Estimate:
$225,000 - $275,000

• Aluminum body hand-formed in England; finished by Shelby in Las Vegas
• 452-cu. in Shelby aluminum FE V-8; five-speed Tremec manual transmission
• Glove box signed by Carroll Shelby
• Odometer displays fewer than 150 miles
• Among the finest of the Shelby Cobra continuation cars

Please note that this car is titled as a 2010 under California State assigned vin CA972021.

In recent years, storied marques—Aston Martin, Bentley, and Jaguar among them—have begun putting exhaustively researched, carefully crafted re-creations of some of their most notable vintage offerings back into limited production. Yet when it comes to the continuation car phenomenon, it should come as no surprise that performance pioneer (and astute businessman) Carroll Shelby was once again far ahead of the pack: He began licensing versions of his Anglo-American hot rod, the Shelby Cobra, decades ago.

That is not to say that all Cobras are created equal, and cars like this 1965 Shelby 427 S/C Cobra 1000 series, chassis number CSX 1017, are a cut above the rest.

Conceived by Carroll Shelby around the dawn of the new millennium, the CSX 1000 series was intended to offer the highest quality continuation Cobra available—and rather than the bulk of Cobras on the market, which were built and offered by licensed third party manufacturers, each 1000 series car would be finished in-house at Shelby’s Las Vegas facility.

While the bulk of continuation Cobras are bodied in fiberglass, all CSX 1000 cars received bodies painstakingly hand-formed in aluminum. Just like the very first 1962 Shelby Cobra, which was based on the British-built AC Ace, these high-quality bodies were sourced from England—another important point of continuity with the originals.

Fittingly, power comes from a high-performance 452-cubic inch Shelby aluminum FE V-8, here paired with a five-speed Tremec manual transmission. A period-appropriate “turkey pan” carburetor cold air intake box sits atop the motor. Exhaust exists through silver ceramic-coated side pipes, and 15-inch Shelby pin drive wheels wrapped in Goodyear Billboard tires are tucked underneath the 427 S/C Cobra’s appropriately flared fender arches.

Creature comforts are obviously secondary on a car like the Cobra, but the interior includes leather seats, a carpeted transmission tunnel and map pockets. The highlight here is the glovebox door: Signed by Carroll Shelby, who passed away in 2012, it is a wonderful finishing touch for an already appealing car. Further enhancing its draw, CSX 1017’s odometer displays fewer than 150 miles.

Completed in 2010, CSX 1017 is an excellent low-mileage example of what is arguably the pinnacle of continuation Cobra production. This 1965 Shelby 427 S/C Cobra ‘1000 Series’ is offered with a car cover and a statement of origin certificate from Shelby Automobiles, Inc. To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/0520.