1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Is Our Bring a Trailer Auction Pick of the Day

1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Is Our Bring a Trailer Auction Pick of the Day

• With a Holman Moody 427-cubic-inch V-8 and a four-speed manual transmission, this Cobra is the apex of American 1960s performance machinery.

• Cobra production wound down in December 1966, so this is one of the last of a breed.

• The 427s were better sorted out than the narrow-body cars, though both are highly desirable. This auction on Bring a Trailer will be one to watch for any Cobra fan. It ends on November 14.

There’s an old joke that goes, Q: How do you know if a Cobra is real or a replica? A: It’s a replica. One of the most beloved 1960s racing machines is also one of the most copied, and there’s nothing wrong with that. A well-set-up Cobra replica is just the thing for blowing out the fall cobwebs with some V-8 thunder. But here comes the real deal.

1966 shelby cobra 427 bat

Bring a Trailer

Up for auction this week at Bring a Trailer—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos—is a genuine 1966 Cobra 427 Mk III. Yep, that’s 427, as in cubic inches of displacement, some seven liters of Ford side-oiler muscle in a chassis that weighs just over 2500 pounds. As a friend of mine is fond of saying, that is the Big Stove option.

1966 shelby cobra 427 bat

Bring a Trailer

With 10 days to go, bidding sits at a very satisfying $950,000. But grab your popcorn, folks, because this is one of those auctions where the dollar value quickly exceeds “I could buy a house for that kind of money” and sky-rockets into “This, or a P-51 Mustang and a hangar to put it in?”

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When Car and Driver road-tested the Cobra 427 in 1965, driving impressions included noting the more refined handling. Early Cobras were a handful and a half. “Everyone at Shelby is more than candid about admitting that the handling of the original Cobra was considerably less than optimum.” With a fully independent suspension, the Cobra 427 got that power to the road.

1966 shelby cobra 427 bat

Bring a Trailer

And what power it was. Clocked through the quarter-mile in just 12.2 seconds, this broad-shouldered machine was unrivaled by anything other than the big-block Corvettes, and perhaps not even them. The Cobra might have been a more resolved product, but it was still punchy and raucous. There’s a reason so many companies will sell you a photocopy of this icon of 1960s performance.

1966 shelby cobra 427 bat

Bring a Trailer

The example for auction at Bring a Trailer is particularly tasty. Chassis number 3283, it left Shelby American with a tamer 428-cubic-inch V-8 but was almost immediately treated to performance upgrades. Ford’s official race-car contractor, Holman Moody, was tapped for a built 427-cubic-inch engine, fitted with dual four-barrel carburetors. With the exhaust routed out the back, rather than side-exit, the driver can more properly hear the induction roar of fuel and air being sacrificed on the altar of speed.

1966 shelby cobra 427 bat

Bring a Trailer

It was returned to its original factory shade of dark green in 2013, and there’s a brutish elegance to this Cobra. The subtlety evaporates, of course, the moment you start up that big V-8, but the green-on-black color treatment pays homage to the original British ACs from which Cobras were born.

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For the lucky auction winner with the deepest of pockets, this car will provide an unmatched driving experience. And, should you be out and about on a sunny morning, and this Cobra rumbles past you, maybe you’ll recognize it for what it is. Because statistics say that any Cobra you spot is a replica. But the real ones are out there too.

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