Short nose Cobra
A question to our English cousins…..what is a “short nose Cobra”?
I’ve seen the “short nose” description in advertisements a few times over the years, applied sometimes to AC Mk IV / Autocraft versions. What is different about a "short nose" Cobra, if anything, from the Mk III (427) body? Here’s one; 1986 AC Cobra MKIV 'Short Nose' — Brooklands Cars Ltd Changing direction only slightly, I also found this information about the “AC Cobra Mk VI”, which looks quite similar to what one of our guys from our SA Cobra Club is achieving with his Pace Alumina Cobra https://www.topspeed.com/cars/ac-cobra/ke1356.html Begs the question….what is/was the Mk V? Was this the Maltese Cobra? Were any actually made? Cheers! Glen |
The MK IVs had an upper nose extension of about 2". Brian Angliss thought the car looked "better" that way. He would build an original "short nose" on demand.
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Thanks Mark.
Interesting that the original MkIII nose shape is called a "short nose", and BA's version not called a "long nose" :rolleyes: |
Mk IV is correct. However Angliss/Autokraft also produced the long nose to differentiate his Mk IV from the earlier 1960s cars. However, demand from traditional enthusiasts called for a Mk IV that was more period looking, including the short nose styling. The car he produced to appease them was the Mk IV lightweight, of which 28 were built.
I have a Mk IV and much prefer the earlier short nose, although I might never known, had it not been pointed out. |
Thanks for that information.
I also found some pics of the Mk V, and it appears there might have only been three cars built.... Mk V Cobra (Maltese) https://www.classicdriver.com/en/car...ra/2008/168485 I prefer the original Lucas L542 lights on a Cobra, so the tails lights on this Mk V are way too far from the original for my taste. Cheers, Glen |
Correct - three so-called MkV's built. Best to forget them though....build quality was....lacking. I saw the cars in the UK along with the pages of jobs required to get them safe for road use. The stuff of nightmares. Maybe worth buying for their engines which were stonking. Bin the rest. Not Malta's finest hour.
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They were the very finest (only) automobiles to ever come out of Malta. No higher praise.
First time I've seen a glovebox held in place by a pile of five pieces of mdf board. As for the carpet!! The party piece was the throttle linkage. A test drive discovered that at full throttle, the link went over center and refused to return. That was fun for the driver and almost reduced the number of MkV's by 33.3%. (My lawyer adds "allegedly") I could go on..and on... At least the Angliss era assured the supply of cars and parts. AC cleared out it's spares department almost as soon as production finished. I think it was quietly glad to see the back of the car and I don't think they exchanged Christmas cards with Mr. Shelby. But all that is water under the bridge as they say. |
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Other similarities to Malta: various build issues I had to address, including side pipe inserts installed in opposing directions, half of a rear main seal installed backwards, shoddy wiring, poorly installed gas tank and a Morse throttle cable that stuck open when the outer sheath buckled and jammed the cable. |
The Maltese Cobra's..... The stuff dreams are made of..... "NOT"
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