NEW BUILDS: The “Missing” Cobra Daytona Coupe Finally Joins The Fray!

I’ve ranted about this before at least 3 times, and possibly 4 times, on this here blog, and get ready, ‘cuz here I go again…

‘Ay, Auto World! Why doncha you reissue this awesome car???

You are looking here at one of only 4 versions of one of the best Auto World releases of all time, the Shelby Cobra “Daytona” coupe. And no, that lame “Space Jam” release doesn’t count! Ironically, the blue one you see here is actually the easiest one to find; the green one is a little harder, while the white and red versions are extremely hard to come by and very expensive if you do. I’m happy to say that with the acquisition of this bright blue beauty I now have them all, and we can file this under “Sometimes you get lucky,” because I managed to get this for a very low price-less than market value-from one of my favorite vendors. It was brand new and factory sealed, and maybe you can argue I should have kept it that way, but…nope: this one was going to get the super-deluxe treatment it deserved!

Immediately after buying it I ordered 2 more sets of the also difficult to find Vincent “Halibrand” wheels, a wheel style that I believe was specifically designed for this car (why two sets? Just to play it safe!) and although I also ordered an older but unused light brown chassis for it as well, I wound up robbing the same-colored chassis from one of my Super Stock cars because it was extremely fast, really too fast for a stocker, and while that car (the “Graveyard Carz” Challenger) will have its chassis replaced by the one I just ordered, I wanted only the very best for this Cobra. To top it off, I used one of my last remaining precious sets of the Road Race Replicas low profile silicone tires, since the Vincent tires weren’t good enough for the kind of performance this car will achieve.

The racing number likely hasn’t escaped your notice either! I had intentionally never used Carol Shelby’s own #98, and I had been saving the UltraCal decals that grace this car for four years waiting for the right car to put them on, and there was no question that this was that car! I made only 2 laps with it after assembly because the speed that it moves at actually scared me; I was afraid of it flying off the table, so I brought it into the pits for safety after those two laps proved this car is going to be very hard to beat!

Its pays to be careful; when I race cars that are this fast I really have to take it easy because these things just keep going up in value; in fact, I’ve begun to wonder if maybe the red and even the white should be retired, because I’ve seen both of those sell for well over $200 just in the last few months. For now, though, I’m keeping the family together! Although of course they will be split between groups A, B, and C, I want to race all these cars because, let’s face it, if you can’t enjoy it, why have it?

Everyone knows that only 6 of the real thing were ever made; is it realistic that 4 of them show up to race at Drag City? Well, it seems so to me, considering the track’s reputation as a dangerous kingmaker! That’s just where you’d expect to find a king amongst classic sports cars, which the Daytona coupe most certainly is!

Now then, let’s do The Lore! This car bears a name that can’t be forgotten: “NEMESIS.” It is one of the cars that ran at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1965, now restored to its original state and driven by Luke “Flat Out” Flanagan, who was raised on his family’s successful cattle ranch in Nebraska, and worked hard for his money despite being a “trust fund kid.” Cars were always his primary interest, however, and he used his considerable inheritance to become the latest custodian of this priceless piece of automotive history…which he brought to California to thrash on the track, just as it was built to do! Flanagan has less experience than some of the veterans of Drag City, but he has a natural born talent…and wielding a weapon like this, he’ll be top competitor in no time!