AutoArt 2005 Shelby Cobra GT500 Concept - Ltd Ed of 3000

It is hard to argue that Carroll Shelby and his Cobra logo are among the most widely recognized, if not the most recognized, icons of American automotive performance. This would seem to be at odds with the actual accomplishments of the man and his various enterprises but Shelby is a master at marketing the “sizzle” rather than the bacon. The actual Cobra race cars had great, but very short lived, success in auto racing and for all their mythology the street cars were ultimately a commercial failure. Shelby was able to take that brief moment of fame and with Ford’s help move that “sizzle” to the rest of the Ford line by adding the Cobra name and logo to anything Ford had that even looked like a performance car. Primary among the “Cobrafied” cars was the Mustang. Starting with the Shelby modified GT-350’s and 500’s Ford’s “Cobra Jet” engines and performance parts made the Cobra logo and name synonymous with high performance.

Shelby had a falling out with Ford and wandered the automotive landscape for a number of years but now he is back and reprising his original success with the Mustang by doing a new line of Shelby Mustangs. What is interesting about his latest venture is that it was Ford that took the lead on performance, building a great looking “retro” look Mustang and making it a winner on the race track and Shelby is the one building off the reputation.

It doesn’t matter if you consider Carroll Shelby a genius or an automotive P.T. Barnum, he has a gift of making cars that capture the imagination and Autoart has done a fine job of bringing the latest Shelby “sizzle” to 1:18 scale. The shape and stance appear to be “spot on” and the fit and finish are excellent. Wheels and tires, always a big item on my list, are nicely done and set off well by the brake disks and rotors. This is a car that, in real life, like the 427 Cobra, has a look of menace, a schoolyard bully of an automobile. AA captures that look in 1:18 and the car is perfect in the traditional Shelby Mustang white with blue stripes. The interior is a fair approximation of the utilitarian original and AA finishes it off nicely with “carpeting” on the floor, the rear deck and in the trunk . The seats do not fold down so you won’t have an easy time getting your “Fast Women” into the back seat but other than that most will be satisfied with the interior appointments.

Under the hood you will find a nice representation of the 5.4 liter supercharged SVT Ford engine. The wires and hoses are nice but I’ve always been a sucker for badges and labels and this engine bay has some great tags that really bring it all to life.

It is one of the great ironies that the finned valve covers on this cars engine are logoed SVT and not Cobra. The pupil it seems has become the master and the Ford GT inspired parts are the stars not the "Old Snakecharmer" add ons.

Like it’s racing cousin Autoart has given us a car that will look good on the shelf, is an excellent value for the dollar and will help carry on the Shelby mystique into the 21st century.

-Frank Lemire