Description:
Classic Racecar For Sale:
It's amazing how much fuss six little cars can make. Six cars designed by a 24 year old art school graduate, in 1964, were enough to turn FIA racing upside down. The bodies turned out to be golden, the chassis were proven and the will to win was provided by a certain Texan who you may have heard of. More than forty years later the power of the Shelby Cobra Daytona's triumph is still celebrated by small volume builders making replicas of the car that conquered Europe.
Many people consider these modern replicas to be "kit cars," but where an outfit like Highland Daytona Racing is concerned, the cars released are anything but boxes of parts. Highland sells only turn key cars, built to customer specifications and a very high standard. This gorgeous car here, resplendent in the classic blue and white paint scheme, runs and drives extremely well, goes like stink thanks to its traditional small block Ford engine—just like the originals. The car is also titled as a '65 Shelby—no state issued, generic or random year tags here!
The original six Daytona Cobra Coupe factory racers enjoyed a short but impressive racing career: Originally built for the 1964-65 racing season using 289 Shelby Cobra roadster chassis, these were America's answer to Ferrari's highly successful 250 GTO. In their first year of competition, the Daytona Coupes won the GT class at Sebring and then placed 4th overall at Le Mans. They proved to be so competitive that Ferrari officials, fearing a loss of the championship, managed to get the Monza, Italy final round cancelled, knowing the Daytonas would win the race and the Championship. Consequently, Ferrari claimed the 1964 FIA World Manufacturer's Championship. The following year Enzo Ferrari, realizing he would lose to the Daytona’s, pulled his factory support from the GT program, paving the way for the Daytona Coupe walkover. In 1965, the ex-Shelby Daytona Coupes of the UK's Alan Mann racing team won the FIA's World Manufacturer's GT title with ease.
Everyone knows Cobra roadster replicas are great fun for a quick sprint on a sunny day, but the new crop of Daytona Coupe replicas presents a new concept: Cobra clones for serious long-distance touring. Many enthusiasts attend cruise nights, car club tours, and marathon events like the Hot Rod Power Tour and the One Lap of America. But as fun as roadsters are, with mega-power and rock-solid suspension, the smile factor can wear a little thin after an hour or so on the straight and narrow.
Clambering into the cockpit is surprisingly easy without the wide sills of a GT-40 (the other popular hardtop kit) to get in the way. The door opening is low, but no more so than a Mazda Miata with a hardtop. The 13-inch-diameter Grant leather-rimmed steering wheel is a good size for quick response times and sports a quick release for easy ingress/egress. The seats are surprisingly comfortable, with good side support. Foot room is pretty good for 6-foot-plus drivers—there's more room here than in a Viper. The A/C system blows ice cold, the TPI-Tech gauges are modern electronic interpretations of the originals and the short throw shifter falls right to hand.
Click open the pair of side mounted latches and give a good tug on the front hinged hood. That's a potent yet docile Hyland built 302-based engine inside, dressed with a set of Ford Motorsport Y303 heads, a Professional Products intake, Holley Street Avenger carb, an MSD ignition system and more. The exhaust system consists of headers flowing into four individual glass pack style mufflers for a unique sound you're not going to get from anything else, including the roadster: It sounds as though a Ford V8 and four race-prepped V2 motorcycle engines are under that hood, fighting to be heard over the other. It's as cool as it is unique. Cooling is handled by a fat Fluidyne radiator and SPAL puller fan and a large engine oil cooler mounted horizontally. Additional oil capacity is found in the dual filter setup and in the big braided lines—capacity is around 12 quarts. You'll also see a Sanden A/C compressor hanging off the passenger side of the motor. For a car with fixed windows on speed-limited streets it's a must!
While the hood is up check out the suspension. There are QA1 aluminum bodied adjustable coil overs at each wheel for ultimate control while race spec Outlaw calipers and two piece wave rotors halt the 1,900 pound car in a hurry. Rack and pinion steering points the car where you ask it to thanks to a Heim jointed bump steer kit, fabricated spindles, A1 Racing tubular control arms and a Woodward steering shaft. Look behind the motor and find an SFI approved Mcleod bell housing and the built Z spec Borg Warner T-5 five speed transmission. Switch ends and find the T-5 is connected to a built, full floater 9" rear built by Speedway Motors via an aluminum driveshaft. The four link setup doesn't mess around with massive control arms and Heim joints.
Close the hood, take a few steps back, and look at the body. Hyland obviously has some talented craftsmen on the payroll as the car's fit and finish is excellent. The paint is flat and shiny with a perfect distribution of metal flake throughout. Those Halibrand knockoff style wheels are the perfect look for the car, and the Dunlop GT Qualifier tires (235/60 front, 255/60/15 rear) give the car the perfect classic look. Tri bar headlights reside under the Lexan covers up front while Lucas taillights are right where they should be out back.
Yes, you've always wanted one. Yes, it's absolutely near the top of your dream car list. And yes, you absolutely would have painted it blue and white, too.
It's amazing how much fuss six little cars can make. Six cars designed by a 24 year old art school graduate, in 1964, were enough to turn FIA racing upside down. The bodies turned out to be golden, the chassis were proven and the will to win was provided by a certain Texan who you may have heard of. More than forty years later the power of the Shelby Cobra Daytona's triumph is still celebrated by small volume builders making replicas of the car that conquered Europe.
Many people consider these modern replicas to be "kit cars," but where an outfit like Highland Daytona Racing is concerned, the cars released are anything but boxes of parts. Highland sells only turn key cars, built to customer specifications and a very high standard. This gorgeous car here, resplendent in the classic blue and white paint scheme, runs and drives extremely well, goes like stink thanks to its traditional small block Ford engine—just like the originals. The car is also titled as a '65 Shelby—no state issued, generic or random year tags here!
The original six Daytona Cobra Coupe factory racers enjoyed a short but impressive racing career: Originally built for the 1964-65 racing season using 289 Shelby Cobra roadster chassis, these were America's answer to Ferrari's highly successful 250 GTO. In their first year of competition, the Daytona Coupes won the GT class at Sebring and then placed 4th overall at Le Mans. They proved to be so competitive that Ferrari officials, fearing a loss of the championship, managed to get the Monza, Italy final round cancelled, knowing the Daytonas would win the race and the Championship. Consequently, Ferrari claimed the 1964 FIA World Manufacturer's Championship. The following year Enzo Ferrari, realizing he would lose to the Daytona’s, pulled his factory support from the GT program, paving the way for the Daytona Coupe walkover. In 1965, the ex-Shelby Daytona Coupes of the UK's Alan Mann racing team won the FIA's World Manufacturer's GT title with ease.
Everyone knows Cobra roadster replicas are great fun for a quick sprint on a sunny day, but the new crop of Daytona Coupe replicas presents a new concept: Cobra clones for serious long-distance touring. Many enthusiasts attend cruise nights, car club tours, and marathon events like the Hot Rod Power Tour and the One Lap of America. But as fun as roadsters are, with mega-power and rock-solid suspension, the smile factor can wear a little thin after an hour or so on the straight and narrow.
Clambering into the cockpit is surprisingly easy without the wide sills of a GT-40 (the other popular hardtop kit) to get in the way. The door opening is low, but no more so than a Mazda Miata with a hardtop. The 13-inch-diameter Grant leather-rimmed steering wheel is a good size for quick response times and sports a quick release for easy ingress/egress. The seats are surprisingly comfortable, with good side support. Foot room is pretty good for 6-foot-plus drivers—there's more room here than in a Viper. The A/C system blows ice cold, the TPI-Tech gauges are modern electronic interpretations of the originals and the short throw shifter falls right to hand.
Click open the pair of side mounted latches and give a good tug on the front hinged hood. That's a potent yet docile Hyland built 302-based engine inside, dressed with a set of Ford Motorsport Y303 heads, a Professional Products intake, Holley Street Avenger carb, an MSD ignition system and more. The exhaust system consists of headers flowing into four individual glass pack style mufflers for a unique sound you're not going to get from anything else, including the roadster: It sounds as though a Ford V8 and four race-prepped V2 motorcycle engines are under that hood, fighting to be heard over the other. It's as cool as it is unique. Cooling is handled by a fat Fluidyne radiator and SPAL puller fan and a large engine oil cooler mounted horizontally. Additional oil capacity is found in the dual filter setup and in the big braided lines—capacity is around 12 quarts. You'll also see a Sanden A/C compressor hanging off the passenger side of the motor. For a car with fixed windows on speed-limited streets it's a must!
While the hood is up check out the suspension. There are QA1 aluminum bodied adjustable coil overs at each wheel for ultimate control while race spec Outlaw calipers and two piece wave rotors halt the 1,900 pound car in a hurry. Rack and pinion steering points the car where you ask it to thanks to a Heim jointed bump steer kit, fabricated spindles, A1 Racing tubular control arms and a Woodward steering shaft. Look behind the motor and find an SFI approved Mcleod bell housing and the built Z spec Borg Warner T-5 five speed transmission. Switch ends and find the T-5 is connected to a built, full floater 9" rear built by Speedway Motors via an aluminum driveshaft. The four link setup doesn't mess around with massive control arms and Heim joints.
Close the hood, take a few steps back, and look at the body. Hyland obviously has some talented craftsmen on the payroll as the car's fit and finish is excellent. The paint is flat and shiny with a perfect distribution of metal flake throughout. Those Halibrand knockoff style wheels are the perfect look for the car, and the Dunlop GT Qualifier tires (235/60 front, 255/60/15 rear) give the car the perfect classic look. Tri bar headlights reside under the Lexan covers up front while Lucas taillights are right where they should be out back.
Yes, you've always wanted one. Yes, it's absolutely near the top of your dream car list. And yes, you absolutely would have painted it blue and white, too.
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