Looking to buy my first Cobra 427 S/C in Oz

[CobraAddict]

In my continued die hard quest to get something as authentic as possible, yet not buy a continuation car which I question how authentic they are anyway, I have decided to try to emulate one particular car I found which I love that has pretty much everything I want in a reproduction. Yes its Guardsman Blue too !

CSX3045 is the look I think I want most and hopefully if I can source a good 427 FE side oiler and 4 speed top loader (pretty surer I've found a couple of sources in the US) and stick them in a Superformance chassis I think I will have found the right balance is new vs old for a fair and reasonable outlay. It sold for around $2.2 Mill back in 2015 at Sotheby's (Amelia Island) in March 2015 so I'm assuming that the car world considers this a pretty genuine item. At least that’s the theory now. I may yet completely change my mind but that’s where I am at now

[xb-60]

Beautiful car, that one. 3045 was painted Guardsman Blue when in George Stauffer's care, and it was then restored and "refinished in bright blue metallic" according to the Registry. I think Guardsman Blue is slightly more smoky in appearance, less "metallic" looking.

Cheers,
Glen

[CobraAddict]

Originally Posted by xb-60

Beautiful car, that one. 3045 was painted Guardsman Blue when in George Stauffer's care, and it was then restored and "refinished in bright blue metallic" according to the Registry. I think Guardsman Blue is slightly more smoky in appearance, less "metallic" looking.

Cheers,
Glen

Oh really so this picture which is from the 2015 auction is NOT Guardsman Blue? So hard to tell in pictures. Is this then more a 'Royal Blue'?

Can anyone here confirm just what colour this car currently is. Possibly a paint code?

[KDubU]

Originally Posted by CobraAddict

In my continued die hard quest to get something as authentic as possible, yet not buy a continuation car which I question how authentic they are anyway, I have decided to try to emulate one particular car I found which I love that has pretty much everything I want in a reproduction. Yes its Guardsman Blue too !

CSX3045 is the look I think I want most and hopefully if I can source a good 427 FE side oiler and 4 speed top loader (pretty surer I've found a couple of sources in the US) and stick them in a Superformance chassis I think I will have found the right balance is new vs old for a fair and reasonable outlay. It sold for around $2.2 Mill back in 2015 at Sotheby's (Amelia Island) in March 2015 so I'm assuming that the car world considers this a pretty genuine item. At least that’s the theory now. I may yet completely change my mind but that’s where I am at now

That definitely does not look like Guardsman on my iPhone but colours do appear different on any computer, phone, etc. I agree that Guardsman is “more Smokey” as I cannot think of another way describe. Remember most colours look great on these cars and there are so many blues to choose from.

Also remember Shelby’s team played around with colours in the originals so some blues may be custom blended.

[xb-60]

I wanted to have my 289 in Viking Blue, but relying on information from the '60s as to the codes and formulations didn't sit well enough with me. I spoke with Trevor Legate about paint colours, and he told me which particular picture in one of his books was the closest to Viking Blue....and then I looked for a late-ish model car that matched the picture colour, and got the paint code from that. Took a while, but I'm happy with that colour on my car.

All part of the "journey"!

Cheers,
Glen

[CobraAddict]

Originally Posted by xb-60

I wanted to have my 289 in Viking Blue, but relying on information from the '60s as to the codes and formulations didn't sit well enough with me. I spoke with Trevor Legate about paint colours, and he told me which particular picture in one of his books was the closest to Viking Blue....and then I looked for a late-ish model car that matched the picture colour, and got the paint code from that. Took a while, but I'm happy with that colour on my car.

All part of the "journey"!

Cheers,
Glen

Ha ha the 'journey'...... more like a search for the Holy Grail, it never ends. The more I learn the more I realise I dont know

[xb-60]

Originally Posted by CobraAddict

.....The more I learn the more I realise I dont know

That means you've learnt a lot, my friend, so well done! It's an important milestone and means that the mistakes you'll make along the way will be smaller and less expensive

Cheers!
Glen

[xb-60]

Originally Posted by CobraAddict

Has anyone ever tried to simply import a US Cobra into Australia?.....

Yes, I started to go down that path back in 2011 before I decided it was too hard, and went local (PACE).

What I found was, as has been stated previously, that the car had to be '89 build or older. As I looked into it further, I found that it would also need to be converted to RHD, which was going to cause me way too many problems. The car was an ERA 427 with a 427SO, but being an ERA, it was built so that the left side of the interior was wider than the right side, and from memory, the engine was slightly offset to the right as well. I spoke at length to Peter Portante about the mods needed, and it was just way too expensive to contemplate.

Bear in mind though ....I'm in Adelaide, and the requirements are different State to State, and as you're also finding out, they can change periodically as well.

We will all stay tuned!

Cheers,
Glen

[CobraAddict]

Originally Posted by xb-60

Yes, I started to go down that path back in 2011 before I decided it was too hard, and went local (PACE).

What I found was, as has been stated previously, that the car had to be '89 build or older. As I looked into it further, I found that it would also need to be converted to RHD, which was going to cause me way too many problems. The car was an ERA 427 with a 427SO, but being an ERA, it was built so that the left side of the interior was wider than the right side, and from memory, the engine was slightly offset to the right as well. I spoke at length to Peter Portante about the mods needed, and it was just way too expensive to contemplate.

Bear in mind though ....I'm in Adelaide, and the requirements are different State to State, and as you're also finding out, they can change periodically as well.

We will all stay tuned!

Cheers,
Glen

OOOhhh yeah. I've recently downloaded my quick start guide of 99 pages called 'Interim arrangements - Guidance relating to specialist and enthusiast vehicles' produced by 'Road Vehicle Standards' under the Dept of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications of the Australian Government.

It replaced the old 'Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989' What a headf.,k

Bottom line it is very doubtful that the car will be classed as pre-89 unless it is actually a pre 89 build. Also the fact that I am not importing a car that I actually owned for 12 months while OS makes it much harder again.

Realistically I doubt very much I will be importing a car from the USA.

[CobraAddict]

Originally Posted by xb-60

That means you've learnt a lot, my friend, so well done! It's an important milestone and means that the mistakes you'll make along the way will be smaller and less expensive

Cheers!
Glen

Do I get a gold star I know I still have a long way to go yet but am enjoying the journey very much so far. Just received a book I bought a month ago now off eBay from the UK. 'Shelby Cobra, The Snake that Conquered the World' by Colin Comer. Only had a chance to skip through it atm but it does look like a great read.

Also found a new benchmark car for me to consider copying, CSX3025.... lovely