http://www.ggw.org/~cac/Mighty_Tin.html
I think it may be a reference to the use of the name, Cobra, as a process for building engines and not a Sports Car. Check out the link below. Crosley was one of the first Sports Cars and this is where the allusion might have come from--the engine, not the car, itself.
http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z8120/default.aspx