Cobra The First 40 Years

This major new work covers the story of the Shelby AC Cobra in depth, from the first exciting road cars to the ultimate 7-litre ‘427’ Cobra and the racing models, including the Daytona Coupes that contested the FIA World Championship, winning the GT crown in 1965. From there the story progresses, covering the end of production in 1968 and the subsequent rise of the ‘replica’ kit-car market, plus the advent of AC Autokraft and the AC Cobra MkIV. It also covers the story of how Carroll Shelby recreated the 427S/C and the controversy that surrounded it. Forty years after the Cobra was launched, this ultimate sporting icon is still in production in many forms.  KEY POINTS: Features 280+ stunning photographs, many never previously published. The ultimate in desirable sports cars, the Cobra is one of the world’s most prestigious sports cars and continues to attract new enthusiasts to the cars and their history. The Shelby American Automobile Club is one of the largest motoring clubs in the world with in excess of 5000 members. Over 100,000 replica Cobras have been built since the original cars ended production in 1968. In excess of 100 companies currently build replica Cobras around the world. For many years the 7-litre Cobra held the Guinness Book of Records title for the world’s fastest accelerating sports car. The 1,000 original Cobras are now valuable, sought-after vehicles and values increase each year. The book contains an accurate copy of the official AC Chassis Registry that documents the history of every Cobra that left the factory in Thames Ditton. Contains previously unseen photographs taken during the 1960s, plus many new images shot specifically for this book.

Trevor Legate is a well-respected motoring writer and photographer. His motoring photography led to commissions from major automobile manufacturers to shoot advertising and brochure pictures. Trevor built up a large photographic business but still found time to combine his love of writing with photography to produce an acclaimed book about Shelby AC Cobra. It was followed by a book about the Ford GT40 and, more recently, detailed histories of two popular marques: Mercedes-Benz and Chevrolet Corvette.