:15AM (1/22/2007)
Shelby Autos was having serious financial issues, but the GT-H rental car, Shelby GT, a few licensing deals, and Shelby's new modification center have turned things around with the former CEO of Hot Wheels leading the way.
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Tina Olley 8:18AM (1/22/2007)
Jim, I enjoyed reading your post more than most of the "blogs" on here. Fun Stuff!!!!!!!!
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Bill Mahoney 10:04AM (1/22/2007)
I have a few pictures of one of the two of these cars.
They are pictures of the car in mid restoration. I know the Cosby car was distroyed in a crash, but does anyone know if it is being restored or are these pictures of Shelbys car? Carroll said he was pulled over in the Nevada desert going 190 MPH. I'll bet that cop is still telling that story to this day.
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Bill Mahoney 10:04AM (1/22/2007)
I have a few pictures of one of the two of these cars.
They are pictures of the car in mid restoration. I know the Cosby car was distroyed in a crash, but does anyone know if it is being restored or are these pictures of Shelbys car? Carroll said he was pulled over in the Nevada desert going 190 MPH. I'll bet that cop is still telling that story to this day.
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Richard Warren 11:00AM (1/22/2007)
Well worth every penny. In person the car is more awesome than in pictures.
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