Welcome to Our Garage
Daytona Coupe, 289 and 427 Cobras
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427 Cobra CSX3193 -
Enjoying the car
After the paint and general freshening up was completed, we felt better about taking the car out more frequently. One of our first outings in the newly repainted car was to a local Shelby Club BBQ. The guest of honor was Carroll himself. The photo below with 3193 in the background was when we were all much younger.
CSX3193 was a participant in three tours through northern California with several other Cobras. The original trips were called "Wind in the Face" by the organizers for obvious reasons. Four days of spirited driving, small general aviation airport stops for fuel, some of the most gorgeous scenery in the world, and 9 original cobras. What more could a long time Cobra nut want. The group photo below was taken in Yosemite Valley. CSX3193 is at the far right of the photo and for some of you eagle eyed Cobra history types, Dick Smith's original 427 is third from the left (the red car with the non-stock bumper). Dick's car carries the number 198 in the track event "meatballs" signifying the top speed record that he set at Daytona of 198 MPH in this car.
Photo opportunities on these trips abounded whether spirited driving or simply parked at an historic site to hang out until dinner.
Gas anybody. As noted, many of the cars needed "good" gas (Dick Smith's car in particular) so stopping at the local general aviation airport for a splash of aviation gas seemed logical.
At this point I will digress to show the problem that occurred on one of our trips. Shortly after leaving for the days drive, 3193 suddenly developed a clattering in the engine; not good. We were on a small county road several miles from any town that would have any hope of a shop, let alone one that new about Cobras. Pulling over to the side of the road, the problem was quickly diagnosed as a broken valve spring. Making a long story short, directly across the road were two men working on a home and they offered that they had a friend that knew something about Fords. Witihin 20 minutes, the friend showed up with a tilt-bed truck. We loaded the car and within a few minutes were his home shop. The guy was the spitting image of Lee Marvin. Not only did he know Fords, he had a replacement valve spring and pushrod that fit our car. Unbelievable; 90% of the Ford dealerships wouldn't have had the parts in stock to repair 3193. After thanking "Lee" (and leaving a little something for his wallet), we headed off in search of the rest of the group and dinner with a story that few would believe.
ADD PHOTO
At this point, I will jump to another event, an event that solidified the need for a Daytona Coupe. The photo below show 3193 sandwiched between two original Daytonas at Shelby Club event at Sears Point Raceway north of San Francisco. Shortly after this photo, I helped move one of the Daytonas to the other side of the track for loading back on the transporter. Although I had my camera, I was so focused on not doing something stupid to this historical car, that I didn't even get a picture of this once in a lifetime opportunity.
With very few exceptions, CSX3193 has been kept as I purchased it in 1975. The few changes were to the headers (the sidepipes were replaced with original Shelby style pipes), the original nonfunctional hood scoop has been removed, the original sunburst wheels have been replaced with the FIA cobra style wheels and the original 2 - 4 barrel carb setup has been replaced with a single 750 CFM Holley. Internally, the engine compression ratio was reduced and the overly aggressive cam shaft was replaced with one more suitable for street driving. Although 3193 isn't a show car it still looks good in the correct light.
A few quick shots of the engine compartment.
One of our more recent outings to a low key car show held at the Blackhawk Auto Museum.
Many years have gone by since we first purchased CSX3193, but it is now a part of the family and hopefully will remain so for many more years.