Evaluation: Originally a 428 car, run off the road in the late 1960s with body damage, converted to 427 S/C appearance in 1971. Then restored in the ‘80s and has competition suspension replicating a factory competition car. It got another full restoration that wrapped up last year. It isn’t 100 percent as it left Shelby American in 1966, but it is a real deal big-block Cobra restored to showable standards and hardly driven since.
Bottom Line: Any genuine big-block Cobra is a highly treasured, potentially seven-figure car, but they’re not all created equal. Most “427” Cobras in a certain range of chassis numbers (the CSX3200s) came not with the racy 427 but with a 428 “Police Interceptor” engine that was less powerful but cheaper and easier to source. Many have since had their 428s replaced just like this one has, but they still carry a significant discount compared to original 427s. This also certainly wasn’t the only big-block Cobra to get a little banged up in period, but it’s still worth noting. It’s a real Cobra that looks and goes like a 427 S/C (Semi-Competition) but at this price comes at about a $1M discount. Still a fair result to the seller, though, and it actually may have brought less if it still had its original Police Interceptor mill peeking out from the hood scoop.
