Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperHart
I don't actually recall where I saw the comment, but supposedly Carrol Shelby himself said once that when he decided to upgrade the power of the 289 Cobra, if Ford had the 351W in its lineup he would have chosen that motor instead of the 427. It would have made the upgrade a lot easier, cheaper and made for a better weight distribution.
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I think Shelby/Ford chose the 427 because Chevy was out with the 396 vette in late '64, and the 289 didn't generate the HP, and the Nascar 427 was an off the shelf race motor. Shelby wanted to run bigger tires, so the fenders were widened/rounded. The frame was redesigned to be over twice as strong, yet weighed about 40lbs more. The suspension was redesigned. The 427 Cobra came to be from many of these wanted modifications. If they had a 351W back then, with the technology back then, I believe the Nascar 427 would still have been the choice. The 289 cobra was a beefed up AC ace. The 427 Cobra was Carroll's baby, designed by/for him.