Shelby 427 Cobra, 1965 Original Competition Cars - cool cars, hot cars, fast cars

Description

The Cobra 427 had a short racing history but it was the fastest production car in the world. These are two of the original full competition 427's. The new Chevrolet Grand Sport racing Corvettes hit the track at Nassau. The Cobra needed a deeper power plant to compete with them. The Ford four barrel NASCAR 427 was chosen. A more rigid and intricate chassis was built to cradle the colossus power and heftiness of the 427. Ironically enough the Cobra 427 could have been a Chevy... In 1962 the 289 Windsor Ford engine was transplanted into the Cobra chassis, replacing the 260. By 1963 modern updates for the front suspension of the 289 were complete. Although the rear suspension was still transverse leaf springs, the Cobra earned it's reputation in racing. Carroll Shelby knew Cobra's overall racing technology was growing long in the tooth, and the Corvette Grand Sport was coming to kill the snake. And of course bloodthirsty Competition from Aston Martin, Ferrari, Jaguar and Porsche. The 289 reached it's peak at about 390 horsepower and that just wasn't going to cut it anymore. In 1964 It was time to build a Cobra that would retain sovereignty on the race track. Ken Miles, Ted Sutton and Shelby replaced the 289 4.7 with a 427 7.0 Big Block. But 427 power doesn't do much good if the machine can't transfer it's might into speed. The rear leaf spring suspension just couldn't hold the Cobra to the pavement. The Original 427 Cobra prototype needed to tolerate immense mechanical energy <b>...</b>

Keywords

cool cars, shelby, 427, cobra, 1965, original, competition, race, racing, car, cool, hot, fast, cars

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