Quote:
Originally posted by Bill Kesner
As for the Chevy myth........maybe Cal Metal or Ron can jump in with additional info.
I beleive Chevrolet did not want to deal with Carroll because they did not want their engine and Carroll's car competing against the all mighty Corvette. It wasn't that Chevrolet pissed Carroll off, it was probably the reverse. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
- Bill -
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I don't think the Chevrolet part of the Cobra story had as much excitement and conflict as some think... plus, the actual time frame for the decision was really years apart.
In 1957, while Shelby was still active as a driver, he was cooking up the idea of a European-style sports car with American muscle.
He tried to interest General Motors in the project, but they had just set in place a long-term plan for the Corvette, so the timing was bad.
It wasn't until 1961, when Bristol Aero stopped making engines, that the AC chassis became the idea for the cars' chassis. When Shelby first contacted Hurlock at AC by letter, he is quoted as saying...
"...I didn't mention Ford specifically (as the engine supplier)...because what I had in mind was a Chevy engine, or a Buick aluminum engine, or something from Oldsmobile."
In July 1961, he met Dave Evans of Ford Corporate at an event and they became friends...and in a short time, Dave offered a couple of new 221 c.i. v-8's
for free to try in the new chassis.
That's how the Ford decision was made....