Cobra dash gauges

[Dan Case]

Why would any of the interested parties make the many hundreds of changes in designs of parts and assemblies in Cobras over so few cars? Good question. Besides the relatively small number of changes documented in Technical Service Bulletins sent to dealerships, advertisements, and letters sent around among the players, exact reasons will probably never be known down to why was part X chosen instead of part Y in most cases. (I do not study 427 Cobras like I have Cobras since circa 1971 so I will not comment about them. If you know much about any of the street or race Mustang based cars that went through “Shelby”, you will likely know that each series of cars had their own evolutions of how they were constructed over time spans shorter than Cobra production. The constant for all the “Shelby” car series was the implementation of changes one at a time or in groups.)

I will l key off your “early” and “late” characterizations. It was not that simple. It was almost that simple while only American market cars were being produced, CSX and CS prefix chassis numbers under “Shelby” contract runs. Once the European market COX/COB leaf spring cars went into production electrical system and other details diverged as COX/COB cars were being produced concurrently with the CSX contract cars. If one gets lost trying to sort out the evolution of CSX chassis, then deeper confusion is likely to develop if COX/COB car details get mixed in. Below is sort of a simplified electrical system outline for Cobras. (My notes on CSX2201-CSX2589 electrical components are about 50 pages long.)

A.C. Cars installed all the wiring and instrumentation in street cars except for any wiring changes made in the USA as required for American market cars. Example: Production CSX2070-CSX2200 cars were converted to Ford generator based charging systems including a Ford voltage regulator. At or by CSX2117 white body AUTOLITE® batteries took the place of the Lucas® battery used before that, which required battery cable adaptation.

CSX2001-CSX2200 and COX/COB6001-6062 chassis had English electrical systems, switch gear, and Smiths instruments. Except CSX2008 and CSX2126. CSX2008 had its electrical system redone by Ford including the inclusion of a prototype Ford alternator with tachometer drive to work with the then standard gear box, cable, and mechanical Smiths tachometer. CSX2126, completed before CSX2080, was the prototype car for the Ford cooling system McCord® made radiator and expansion tank, Ford wire looms, Ford switches for most applications, Stewart-Warner instruments, Ford windscreen washer fluid system, 1963½ 427 Galaxie 40 amp alternator, Ford voltage regulator for an alternator, and A.C. Cars alternator mounting system, and Carter® 3623S fuel pump. (CSX2126 was the first car with LHD rack and pinion steering and associated front suspension and brakes. CS 2030 was the first RHD drive Cobra as a prototype and the first car with rack and pinion steering.)

CSX2201-CSX2589 Ford wire looms, most of the switch gear was Ford, and Stewart-Warner instruments.