Man, I bet that sounds cool as heck at full tilt.
1963 Shelby 289 Cobra by J.A. Ackley
Feb 5, 2025
Photography courtesy RM Sotheby's
Yes, this is an authentic Shelby 289 Cobra. However, it’s not your typical one. Let us explain.
First, Ford used this example as one of its demonstrator cars, covering 6000 miles in that role. Then the Shelby changed hands. While its first private owner is unknown, its second crashed it, destroying the aluminum body. The body went to a landfill and the rest of the car sat for two decades.
Enter drag racer Chet Bunch in 1995. He restored it, had a new body crafted and brought the Shelby back to life. Over the course of two decades, Bunch made some upgrades, too. The chassis was discretely reinforced, taking inspiration from the Daytona Coupes. A rocker-arm coil-over suspension replaced the leaf springs. And, among other mods, he installed a 302 V8 stroked to 347 cubic inches, producing more than 500 horsepower.
Find this 1963 Shelby 289 Cobra for auction at RM Sotheby’s, with an estimated value of $500,000-$600,000.
Man, I bet that sounds cool as heck at full tilt.
I think that spraying the body in Lucite would add significant weight. Thank God the white sidewall tires and luggage rack were ditched.
Speaking of taking the Cobra body to the local land fill, in 1962 we had a very arogant english teacher. He bought a Pontaic LeMans [?] and called it a sports car cause it had bucket seats and a floor shift. Well I grew up in a family with "real sportscars, TRs and Healeys.
Had to do something about this. Couple buddies helped me put a TR3 body shell on the teacher's lawn at midnight. Dropped in a couple real buckets [pails] and an E brake from a VW for a floor shift. Finished it off with a sigh that read " your real sports car". Next morning the cops were in the school asking questions, no one squealed.
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Price
Price upon request
Color
Black
