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1965 Shelby 289 Cobra
Fully Documented Original
The tale of the A.C Cobra started in Milan, Italy, with the beautiful Touring Barchetta bodies crafted for Enzo Ferrari's 166 and 225 Spyders. Those fine-looking taut bodies initiated scores of imitations. One of the very first cars to copy Ferrari's Touring Barchetta was the one-off Cooper-MG raced by automobile dealer Cliff Davis. For a more powerful car, Davis turned to John Tojiero, a race car builder near Cambridge, England. Tojiero convinced a ladder frame with independent leaf-spring suspension front and rear. Bristol's two-liter, BMW-based engine and transmission were then dropped in, and the whole confection was clothed in a Barchetta-style body crafted by Eric Hall and Bill Rich.
The Tojiero-Bristol was a resounding competition success, and David urged Tojiero to build the car in series. Instead, Tojiero showed the car to the Hurlock family of A.C. in Thames Dutton. A.C quickly decided to take a license for the design, and another chassis was fitted with A.C.'s elderly overhead camshaft two-liter six and displayed at the Motor Show in London with A.C. badges. Even with the less powerful engine, the A.C. Ace was an immediate success. In time, the Bristol engine became a sanctioned option, and eventually became a formidable competitor in the UK, Europe and the United States.
When Bristol announced it would discontinue its engine in the early 1960's A.C. needed an alternative power unit. A Chevrolet V-8 was found unsuitable, but in 1961 A.C. racer Ken Rudd discovered that the Ford 2.6-liter six fit very well and could be tuned extensively. However, a long-term solution came from former racer Carroll Shelby. The Texan suggested dropping Ford's new lightweight V-8 engine into a strengthened version of the Ace and promised Ford's support. The result was the 260 cid and later 289 cid engines were installed. It was also in California that the Cobra achieved its first racing successes.
This Car ...
In October 1964, Shelby American completed CSX2541 in white with red interior. Holman & Moody then transported the new 289 Cobra to Lynch-Davidson Ford in Jacksonville, Florida. The car was soon delivered to new owner Joe LaRose, who was a shoe and boot maker to the stars. At about the same time, LaRose also took delivery of a new Corvette. Apparently, the two powerful roadsters were his everyday cars until he died in 1999 at the age of 88.
Toward the end of his life, LaRose still drove the Cobra regularly and was a frequent sight with the top up and a hat planted firmly on his head. According to period accounts, he would settle down in the fast lane-at 40 miles an hour- and the police would drive behind him to protect him from fast-moving traffic. Unlike most Cobras in period, the LaRose Cobra was never raced, abused or modified with side pipes or a roll bar. Years later, it still remains its original whitewall tires, Hi-Po 289, 4-speed transmission, Autolite carburetor and cast iron intake manifold. In fact, the engine and transmission have never been rebuilt. As a later car, it was equipped with rack and pinion steering, Ford electrics, Stewart Warner gauges, six-inch wire wheels and side vents.
Following LaRose's death CSX2541 was acquired by Ford employee and Cobra fanatic Mark Winkleman, with its original owner's manual and completed owner's questionnaire, and thanks to an exhaustive search, Winkleman was able to gather extensive additional documentation, including the original invoice from A.C. cars to Shelby American and the Shelby American invoice to the dealer.
CSX2541 benefited from a cosmetic restoration that was carefully executed to avoid disturbing the marvelous originality of this very special Cobra. It remains in its original white livery with red leather interior. More recently the Cobra was treated to a major service to ensure that it drives as it should. With its complete history and comprehensive paperwork, CSX2541 may be the best documented and most carefully authenticated 289 Cobra of all. With so many restored cars around, it is truly wonderful to see a car that you know was never duplicated or badly damaged and epitomizes the true meaning of original.
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