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  #41 (permalink)  
Old 04-10-2003, 06:20 AM
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Hey Cal,

Growing up here in northern, NJ, my grandmother worked for Dockery Ford (I blame her for my addiction to Mustangs and Shelbys in general)....I can remember having my picture taken in the GT350 "R" Model(thought it was cool to sit in an actual race car thinking I would own one when I grew up), along with a dark green 427 Cobra (street car, no rollbar or side exhaust) that was on the showroom floor. I can also remember being taken for rides in a small block Cobra (also dark green, wire wheels, and an AM radio attached to the underside of the dashboard), as well as many Shelby convertibles (again, my grandmothers penchant for convertibles has rubbed off on me) that she would bring home as her "demo of the week"(along with assorted Mustang convertibles, all of them red).......While it shows that Dockery only sold one Cobra, I know, just based on my recollections of that time, that they had several that either they were storing, or traded off to other dealerships in the area.........Just my own fond recollections of growing up around these automobiles......

Yours In Fords,

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Last edited by mrmustang; 04-10-2003 at 06:22 AM..
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  #42 (permalink)  
Old 06-04-2003, 03:11 PM
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From: http://www.carrollshelby.com/biography.htm

The Sky Terrace Motel with its Trophy Room and Cobra Snack Bar were a fixture with enthusiasts in South Lake Tahoe, California along with his Ford dealership there in the 1960's and 1970's. Motel postcards and the dealer license plate frames are favorites of collectors.

Odd, no Cobras sold by Shelby's South Lake Tahoe Ford dealership?
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  #43 (permalink)  
Old 06-04-2003, 06:45 PM
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No CSX 2000 series cars, either
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  #44 (permalink)  
Old 06-23-2003, 10:45 PM
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I used to frequent Coventry Motors in Walnut Creek, Ca. for parts to my Austin-Healey. They had 1 or 2 CSXs in their showroom, but being a BMC Dealership, they could have been there on loan from the Hayward Ford Dealer.

Coventry Motors sponsored Allen Grant's CSX. Talked to Allen and Ole Olsen many times (Ole was Allen's wrench). One time Allen was taking a perspective customer for a demo ride in his race car, #96. They had been gone for about 10 minutes when 4 CHP cruisers pulled into the car lot and spread out and hid !! Well, 15 minutes later here comes yellow 96, pipes a blazen rumbling into the lot. When the 4 CHP cars surround #96 !! They were not about to try and chase Allen down on the 680 freeway, just wait for him at the dealers. The Cops wrote him up for 130, but said he was doing 150 + !! The prospective customer, scared poopless, jumped in his XKE and split !! There was no windscreen on the passengers side of 96, and I can say from experience, It does nothing but thrash the He!! out of ya at those speeds !!
Late in 1964, (Sept. Oct.?) I drove #96 for a lap at Laguna Seca, Allen jokingly asked what took me so long? How many laps did take? I said I only took 1, I was not about to break his ride !! Allen shook his head, Ole thanked me !!
Knowing Allen, even if I broke the track record he would have said the same thing. "What took ya so long ?"

I was told that Allen Grant now resides in or around Ohio. Does anyone know ? Sure would like to contact him, he would be a wealth of info too. E-mail me if you have heard anything about his whereabouts, Sure would appreaciate it.

Bo
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  #45 (permalink)  
Old 06-25-2003, 07:01 AM
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Thanks, Bo. That is really a good story. Incidentally, Coventry sold, perhaps, more 289 cars than any dealer in the country at around 25 cars, including CSX 2019, the first Factory Dragonsnake.

Given its standing as a BMC dealer, it makes one wonder if people who liked Brit cars were more attracted to the Cobra than people who liked American iron. Food for thought.
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  #46 (permalink)  
Old 06-25-2003, 11:57 AM
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Cal,

I think your on to something there !!
The "True" sportscar folks just did not consider the Vette as a sportscar, sport touring vehicle, maybe !
The Cobra, being bare of many amenities of American Iron, and with Brit. roots was really a sportscar, and was received as such.
What kept the Cobra out of the hands of the A-H, Trimpth, MG crowd was the price tag. Not much has changed, has it !!
Who in their right mind would buy a new convertable car that didn't even come with a Top or Radio !! Not even as an option !! It had to be that special wind-in-the-face kinda person.


Thank goodness for "Replicas" !!
(Thats a whole nother story)
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  #47 (permalink)  
Old 06-25-2003, 07:33 PM
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I agree with your analysis of why Cobras didn't sell well. Very primitive for the time and money needed to buy one.
However, a "Cobra" AM radio WAS an option on the 289's and was actually quite popular. It was a Motorola non-push button radio with a built-in speaker and was wonderful to use while you had the engine turned off, say, while you were washing the car!
On the road, its hard to hear the thing, unless you had the top up.
Yep! The cars all came with soft tops (289's and 427's) In fact the tops are the same and fit either car. I've used mine interchangeably. You build a nice little frame out of two pieces of bent rods, and then stretch the vinyl top over it and snap it in place.
Plexiglas side curtains also came with all the cars.
Hardtops were an option for big and small block cars, and not as popular, although there were atleast three different manufacturers. Fiberglass usually, with different side curtains than the soft tops. Atleast two variations on the size of the rear window, and several variations on how the top was fastened to the cars.
Hawk Cars in England tells me they have the original top molds.
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  #48 (permalink)  
Old 06-25-2003, 07:39 PM
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Thanks, Jim. I was talking with Rich Mason the other day and he would like to find a hard top for his Dragonsnake. I will relay the Hawk reference to him. Do you know the names of the three manufacturers that made them? I like the one on Hal Heimdal's CSX 2019 Dragonsnake that we have posted under that thread.
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  #49 (permalink)  
Old 06-25-2003, 10:49 PM
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Jim

I stand corrected,
I thought ? I remembered the salesman saying that tops, windows, radios etc. were not standard or factory options, only available from aftermarket suppliers, which the dealers would install for an additional charge. This was in 1963-64, there again, I could be mistaken.

I'm sure the salesman didn't say that just to try to sell what he had on the floor !! Nah,



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  #50 (permalink)  
Old 06-26-2003, 10:09 AM
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Cal, Metal, The top manufacturers listed on my "Shelby
American, Inc. Basic Part Number Index", dated 4/16/65, lists six different hardtops you could buy. The only manufacturers listed are "Berry" and AC. the tops offered were:
Top, Landeau White Hard Top Cobra Berry $229
Top, Landeau Balck Hard Top COBRA Berry $229
Top, Cobra Hard Top (to be Painted) Berry $229
Top, Cobra Hard Top A/C A/C $229
Top. Textures Black Hard Top Berry $229
Top, Textures White Hardtop COBRA Berry $229

The sales Sheet for 289 Cobras listed the "Custom AM Radio and Antenna" for $58.50
The "Detachable Hardtop" was listed for $229
The "Deluxe Side Curtains" were $99 ( I assume these were for the hardtop)
The hardtop and side curtains were not on the early brochures but were added between the 2-64 and 3-64 versions of the sales sheet.
I don't have any literature that itemizes the costs for the optional equipment for the 427's.
I have never personally seen a white hardtop for a Cobra. Has anyone?
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  #51 (permalink)  
Old 06-26-2003, 12:04 PM
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Thanks, Jim. I will follow up on the Hawk suggestion. If you hear of any hard top for sale, please let me know. Thanks again.
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  #52 (permalink)  
Old 06-27-2003, 02:03 PM
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Default Why, yes..

..I HAVE seen a white hardtop. CSX 2428 had one when purchased in 1985. It was the textured finish top.

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  #53 (permalink)  
Old 06-27-2003, 06:46 PM
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Rick, Thanks very much for that information. Is Warren Greatbatch still the owner of the car? I would like very much to photograph that car and the top if possible for my book. Jim
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  #54 (permalink)  
Old 06-30-2003, 09:40 PM
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Can you tell us more about your book please Jim ?
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  #55 (permalink)  
Old 07-06-2003, 09:07 AM
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Default Cal,

last I knew he still had the car, I will call him and find out. Warren and his family lived across the street from me in my younger days. His father, Wilson Greatbatch is the inventor of the implantable cardiac pacemaker. I have repurchased the house I lived in then but Warren has moved several times since.

The car Warren has (CSX 2428) came from the Rochester, NY area circa 1985 and was owned by Dick Steamer at the time. Dick also had a 427 car. As I recall he said the 289 came from Alabama or Georgia originally. The guy who bought it from Dick had me look the car over before he bought it and I did a fair amount of owrk on it for the owner and then for Warren.

From the small world dept.-In 1985 Parade magazine called and wanted to road test an AC MK IV for a story they were doing on "exotic cars" The road tester would be P. J. O'Rourke, humorist and sometimes Car and Driver writer. I picked P.J. up and brought him to the dealership to take the car, Warren's 289 was in the shop at time and he stopped to show it to an old friend of his that was in town. P.J. took one look at Warrens friend and RAN to him, it was one of his college room mates! people, you can't make this stuff up!

Also "Berry" the hardtop manufacturer was "Berry Plasti-Glass" a well know fiberglass shop in So-Cal. They did other work for Shelby as well as many other auto related projects.
Rick
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  #56 (permalink)  
Old 07-07-2003, 04:53 AM
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A local guy, interested in building a Trans Am Boss 302 in 1969, had a 427 street model Cobra (had a 427 installed when the 428 went south) he was attempting to sell for the funds. At the time he felt great about getting $5500 for it, he's still kicking himself in the a$$. Now that cars come with every trinket under the sun, a bare bones car is appreciated more, the same thing that worked against it is now an attraction.
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Old 07-07-2003, 05:22 AM
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Quote:
Originally posted by BO DUTCH


Jim

I stand corrected,
I thought ? I remembered the salesman saying that tops, windows, radios etc. were not standard or factory options, only available from aftermarket suppliers, which the dealers would install for an additional charge. This was in 1963-64, there again, I could be mistaken.

I'm sure the salesman didn't say that just to try to sell what he had on the floor !! Nah,



Bo
Bo, you hit it on the head! The sales guy didn't want to order another car when he had one already in stock. The same thing happens today. A co-worker of mine was just looking at a car and asked the sales guy why he had none with heated cloth seats....only ones with leather heated. These are all '03's by the way. The sales guy said you won't find one because they catch on fire. They do indeed have heated cloth...just not in stock at that particular dealer.
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