Carroll Shelby’s AC Ace-derived Cobra remains one of the most - if not the single most - important American performance cars of all time. The spearhead that launched Ford Motor Company’s Total Performance corporate racing program onto the international stage during the early 1960s, the Cobra marked a crucial first step culminating in Shelby American’s achievement of the 1965 FIA GT championship with the Cobra-derived Daytona Coupe designed by Peter Brock. The Cobra’s fast-growing tally of racing wins and Shelby’s uncanny organizational prowess also led directly to Ford Motor Company’s eventual dominance over Ferrari at Le Mans with the 1-2-3 finish scored by the Ford GT40s in 1966. While volumes have been written about Shelby and the larger-than-life drivers and crewmen who campaigned the Cobra, suffice it to say that from the Cobra’s first win – a convincing 1-2 at Riverside in January 1963, motor racing changed forever.

According to data published by the Shelby American Automobile Club, 655 small-block Cobra roadsters, derivatives, and prototypes were built from 1962 through 1965. The vast majority were the 580 examples of the 289-powered cars, after the first 75 were completed with the 260 cid Ford V-8 engine. Collectively, these small-block cars are known as “Leaf Spring Cobras” by virtue of their early, AC-style suspension layout utilizing front and rear transverse leaf springs.

This 1964 Shelby 289 Cobra, chassis CSX2234, was acquired by Neil Peart in October 2015. While deviating from the silver theme upheld by the other vehicles in his collection, the Cobra certainly exemplifies Southern California’s rich motor sports heritage. Originally finished in red over black, CSX2234 was billed by AC Cars to Shelby American Inc. on November 20, 1963, and shipped to Los Angeles on the SS Loch Gowan. According to the SAAC, it was invoiced for $5,195 on January 21, 1964, to Mark Downing Ford in Huntington Beach, California, with an unidentified original owner. While most Cobras were quite spartan when new, CSX2234 was very well equipped with features and options including aluminum rocker covers, a chrome grille guard and rear bumper guard, chrome exhaust tips, wind wings, sun visors, a heater, seat belts, radio and antenna, five chrome wheels, and a rare twin four-barrel intake setup. Interestingly, the original owner of CSX2234 picked up the car directly at Shelby American Inc. The Cobra relocated to the Eastern US and passed through several owners, with the Shelby registry history of CSX2234 noting the Cobra was still in stock condition in 1977, and that by the late 1980s it had been repainted in its original red and retained its chrome wire wheels, twin-carburetor intake system, and remained “as delivered” apart from a pair of exhaust headers that had been installed at some point.

Cobra specialist Bill Kemper purchased CSX2234 in May 1987, and later performed a sympathetic restoration, taking extreme care to preserve this early Cobra’s many telltale original characteristics and fine details. Starting as a clean 32,000-mile, the Cobra’s restoration was completed by 2004, and images on file with the Cobra document the restoration, along with written correspondence by Mr. Kemper, in which he expresses his belief that CSX2234’s twin-carbureted 289 cid engine, four-speed manual gearbox, and differential are original to the car. Choice and welcome updates include Spax adjustable gas shock absorbers, stainless steel hard brake lines, and a stainless steel dual exhaust system. Resplendent in an exterior color change in black to concours-quality over matching upholstery with competition- type seat belts, CSX2234 remains visually stunning and concours-worthy throughout. Accompanying items include a mounted spare wire wheel, roadside jack, and tool roll. Documents on hand include the Bill of Sale to Mr. Peart, an AC Cobra chassis instruction book, restoration photos, and correspondence. A legend on so many levels, the Cobra was a natural choice for Neil Peart and, quite likely, the realization of a decades-long goal. Legions of today’s collectors and enthusiasts continue to share the same emotions. As offered from The Neil Peart Collection, CSX2234 remains in fabulous condition throughout, and it will certainly continue to transcend time and space with its next highly discerning keeper.