Cobra History - Real and Replica

[wilf]

Runt - the thing about the period tyres is a good point - because they were crossplies and with limited grip, they broke away progressively and allowed a good driver to drift the car around corners with less stering effort - not something you can attempt with modern tyres that grip so hard they overwhelm the suspension's ability to behave nicely, leading to snap oversteer at the limit.

I think I would prefer the old tyres - might keep me going a tad slower......

[runt]

Hi Wilf; would be an interesting learning curve for this runt in: 'The subtle art of fast cornering'..

I am reminded of my '55 Morris Minor on crossplies in '73; (with perhaps 5% of the output of Woolfe's 427!), there is a lot to be said for drivers of average skill like myself honing their reactions on a closed track, a new year resolution will be to sort a 'Caterham Day' with some mates and try to sharpen my ..responses.

A momentary loss of grip over cats eyes in the Dax last week; nasty and as you say the Toyos do lull you into a false sense of security!

Paul.

[beachcomber]

Hi Migge,

I DID have the courtesy to respond to your query, but it dissappeared after a note that "my response was being OK'd by the moderator" or something like that.

I'm certain there was nothing contensious in my response - certainly it was ALL FACTUAL, so I guess it's just one of those things.

maybe I'll get round to responding again.

BTW - talking of "Real" ones - I owned a 289 for ONE week in 1969. I was a car sales manager at a major Ford dealership in Essex when I took the 289 in against a 2.5 Alfa Coupe [ bee - utiful car ]. My guv'nor was NOT impressed and hinted that if I wanted to keep my commission on the sale I would "trade" the Cob to myself!

I took the car up the A13 dual carriageway [ where we were situated ] in typical young car salesperson fashion - ie flat out. The road was slightly damp and on a full beans change from 2nd to 3rd. the car broke traction and did 2 full 360's [ without hitting anything. I came to a halt facing the right way with both doors having flown open with the flexing.

The pass. door continued to pop open on viscious acceleration, until after a week the novelty had worn off and I swapped the car for a short chassis E-Type. That went after I discovered that it had 130 odd mph performance [ NEVER 150mph ] with 60 mph brakes. If ONLY I'd paid more attention in those clairvoyancy classes.

Suffice it to say that there has never been any thing safe from replication in the GRP game.


beachcomber

[dolphinboy400]

beachcomber, when you get some free time you should write one of your many stories for the club magazine, as i ( as well as a few others) would love to hear them. anyhoo , heres hoping

[Migge]

Hello beachcomber,

Did not notice the replys, sorry. Yes keep telling us some tales, very intersting.

Regards
Migge

[beachcomber]

Hi Migge, Dolphinboy, etc.

Glad the reminiscences are of interest - usually when you approach bus pass age, you get sat in a corner and told to shut up!

I guess I have been very privileged that my "work" has also been my hobby and my passion. I have been around some amazing people and had the rare privilege of rubbing shoulders [ and working with ] some of automotive's "greats" of the past 5 decades. To be honest, it's still ongoing as my current [ low profile ] consultancy work is still meaning that I still get to meet automotive icons.

I don't often tell too many of my past "stories", as regretably it is always going to seem like blatant name dropping to some. Some stories will remain private until the subject of the story has passed on to that great race track in the sky.

Like the time when Carroll Shelby, Bob Bondurant and Pete Brock [ see what I mean?] got sick and tired of the high profile "celebrity" treatment they were getting at Le Mans [ 35th. Anniversary of Shelby's championship year ] and slipped away to join our little party for an evening of Pernod and story telling.
Priceless. Like the picture of Bob and Pete sucking in their bellies to have their pix taken with my Hot Pant wearing Wife!

If I get an invite I'll certainly rustle up some "stories" - most will be accompanied by contemporary photos [ most unique and unpublished ].

Regretably I haven't a clue how to post pix on the site - sorry, not of the computer age.

Beachcomber

[dolphinboy400]

well i'm allways interested in stories, especially when it involves the history of the cobra/ cobra replica. As you say it's nice to hear it from people that were actually there like yourself and your friend the original painterman.

[beachcomber]

Hey Danny,

First Painterman got in touch through this forum - and now my old buddy Keith Harvie of Performance Automotive Wholesale [ PAW ] has made contact! You should rename this forum as a "Good Ole' Boys Re-united". Keith and myself were involved in the very early days with "Americar" - Keith set it up and I managed it.

The formation of Americar came about in a roundabout way. Keith was racing the Pro-Stock Camaro "Firebrewed" at the time and I was the crew chief. We had just blown our # 1 piece and Keith decided we should go all "Aluminum" for the replacement. We ordered an aluminum 427 ci block from John Wolfe Racing and we were quoted $200 [ 1973 ] and 2 weeks delivery, giving us 1 week to build the new motor. Well long story short - the block arrived the DAY before the next meeting and the price had grown to $480 !!! Dick Turpin time.

That was NOT a good plan to piss Keith off as he had a huge wharehousing and container business to back up his "hobby". His response to that was - "let''s start our own American Speedshop business and phuk John Wolfe Racing and all who sail in her" - 2 months later Americar was born and 3,000 sq. ft of stock had been shipped over from the USA. The rest is history. BTW - Keith and PAW have been 30 years in the USA - where'd THAT go Keith?

Keith [ as previously stated ] was the man that made it possible to bring those first Arntz cars into the UK in the late 70's as Steve Arnzt was naturally reluctant to send a kit to the UK !!! Keith brokered a deal for us and then the whole lot was shipped to the UK.

When I visited Keith at the time, he was in the process of building a Mother Side Oiler Cobra with naturally all the good bits that he was selling.

I think it's fair to say that was the beginning of the UK Cobra scene [ 1978 / 9 ]

So in a big thank you to Keith for providing the wherewithall for our hobby - you should all buy your speed parts from PAW !!!!! [ or in true PC speak of the goddam 2000's - "or any other US speed shop"].

Beachcomber

[dolphinboy400]

hehe sounds like you had alot of fun in them days

[beachcomber]

Hey Danny,

yes I can really say they were the "good ole days" without resort to rose tinted specs.

Keith Harvie and myself have been doing some private catching up over the past few weeks since he contacted me, with period pix going to and from the USA.

They really generated some nostalgia, and some fond memories of some wild times.

beachcomber