Original Cobra Prototype (CSX2000) being assembled at Dean Moon's shop, Venice CA - Feb 1962 (And, other photos)
The story of how the prototype Cobra CSX 2000 came to be had been retold many times by Carroll Shelby through the Ford Motor Company, with several different and enhanced versions printed for the sake of publicity. Essentially, CSX 2000 was not much more than just a standard late production AC Ace. It still had an antiquated front and rear transverse leaf spring suspension that had been based on an obsolete 1940s Fiat production car, which had its roots dating back to the horse-drawn buggy and wagon era of the 1800s. That Ace design had only been slightly modified by AC Cars to receive one of the new Ford thin-wall 221 cubic inch Windsor-family series engines, which was still evolving at Ford in 1961.
Aside from slightly thicker main chassis tubes and modified engine mounts, few changes were initially made by AC Cars to the prototype Cobra chassis, which would hopefully accommodate additional V8 horsepower. By late 1961 AC Cars had installed one of the new Ford 221 cubic inch engines in CSX 2000 and tested the car at the Motor Industry Research Association (MIRA) track in central England. After many test laps and a superficial evaluation, minimal modifications were deemed necessary with the car’s suspension components. The A-arms, front spindles, hubs and leaf springs were slightly modified. Throughout leaf spring Cobra production additional modifications by AC Cars and Shelby American Inc. would be an ongoing exercise until leaf spring Cobra production ceased in 1964.
When CSX 2000 arrived in the United States by airfreight in February 1962 without an engine, transmission or paint, the name Cobra had yet to be created and the prototype car was simply christened “Shelby.” That name was hand painted in script letters on the car’s nose and trunk lid after the Ace badges had been removed. The colorful story of the name Cobra coming to Carroll Shelby in a dream was also concocted by Shelby for the sake of publicity. Not until several months later in June-July when the first two production Mark I Cobras (CSX 2001 and CSX 2002) were being built did the name begin to appear on Cobra badging.
Even though CSX 2000 was the prototype Cobra and technically the first Mark I built, it was assembled with many components that would not be found on the 125 production Mark I cars that would follow. CSX 2000’s visually different components consisted of inboard rear brakes, squared-off Ace seats, cast (non-tubular) hood and trunk hinges, Ace dash, stubby Ace bumper overriders, fuel filler location on the left rear fender and a longer Ace-style trunk lid.
When CSX 2000 had arrived, the aluminum body had been left unpainted and was first brightened and polished with steel wool. In preparation for the 1962 International Automobile Show held at the New York Coliseum on April 21-29, CSX 2000 received its first paint job in a fluorescent yellow color. Exaggerations over the years have claimed that CSX 2000 had been repainted numerous times in the mid-months of 1962 with the hope of convincing auto magazine staff reviewers that Cobras were already in full production. That is a good story, but the only color reported to be showing through CSX 2000’s present cracked (medium-dark metallic blue) paint is the original fluorescent yellow.
In preparation for CSX 2000’s first paint job in early spring 1962, the hand lettered “Shelby” had been sanded off. The car was then displayed at the New York Auto Show in yellow paint without a name attached, although the signage for that Ford display did identify the car as “The SHELBY AC-Cobra”. Shelby was not yet licensed as an automobile manufacturer and CSX 2000 was registered with the state of California Department of Motor Vehicles with the 1956 issued series black letters and numbers on yellow license plates XJJ 292.
Carroll Shelby had retained ownership of that prototype Cobra since its completion in February 1962. Years after Shelby’s passing in 2012, CSX 2000 was consigned by the Carroll Hall Shelby Trust to RM Sotheby’s auctioneers for their August 19-20, 2016 sale at the Portola Hotel in downtown Monterey, California during car week on the Monterey Peninsula. CSX 2000 was sold to Boulder, Colorado resident Greg Miller for $13,750,000 (with commission). CSX 2000 has since been displayed at the Shelby American Collection museum at 5020 Chaparral Court in Boulder.