BOLD RIDE
Simply put, the Shelby Daytona is a legend. Fast on the track and achingly gorgeous to look at, the Cobra Daytona Coupe was designed by Carroll Shelby with the aim of toppling the European sportscar elites on the world stage…namely Ferrari. In 1965 it did exactly that, and earned Shelby an FIA World Championship.
Shelby American has announced a 50 car limited production run for the Daytona’s anniversary, offering both historically correct aluminum-bodied coupes and slightly modernized fiberglass coupes. Here’s the nitty gritty. They aren’t cheap.
The fiberglass-bodied coupes will command $180,000 while the aluminum-bodied coupes require a sizable $350,000. That may sound like a chunk of change, but when compared to the six original coupes ever built, these new 50th Anniversary models are about seven million dollars cheaper…and just as gorgeous.
Shelby took measurements of the stunning original cars and used their blueprints to create the limited edition second run. Choose an aluminum car and you’ll find that it carries a historically correct leaf-sprung suspension and original-design tube chassis, among other period correct touches. The fiberglass bodies meld old-school and new a bit more, and adopt coilover suspensions, Stewart Warner gauges, a roll bar, as well as power steering, power windows, power locks, and air-conditioning.
If you do buy one, you will have to acquire your own engine too. Each of the 50 Shelby Daytona coupes (serial numbers CSX9950–CSX9999) will come as a rolling chassis, with its aluminum block 289 cu. in. V8 available separately. Or if you’re really tempted, a larger block may fit under that hood as well…
Want to see one in person? The 2015 Daytona will make its first US public debut at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on August 12. Given the rich history behind the Shelby Daytona, these rarified coupes ought to find new homes pretty quickly.
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