AC (Shelby) Cobra - 1962-67; Marks I, II, III; 260, 289, 427

Read the title of the book carefully. It thoughtfully combines the names of AC Cars of Thames Ditton, down the river west from the centre of London, and Carroll Shelby, the wily Texan 'snake charmer', garage owner and ex-racing driver, with the name of 'Cobra’: the time-honoured story is that the Cobra was simply the sports car that went after Ferrari in an attempt to topple it from its throne of 'king of the race track’; that Carroll Shelby took a traditional, in some ways even conservative, British sports car and conquered the world, and he persuaded the speed-hungry driver that he wanted brute force and the howl of a V8 Ford instead of the expensive zip of a sophisticated VI2 from Italy. Wilson McComb's story sorts out fact from fiction unlike any book before it. Starting with John Tojerio and his chassis designs, the sports Cooper JOY 500, Tojerio Bristol LOY 500, and of course the AC Ace which was the back bone of the Cobra project, McComb covers the car from 1962-67 Marks I,II,III; 260, 289,427 as well as the Daytona Coupe. For the first time he tells the true story, ends the fabrication and refutes the above. Also he tells the 'English' end of things, consulting throughout with recognised men in-the-know from the USA. Here is a unique Cobra story well illustrated with production photographs and cars in competition, and adding hard fact, some opinion and many new comments about a car which is close to the top of any car enthusiast poll as to the world's most desirable sports car.