Did you ever notice...

[CSX 4027]

...that a lot of CC members have a bone to pick with Shelby and are negative regarding any of his new cars as to how, where and what they are made of yet, when we see non Shelby Kit Cobra's advertised for sale on the secondary market either on Ebay or in Hemmings, the first 2 words of the advertisement are most often Shelby Cobra?
Why don't they put the Kit Car manufacturer first?
It could almost be a Seinfeld Thing.....

[Hal Copple]

i suspect it is a lingering resentment over the suits he filed against SPF and FFR. It is possible to admire the cars, and hold hard feelings against the man's legal actions. So rubs off in various ways, is guess.

Probably the best thing for us owners and drivers, since we don't have any input or affect on the legal stuff, is to just try to be friends with other enthusiasts, and avoid getting tangled up the distant issues.

Que sera, Que sera

[CSX 4027]

I agree. But why do those individuals re-selling their cars made by other than Shelby and including the 2 manufacturers you mentioned advertise they are First selling a Shelby Cobra before they disclose the actual MFG? Aren't they proud of what they own? The guys on CC seem to be very proud of their cars no matter what make it is?

[Specialk]

$trange, i$n't it?

[Tout]

Seems to me we all bought cars we love, I dont think it matters what you call it .As I see it , its the owners of these cars that keep the Cobra name going , not the man himself .

Tout

[Turk]

Tout,
How do you like that Shelby 484 engine?

TURK

[Tout]

Will let you know in about a week, engine is being instaled monday by Eric. My last cobra had the 460 crate and that was more than most would need.
Tout

[TerrysSPF]

Tout: This is going to be the longest winter of your life. I'll bet you can't wait for spring! What are the HP/TQ figures on that thing? Did you go with a TKOII, or what? If you (or Eric!) don't mind me asking, what did he charge you for the engine? (you can send me a private e-mail if you wish!)
That's gonna be a great car!

[CSX 4027]

This is kinda what I mean

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6465

Very Little talk of the MFG and placed 2 enemies in the same sentence as the description of manufacturer.

[Nuke427]

I really can't understand why they put the old mans name first all the time either. He ripped a bunch of people off with the Series 1, collecting money down and promising a car at a much lower price than it actually was. And then trying to pass off 427 Cobras as being built with actual 1965 parts. The man may have a talent for cars/racing, but he's always looking to take someone for a buck. I own a Backdraft Racing Roadster that has absolutely no Cobra or Shelby emblems anywhere on the car. I like it that way.

[Jack21]

The Shelby we knew 35 years ago, and the Shelby we know today are two entirely different people.

35 years ago, the man created a legend, but the legend didn't gain popularity until 25 years later. There were more Cobras at DVSF II, & III than Shelby's total production in '65 & '66. Cobras then sold at selected Ford dealers, and they were a sales flop.

Shelby today is a bitter, despondent old man, who after walking away fron the legend he created leaving the vacuum to be filled by ERA, SPF, FFR, EM, CR, etc. jumps up after a 30 year hiatus saying, "Hey, That's mine", and starts indiscriminately engaging in expensive lawsuits to reclaim what was arguably never his in the first place. Had AC, who built the cars in the first place, decided to take these "Immitators" to court, it might have made sense. But AC, who still makes these, has said nothing. Shelby, through his actions, has alienated the very market he set out to attract. I wouldn't buy a Shelby product today if it was free. For Shelby to re-enter the Cobra market (35 years hense) with a replica of his own adds to the ludicracy of this whole exercise.

But on selling a Cobra, the average buying public does not have the knowledge or sophistication that we do here. So, what is the difference between an ERA, SPF, FFR, CR? The folks scouting e-bay don't know, or perhaps even care. It's a Cobra. A Shelby Cobra (meaning the little 2 seater with the big V-8), not the Ford Mustang with a Cobra emblem on the fender. That's the differentiation.

[Hal Copple]

Not everybody refers to the replica's as "Shelby's."

I had to laugh, about two weeks ago, Chris and I were up to VIR to see the weekend races, with the big Rolex 400 on Sunday. What a great place, what a great weekend, father and son, being around cars.

Anyway, there were a number of supporting races, BMW's in particular, but also what they call "American Iron."

There was a FFR spec racer running in the AI series, an old friend of mine, he runs every chance he can get, although he had engine trouble for the final race.

But the track announcer, working up the crowd for the upcoming AI race, touted the "Shelby Mustangs, the Camaros, and

EVEN AN AC COBRA!"

Note the above, he called to crowd to watch the AC, not a Shelby Cobra, which in fact was an FFR car. I couldn't detect an English acent, either.

Go figure.

[Tout]

Too much time is wasted on this topic,it will go on for as long as people let it . I just want to drive and feeeeel good. Tout

[Specialk]

Could you explain this statement? Who got ripped off?

Originally posted by Nuke427


He ripped a bunch of people off with the Series 1, collecting money down and promising a car at a much lower price than it actually was.

[BANDIT 1]

Mr. CSX:

There is no conspiracy here, as several have said 90% of the people looking for "Cobra's" on E-Bay don't know the different Cobra kit car/replica manufacturer's. E-Bay isn't going to give seperate sections for the different manufacturer's and that means there is only two places to look, 1). Shelby Cobra's 2). Kit Cars. Since Superformance Cobra's are not "kit cars", then some list them in the Shelby section. I think your example of the E-Bay ad shows that the owner says several times that it is a Superformance Cobra. A buyer can see the different manufacturer's on E-Bay and then "search" the web for the companies websights to get more information. By doing the search they usually run into Club Cobra, which by the way comes up when you search for "Shelby Cobra" also.

[CSX 4027]

I think you are spliiting hairs on the Kit Car terminology. Superformance along with all the others are kit cars. They come without the necessary parts to turn the key and go down the road. That's a kit car. Ask any motor vehicle agency. As for the differentiation and Ebay listings, Ebay clearly has established a section for Kit cars, yet people still list them in that section as Shelby AC Cobra's. Shelby has the one up to the manufacturers section because he was already a listed manufacturer from the 1960's and created (or whatever) a car that made history.

People get arrested all day long for making replica Louis Vuitton and Rolex merchandise and selling it as such labels and all.

[Years Ago]

Nuke 427

I too would like to know of the factual source behind your statement. I was very much involved in negociating with all of the Series 1 buyers. I am familiar with how transactions were settled. I would be happy to answer questions you may have. But, please, don't make assertions without stating the factual sources behind them. I disagree completely with you as to Shelby ripping buyers off. I agree not all were satisfied, but none were treated unfairly in the circumstances.

[Jamo]

It's a couple of things...

Simplistic EBay classifications...you want to distinguish yourself from the other kit cars, ranging from Gazelles to gawd knows what, you use the Shelby listing. Maybe someday EBay will break it down or have a seperate listing for the vast majority of kit cars, ie., "Cobra-based".

Alot of it has to do with American slang trands. We tend to shorthand products by refering to them by their original manufacturer: Xerox, Coke, Levis...

Some of it has to do with panache (or panoche for our latin friends)...borrowing the name of the provider of services or the product that carries some esteem: Rolex, Mont Blanc, Trojans...

In any event...

[CSX 4027]

Many do list it as Shelby Cobra Replica made by XYZ company but others try to capitalize by just calling it a Shelby Cobra flat out or a Shelby Cobra Superformance like the guy on Ebay did. It's as ambiguous as Jumbo Shrimp...

[BlueRooster]

...or a real continuation