August 22, 2025
This piece is somewhat long and if you’re not into automobiles, you would be forgiven for moving on and not reading it. If you’re afflicted with the Auto Affliction, you’ll enjoy it.
Stupid Fast
This is a 1965 Shelby Cobra 427R replica, built by Backdraft Racing in 2007 and manufactured as a racing car for the head honcho of one of NASCAR’s racing teams. It is a street legal racing machine.
An original would sell for $10M-$15M. They retailed in 1959 for $7,500.
As one of my former partners said, “That thing is stupid fast.” It only weighs 2,400 pounds with a Roush turbo charged V8. Top speed more than I’ll ever see.
But I also think it is stupid beautiful.
If you can’t get enough of this stuff, at the end of this piece is a link to more pics and a video plus the history of this individual vehicle pictured above.
It arrived on the flatbed to our home in Western North Carolina this week.
We’re going to talk about what a car can mean, and more, give you a quick understanding of how you can consider purchasing your own classic car. Kind of open the gates so you can see how it is done. Get you started.
First advice in buying a classic car is to find your classic car people. In my case, it’s Auto-barn in Concord, NC. 80,000 square feet of wonderful vehicles sold on consignment. Go to www.autobarnclassiccars.com and click on the inventory tab to see what a classic car dealer looks like. You want a dealer with size because that indicates relationships in the classic car community and most probably a dealer who will work with you and stand by their promises.
Buying directly from individuals is fraught with problems, I don’t advise it.
You’ll need both a mechanic and a body shop. Since the Silver Bullet sits on a BMW chassis and Roush is a national brand in engines, service is easier than you’d think. You don’t want to buy an obscure brand where parts are a challenge, and no one can fix it unless you load it on a trailer and send it off.
And then, you wander the show room which in this case houses dozens of cars.
My Caption: OMG!
Now to be sure, not everyone is a car lover and not every car lover is a classic car lover. It is an addiction.
You can think of the car you buy as a temporary purchase. It is highly probable in two years I’ll be trading this for something else. I paid $80K, a bit less than a new mid-sized Mercedes…maybe less than you’d think. I trade in two years and get $70K for it (but maybe more if the price rises, which happens). So, I got to drive it for $400/month, roughly. Less than the payment on a new Lexus or similar.
OK, that can get you started. More affordable and certainly easier to get involved than you might have thought.
So why this car, why does it resonate for me?
Carroll Shelby came from a small hard scrabble town in Texas and was a chicken farmer. He lost his flock in an avian pandemic and decided to try a childhood love…driving cars. He was a tremendous success (won at LeMans), but a bad heart forced him off the track and into the shop to build and design cars.
Ford v Ferrari is a great movie and super fun. It’s all there.
He noticed the Europeans (Ferrari and others) had wonderful lightweight chassis, into which they put, typically, a four-cylinder engine, what with petrol being very expensive. He took the chassis and stuffed an American V8 engine into it and thus was born the Shelby Cobra. There is nothing in automotive product that roars and gurgles quite like a Cobra. Widely recognized as the iconic American sports car. And his relationship with Ford and later Chrysler cemented him as perhaps the greatest American designer ever.
I love the Rags To Riches story of Carroll Shelby. He never gave up, he never gave in, he pressed on to greatness. He may have been despondent at his disappointments (married seven times), but he never lost heart. He lived with passion and drive.
He is an American story and the freedom this country gave him, the freedom to succeed and to fail, is wonderful to contemplate. I love my country and its people and while I own foreign cars, that is not where my heart resides. It resides here.
Of course, I love the power and speed of the car. Good story:
Hagarty is the name in insuring classic automobiles. I applied and then an interview with the underwriter. I’m 76, that’s hanging over this conversation and this one is mostly verbatim:
Albert: Beautiful car, we appreciate you thinking of us.
Me: Grateful to have you. Yes, beautiful.
A: So, do you think you’ll be comfortable in this car?
Look, we know that ‘comfortable’ is code for “Hey grandpa? Seriously?”
Me: Totally comfortable! (…also irritated…)
A: Have you ever driven this car before?
Me: (…now in a slow burn…) No. I have not driven this car before.
A: (…pause). Oh. (a longer pause) Okay, have you ever owned a fast sports car? Two-seater V8 or whatever?
Me: (…Albert, you asked for it) Well, sure.
A: What was that.
Me: Well, the MG Midget. Small but peppy!
A: I see. (pauses…) Well, not quite the same, is it. That it?
Me: Oh, well, my Maserati Spyder, now that was lightning.
A: So…
Me: (Now on a roll…) And then my red Corvette with the 3…
A: OK. Got it.
Me: Then I rented the Raising Canes stock car from Roger Penske…
A: We’re good.
Me: And ran it up to 160 at Daytona a few months ago.
A: OK. OK. OK. Got the idea.
Me: I got the certificate right here. I’m looking at it. If you have a fax…
A: THAT WON’T BE NECESSARY. WE’RE FINE.
Me: But no, Albert, I’ve never driven this particular car before.
So you know, I bought the policy, they are very good.
Anyway, I’ve promised Michael that I won’t hurt myself in it. She stared hard at me. “Promise!” I said with right hand in the air. When you drive at high speeds you develop a caution and respect for speed. Because you know the danger is all around and you focus. I mean intently.
Danger is mostly in reaction time, and you slow down enough to maintain that. As I’ve said before, at age 85 I’ll be hitting 40 in the straightaways.
But on the street, no racing stuff. I know the difference between Daytona and the I-95. I’m not going to test the car driving to Publix. I’ll get some track time, run the car on the track.
We have the most wonderful winding roads here in the mountains, but we also have endemic herds of deer and they cross roads around blind curves and you just can’t take that chance.
I take solace in the fact that my love of cars has been a lifelong passion, so it’s not a late life crisis men can go through. I am thrilled and elated to be part of the Cobra story, it makes me really happy. It resonates, in many ways for me.
So……..
Make memories, not regrets.
Vroom vroom vroom.
Complete set of pics if interested…
https://www.autobarnclassiccars.com/vehicles/1931/2007-shelby-cobra
TK 4062 2007 1965 Shelby Cobra Roush 427R Turbo V8
From the dealer:
“Backdraft Racing is a premier manufacturer of classic Cobra replicars. Based in Boynton Beach, FL, BDR produces various Cobra kits and are very highly respected in the business. This beautiful 1-owner 1965 Shelby Backdraft Cobra is a prime example of what a replicar should be. The BDR Roadster is a serious Cobra that is built to race. That said, this particular Cobra has never been on a track.
The BDR Cobra Roadster was originally built as a show car for the BDR sales team and was purchased as a rolling chassis by our owner in 2007. This gentleman, a valued leader of one of NASCAR’s best race teams, completed the build – with a little help from his NASCAR friends, and his son.
The SC-style body was professionally finished in Titanium Silver w/Indigo strips, and it is in outstanding condition. Accents include stainless side-pipes, clear window wings and Shelby-style alloy wheels that are true ‘knockoffs’ wrapped in Goodyear Eagle performance radials. The high-grade vinyl interior looks as good as the day it was installed. A full complement of VDO gauges is perfectly positioned in the functional dash, there is a handsome wooden wheel, and each bucket seat is equipped with lap/shoulder harness along with dual roll bars. One of the best features of this Cobra Roadster is a 2-1/2” lengthened foot box to accept tall drivers.
Horsepower is furnished by a built 427R-532 polished Windsor from the shop of the owner’s friend, ‘The Cat in the Hat’ Jack Roush. The engine was dyno-ed by Roush Industries at 469bhp/481lb/ft. The intake mounts a Holley 670cfm double-pumper and the rumble from the side-pipe leaves no mistake – this Roush motor is all business. It is backed by a Tremec TKO-600 5-speed manual gearbox w/HD clutch and pressure plate. The chassis is equipped with fully independent suspension that utilizes BMW 3-Series components with adjustable coil-over shocks in the front and adjustable coil springs in the rear. Slow-down is provided by power-assisted 4-wheel disc brakes. The owner/builder has taken exceptional care of this handsome Cobra and is now ready to pass it on to the next caretaker.”
Thoughts, questions, or reflections? I’d love to hear them. You can reach me anytime at anthony@workingprofit.com
