Average Age?

[DonC]

I'd been tracking Cobras for about 10 years, keeping up with who was making them, various stories about builds and haunting the manufacturer's web sites when they became available. Acquired a lot of product brochures over that period and always thought that "one day I'd really like to build one".
After putting if off for years (I'm now 62) my recent bypass surgery convinced me that I should really get off my a$$ and do something about it since I wasn't getting any younger. Put the skydiving on hold for a while and ordered my ERA in June. Given my schedule and other things eating up my time I decided on a turn-key even though I would probably take the same year that I'll spend waiting for Peter and his ERA elves to finish the car.
My last serious automotive endeavor was a 7 year research and development outing with a 72 240Z. I bought the car new and, when I sold it 7 years later got a thousand dollars more than I payed for it. Of course by that time the small block 8 making 400 bhp was only the most recent of the modifications that I'd made to it over the years. While I don't envision the same process for the Cobra I'm sure that there will be some tinkering with it.
DonC

[Larry Cleveland]

I am 45 years old and have had my Cobra for 1 1/2 years. I have been in love with Cobras since a teenager. I have a '68 Shelby GT 500KR convertable that I thought would satisfy my need for a big block.
There is nothing like a Cobra. My 15 year old daughter and I took a wonderful drive in it on Thanksgiving day. She loves driving in the Cobra. We share a common bond with that car. It is tough as a parent finding common ground with your teenager today! No arguments when we go for a drive. It's too loud to talk above the beautiful sound (music) of the sidepipes. It is about the only "music" we agree on.
Have a great day!

[cobrarkc]

I am 47 years old but I built my cobra 24 years ago, When I built mine the orginals were going for under 100k and it cost my over 30k to complete mine. When I would go to Shelby shows the original owners would shun me like my car wasn't good enough but it didn't matter to me because I would say, at least I built mine! When I saw them on the road I got the last laugh. I don't think its a mid life thing, it is more of a timing thing I just happen to be fortunate enough to build mine when I was it my Twenties. By the way my wife hates my car it's to scary for her.

Rich

[pgingl]

I'm 32, just getting into the Cobra craze!!!!!!!!

Paul

[Katauskas]

I'm currently 34, but my average age is 17

[REDSC400]

54 but most accuse me of acting like a teenager......

When I was 16 (1966) the Cobra was the car of my dreams.

[RaceDeck]

I just turned 40 ...but my kids tell me that I am the youngest dad they know...I still Surf with them, Snowboard with them, involve them with our land speed racing efforts...Life is good at 40 but better at 200(mph)

[ravedemon]

I'm now 22, and my goal is to finish my car before my 23rd bday....some say i'm the youngest, but i'm not sure.......but i do know for sure that i had to cut the $$$$ tree down to get as far as i did...........but they say it's worth it in the end.....

[Art Burtt]

I started at age 62,sure the money was an issue,but,I doubt I would have had the time or the patience to do it while I was working. My project began with enlarging my garage and then building a shed to get all of my "stuff" out of the garage. This took me five years to get ready to start to build a car. Actual car building took a year but only because I had to wait for parts.
Thank God for Don Scott!

[stevehaygood]

I am still working on my cobra. I have a B&B body, but a chassis I am fabricating myself. It has a 351W w/ GT-40 heads, Englebrock
intake with 650 double pumper Holley, top loader 4 speed, anf independent Jag suspension all the way around.
I saw only 2 cobras in the 60's a girl who was a friend of mine had couple next door to them and the husband raced a 289 FIA type? 1st one with bulging fenders. The other one was owned by a local Ford dealer and his son went to summer school with me for a couple of years. His too was a 289.

I went to London UK in 1989 to live and work there and I saw my 1st "replica." The UK was covered in kit cars back then and in a passage in a kit car magazine was a quote: "What is it about a Shelby AC Cobra 427 that reminds one of a body builder in a tight, white t shirt with the sleeves rolled up and makes every man over the age of 40 drop to his knees and praying to God, Oh jeez god, pleez let me have!! I got to get me one of these!!

In 1992 I went to the London car show at the olympia. There were 2 Shelby cobras there. a 427sc for L345,00 pounds sterling and a 289 for L225,000 pounds sterling . (Then a pound was about $1.59-61/dollar

[stevehaygood]

Oh . I forgot. I am 55 next month.

[Johnnyquest]

I'm 48 feel 28 in my Cobra. Wanted one every since my father and I saw one back in 68 at a autocross.

JQ

[hotrodman]

I am 26. I am planning on buying a 2005 Mustang GT, but the ultimate goal is a Cobra.

[wayne65]

56 years young , had to sale 70 Boss 302 to help make room and finance FFR #4757 Mk II roadster IRS , Have wanted to own
one for 40 years.

[Jack21]

Jack 21 is 61 years young.

One of the guys in our Cobra Club (CACC) has a saying... "Growing old is manditory, growing up is entirely optional." (He's the guy, about "Our age" that drives the CSX4000).

And he's right. I still enjoy 50's & 60's Rock-n-Roll particularly bands and "The Hubcaps", old cars, and my Cobra. The kids, and grandkids like going for a ride in Grampas' Cobra. And Grampa likes feeling 25 again. And Granma likes it when Grampa acts 25 again, as well. So, I suppose there's a little "Reminiscance of a time recreated" here as well.

But why a Cobra? Why not a Vette, GTO, 442, 454 Chevelle, or Austin Healy 3000? Most* of us cut our teeth on factory musclecars of the 60's*, and 400+ HP could be driven off any showroom floor. Part of the mistique today is, you can't buy one of these things off a lot. You have to build it from a kit. There are an estimated** 20,000 Cobras on the street total Nationwide today. (Chevrolet builds and sells this many Corvettes every year) Since Shelby only produced less than 400 of the 427 bodystyle Cobras in '65 and '66 - and these original cars are worth in excess of $1/4M, the cars one sees on the street are replicas, not originals.

The Cobra is THE MUTHA of all American Musclecar AND hot sportscar icons. Originally a collaborative effort between the Americans and British during the British Sports Car invasion of the US following WWII. The Cobra, as I peruse these posts is an automotive icon in the English speaking free world encompassing the UK, Canada, USA, Australia, and New Zealand. Awsome, huh?

This now 35 year old Icon, is recognized instantly wherever it is seen or driven. People admire it up close, and at a distance. Even Bikers, among others, give me a "Thumbs Up".

* What is puzzling is the facination of the 20 and 30 year olds to a car that was out of production and nearly extinct before they were born.

**Read this number off one of the forum posts. Accuracy? Don't know.

[wizard]

Can't believe I hadn't checked into this one already. 55 1/2.
Has anyone actually calculated "The Average Age" ?

Will have had my WC 3 yrs in Apr.

[Dennis Kelley]

37 years old. Just got my Backdraft

[rmk0701]

well I'm only 26 and very interested in getting a cobra. just doing my research of who makes the better kit for the lowest price. if you have any suggestions just let me know.

[StephenC]

Mid-life Crisis?

I've heard that before. A Cobra/replica for me, at this time in my life, is simply a function of disposable income.

Now, if you see a blond sitting next to me as I cruise around the MSU campus, that's a mid-life crisis!

LMAO

[thunder1]

picking up my backdraft tommorow i'am not 50 i'am 49.95 haha can't wait to be a kid again.