Being fortunate to own one original Cobra and two replica Cobras over the years, I wanted to share some of the documentation that I've prepared during this time with other Cobra enthusiasts. For those that want a more through understanding of the Cobra construction details or for those who just want some very interesting bedtime reading, I have prepared several "drawing packages" for each of the three basic Cobra styles; Daytona Coupe, 289 Roadster and 427 Roadster. To date, detailed CAD drawings have been developed for almost 400 individual parts and assemblies.
Keep in mind that this is a hobby, or perhaps more appropriately, a passion for me. This information was originally developed as a means of documenting my cars for my personal reference. These drawings are offered to others for general reference and entertainment purposes with the hope that at the very least it provides documentation previously unavailable for these classic cars
If you are inclined to recreate a Cobra as I did, contact me by email and we can discuss how I can best assist your project. Contact us at: chuckcobra@aol.com
The following sections briefly describe the documents that are presently available and my expectations on how they are used. At the bottom of each description is a link to more details for each of the drawing packages. A Cover Sheet and an Index and Notes drawing for each of the packages is included. The Cover Sheet is self-explanatory. The Index and Notes drawing provides a list of the drawings presently included and general notes about each of the project packages. Clicking on the Index and Notes drawing will link to a higher resolution PDF file.
The drawings have been developed in AutoCAD and are fully dimensioned and drawn to scale. They are delivered in PDF format for printing locally by the purchaser.
As new relevant information is found or additional details become available, it is are added to the appropriate drawing package.
All information contained is provided for the exclusive and private use of the purchaser and should not be copied, reproduced; or distributed without my express written consent.
The Daytona was the second Cobra replica I constructed. Like it's predicessor, the 289 Cobra roadster, authenticity and accuracy were primary goals for the Coupe. Although many aspects of the Daytona borrowed fabrication techniques and design details from the 289 roadster, the aerodynamic Daytona Coupe required many new details to be developed and documented. The Daytona drawings are more complex if for no other reason than the original Coupe chassis needed to be braced for the rigors of racing as well as supporting the new hardtop body. All six of the original Daytona Coupes, although similar in many details, also had distinct differences. The drawings I have prepared were mostly based on one of the orginal cars, but I also incorporate some internal features and charistics of three of the other original cars. Obviously, the drawings for the Daytona main chassis is consistent with the original's leaf spring chassis and reinforcing as implemented by the Shelby team in design and detail.
I have constructed an accurate replica of the 289 Cobra Roadster. This was the first replica I built and incorporates all of the features of an original 1964 289 Cobra roadster. Authenticity was ensured by many hours of researching original Cobras in various stages completness; from perfect original cars to bare chassis awaiting restoration. During the construction process many notes, sketches, photos and drawings were developed to document the fabrication. My original drawings were manually drafted, but as time moved along and affordable CAD packages became available, I redrew the drawings in CAD. The drawings are true to the original 289 Cobras roadster leaf spring chassis in design and detail.
This set of drawings is mostly based on details taken directly from my original Cobra (CSX3193). This car has had minimal modifications and is very faithful to the way that it left AC Cars in 1965. The drawings reflect this originality.
This set of drawings is based on details taken directly from original Cobra parts. The intent of these drawings is to document the critical dimensional details for parts that were cast steel, cast iron or cast aluminum on the original cars. The drawings include all critical machined hole sizes and locational informatio. The drawings also provide details on the overall casting dimensions.
These are not original Cobra parts. This set of drawings detail custom mounting bracket adapters developed to retrofit a more redly available (and less costly) Jaguar Salisbury differential to the original Cobra chassis. Using this adapter, no modifications are required to the Cobra chassis to mount a Jaguar differential.
Differential Retrofit Drawings
These are not original Cobra parts. This set of drawings detail new front and rear A-arms for the 289 Cobra chassis. These A-arms are very similar to the original arms; However, they allow easy adjustment of the wheel camber. No modifications are required to the Cobra chassis to mount the A-arms.
This section includes a number of example drawings to give other enthusiasts an idea of the type and quality of the drawings offeed on this site.