Description
This car is Lot 145 to be auctioned by Bonhams|Cars at the Goodwood Festival of Speed Sale on 11 July, please see the Bonhams website for full details.
Public Viewing:
Available Thursday 10 July from 09:00 until 17:00 and Friday 11 July from 09:00 until 17:00, at The Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Lot 145
1998 AC Cobra 427 MkIII Roadster with Hardtop
Registration no. WOO 4D
Chassis no. COB4007
Official AC Cars continuation model
Raced with success by the first owner
Present (third) owner since 2020
Restored by Redline Engineering
Comprehensive history file of bills and other documents
Rightly regarded as one of the all-time great classic sports cars, the muscular, fire-breathing Cobra succeeded in capturing the hearts of enthusiasts like few of its contemporaries. Only 1, 000-or-so Cobras of all types were built between 1962 and 1967, but such was the model's enduring popularity that production was resumed in 1982 under the auspices of Brooklands-based Autokraft.
Convinced that a market existed for an inexpensive sports car combining European chassis engineering and American V8 power, Le Mans-winning Texan racing driver Carroll Shelby concocted an unlikely alliance between AC Cars and the Ford Motor Company. The former's Ace provided the simple twin-tube chassis frame - designed by John Tojeiro - into which was persuaded one of Ford's lightweight, small-block V8s. To cope with the projected power increase, the Ace chassis was strengthened with heavier gauge tubing and supplied fitted with four-wheel disc brakes. Weighing a mere 1. 5cwt more than a Bristol-engined Ace, yet endowed with double the power and torque, the Cobra turned in a breathtaking performance, racing to 60mph in 4. 4 seconds and reaching the 'ton' in under 12, exceptional figures by early 1960s standards and none too shabby today.
The 260ci (4. 2-litre) prototype first ran in January 1962, with production commencing later that year. Exclusively for the USA initially, Cobras - minus engines - were sent from England to be finished off by Shelby in California, and it was not until late in 1963 that AC Cars in Thames Ditton got around to building the first fully finished cars to European specification.
After 75 Cobras had been built with the 260ci engine, the more powerful 289ci (4. 7-litre) unit was standardised in 1963. Rack-and-pinion steering was the major MkII up-date; then in 1965 a new, stronger, coil-suspended MkIII chassis was introduced to accommodate Ford's 427ci (7. 0-litre) V8, an engine that in race trim was capable of producing well in excess of 400bhp. Wider bodywork, extended wheelarch flares and a bigger radiator intake combined to create the definitive - and much copied - Cobra MkIII look.
But for Brian Angliss, the Cobra story would have ended in 1967. The Autokraft boss had built up a business restoring Cobras and supplying parts, and in the early 1980s acquired the rights to the AC Cars name plus a quantity of jigs and tooling from the old Thames Ditton factory.
In the late 1990s AC Cars revived the legendary Mklll model with a limited run of 'continuation' cars built on the original 1960s tooling. These continuations featured hand-formed aluminium bodies, 1966-specification 427ci (7. 0-litre) Ford side-oiler V8 engines, and top-loader gearboxes. The exceptional car we offer here is believed to be number '7' of the series and the last built specifically for racing. Its build is recorded in the factory ledger.
Its first owner purchased the car as a rolling chassis complete with body and 427 engine and would own it for 17 years, during which period he competed with it with considerable success. Highlights include the Cloth Cap pre-'66 European Historic Sports Car Challenge where it finished 2nd in class; the AMOC Anglo-American Thoroughbred Challenge Race (3rd in class) and the Brighton Speed Trials on numerous occasions. It was also accepted to race in the Thundersports HSCC Classic and HRDC Dunlop Allstars series.
It is understood that it became AC's official promotional car in 2016 and was invited to Buckingham Palace in celebration of the late HM The Queen's 90th birthday. It has also featured in well known publications such as Octane, Classic Cars and Top Gear magazine, where it was driven by Richard Hammond.
In 2019, the car was acquired by the second owner, a very well known and respected chef, and for the next four years was maintained by Cobra specialists Redline Engineering, who handled its sale to the present owner in 2020. Redline was entrusted with the car's restoration, which included fabricating the missing hard top and refreshing the HTP competition papers.
Redline's sympathetic ground-upwards restoration included overhauling the suspension and drive train; newly bushing the Spax dampers and anti-roll bars; and complete rebuilds of the engine and gearbox including linkage. Unique to the first owner's racing roots, the paint colour was painstakingly matched to perfection. Improvements included ceramic exhaust headers; an upgraded radiator and cooling fan; new Halibrand wheels; 4-point harnesses; and PPF to the lower sills and leading edge of the rear wheelarches. The project took 18 months to complete and cost circa £30, 000. Redline's related bills, correspondence and detailed specification sheet are on file.
The restoration is fully documented in a leather-bound folder containing correspondence between the first owner and AC Cars: bill of sale of the rolling chassis; an owner's handbook; old invoices; race results; past and current registration documents; MoT certificates; emails from race series organisers; FIA HTP papers valid until 2030; old photographs of the Cobra competing on track; service invoices from previous ownerships; and supporting invoices and correspondence relating to Redline's restoration.
All lots are sold 'as is/ where is' and Bidders must satisfy themselves as to the provenance, condition, age, completeness and originality prior to bidding. Visit the Bonhams|Cars website for all pertinent auction information.
