Quote:
Originally Posted by STLUCIE
Thanks, again. My takeaway from your response is that wide hip Cobras are preferred over narrow hip Cobras.
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When Cobras went out of production, there was a period of time during which they were simply regarded as used sports cars. They were a bit pricey compared to regular sports cars of similar vintage, but that was only because they were relatively expensive when new. As the muscle car craze and horsepower wars began to peak in the late '60's and early '70's, the raw performance potential of the Cobras brought them back into the limelight, and the baddest of them all was the iconic 427SC with its signature wide flares, huge sidepipes, roll bar and of course - the 427 Side oiler engine.
The vast majority of Cobras - both 289 and 427 - were sold as street cars and though a 289 was still no slouch performance wise, it was the 427's that became the top dog Cobra to own. Owners of narrow hipped 427 street roadsters wanting their car to emulate the fire breathing SC cars added the flares, bars and pipes. The pedigree of the racing 289's was not really a big thing then because - remember, many of them were either still being raced by privateers or they were balled-up, beat-up wrecks with little perceived value.
Fast forward to the post muscle car era and the stratospheric auction prices being commanded by LS6 Chevelles, Fairlane Thunderbolts, Hemi Cuda convertibles and of course - Cobras. The replica industry was also churning out 427SC replicas and the old V8 powered Shelby roadsters were suddenly among the most sought-after collector cars on the planet. As the collector craze grew and matured, traits like model rarity, originality and racing pedigree became value adders and the racing history of the once (relatively) lowly 289's brought them into the limelight.
So (very) generally speaking today in values determined largely by hammer prices at auction, the low production and iconic 427SC Cobras are still top dollar cars but an unmolested narrow hip 427 Roadster will be worth more than one with added on SC flares and regalia - even if those modifications were done back in the '60's by an original owner. A street 427/428 car will outbid a street 289 unless of course we're talking about Carroll Shelby's personal car or the 289 driven on TV by Honey West. And let's not even get into the Daytona Coupes or the ultra collectibles like the 427 Super Snake.
So to address the quoted statement; to the average car nut - yes - the wide hip 427 Cobras with roll bar and side pipes are the quintessential and most desirable version of the Cobra while classic sports car connoisseurs might gravitate to the more svelte and subtle narrow hip 427 street or the 289 roadster. Collectors and investors - who largely drive real world auction values - as others here have posted, look at individual cars and price them based on the rarity and pedigree factors mentioned above. In a nutshell - the answer is "It depends."
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