Few British-built cars are more iconic than the AC/Shelby Cobra.
The Cobra's first production run came in 1962 with the Mk1 Cobra, giving birth to only 75 examples - and of those 75, only 62 were road-legal units, including this one. It's an ultra-rare car, but now anyone with the cash can get their hands on one of the earliest Cobra examples at auction.
California-based auction house Gooding & Company is reportedly auctioning off an original and well-maintained Shelby Cobra Mk1 260.
This example is Chassis Number CSX2034. It came to the United States from England in late 1962, settling in Tasca Ford of East Providence, Rhode Island, before reaching its first owner.
It has travelled less than 8,400 km, with some of that mileage coming from a test drive by Car and Driver magazine in 1963.
This Cobra example has retained its original red paint and black leather interior but has also been mechanically restored by Antique Auto Restoration in Seaside, California.
But don't get excited just yet, as some expect the price to go up to an eye-watering $2.5 million USD (around $4 million).
What makes the original Shelby Cobra so compelling?
The brainchild of legendary automotive designer Carroll Shelby, the Cobra used a relatively rudimentary hand-built body with a mad Ford small-block V8 engine.
Shelby went with a Ford V8 after Chevrolet refused to let him use a Corvette power plant. Ford saw a prime opportunity to take sales away from Chevrolet, eventually providing Shelby with the 260 V8, an engine also used on the first-generation Mustang.
The Cobra features a slab-side aluminum body with slim fender flares and Wilmot-Breeden hood latches. It also features a Smiths instrument cluster, wood-rimmed steering wheel, and a Ford shifter.
Under the hood, the Cobra packs a 4.3-litre Ford V8 engine that yields around 200 kW at 5,800 rpm. The petrol mill connects to a four-speed BorgWarner manual transmission.
You can view (and bid) on this 1962 Shelby Cobra Mk1 260 at Gooding & Company's Pebble Beach Auctions in California beginning August 16, 2023.
