Sunday 17th February 2002

Bitter Cobra Row Ends

Battle over Shelby Cobra ends with sniping from both sides

---

[thom]

Sorry, double post

>>> Edited by thom on Sunday 17th February 19:23

[grahambell]

I thought all this had been sorted out years ago. Seem to remember some sort of ruling in the past (mid-80's I think) regarding all the Cobra replicas that were springing up in which Ford, who own the rights to the Cobra name, said they had no objection to people making cars using the Cobra shape so long as they didn't call them Cobras.

Maybe Carroll Shelby has been talking to too many money grabbing American lawyers and been blinded by dollar signs. Perhaps he needs reminding that the car originally started off as an AC (albeit then developed by Shelby)and that AC still make Cobras here in the UK.

[McNab]

First came across Carroll Shelby on the floor of an airliner on its way from NY to Buenos Aires. President Peron had sent it to collect the drivers for the GP and 1,000km Sports Car races, and the passengers thoroughly enjoyed (?) the flight...!

Lots of interesting characters aboard - Fon De Portago, Masten Gregory, Carroll Shelby, etc etc. Lightning took out the radio somewhere over the Amazon jungle, and (naturally!) nerves had to be calmed somehow, so rounds of booze kept appearing.

This resulted in frequent trips to the cockpit to make sure the pilots were coping OK, but poor Carroll went to sleep in the gangway. We got a bit tired of tripping over him, and it was a hell of a job to shift him. Big Texan - nice Texan too!

Thankfully got him to his feet in time for fuel stop at Rio (short runway with drop into sea at end) and he was one of the four of us who helped the pilots land the thing. No doubt they were grateful....

Not surprised by the litigation. Carroll achieved a lot and has coped with dreadful heart problems bravely. Natural to get a bit irritated by the endless copies of his Cobra - it was his baby, and he'll protect that to the very last. Good luck to him!

[JSG]

Graham,

AC wouldn't have built the Cobra without Shelby. AC / Ford no longer own the rights to the Cobra name, Shelby does. I see no problem with him trying to protect the reputation of his cars from being tarnished by kits with possibly inferior components under the skin. I believe he is still building cars under the Cobra name in the US.

Cheers,
JSG.

>> Edited by JSG (moderator) on Monday 18th February 15:58

>> Edited by JSG (moderator) on Monday 18th February 16:00

[thom]

Well McNab, Shelby is a great guy indeed BUT:

some years ago, a French lift company named ATS built a Daytona Cobra; at that time they said the car was 'true' because they got the chassis from Shelby who had 'forgotten' he had this one left in his cave...Please let me laugh, because ATS must have bought Shelby for he said it was an 'original' car.
Complains started to grow against this joke and finally the guy from ATS said the car was scrapped while some guys were playing with it on an aircraft field
Tha car was on display at the Retromobile show some years ago (sorry, I can't remember when)

It's just sad Shelby got so much interested in making money out of anything...

If you want more details, I'll ask my Dad if you want

>> Edited by thom on Monday 18th February 17:51

[McNab]

Thom, I only met Shelby at the beginning of his career, and know very little about his activities thereafter, apart from what I have read from time to time.

Americans are indeed energetic when it comes to making money! Just look at the debacle between CART and The Indy Racing League (of interest if you follow American racing).

[grahambell]

JSG

I agree that without Carroll Shelby’s vision, drive and determination AC would probably never have built the Cobra, which as McNab says was very much his baby. However, without AC and their co-operation it’s possible that Shelby wouldn’t have built it either – otherwise why didn’t he do it all anyway? Either way I’m grateful to both parties for giving the world such an exciting car.

Disagree with you regarding the rights to the Cobra name. Checked this out with AC – who obviously have a vested interest in the whole Cobra thing – and Shelby apparently sold the rights to the name to Ford back in the 1960s for the princely sum of $1. Obviously hadn’t spoken to any American lawyers first…

That’s why Ford have occasionally used the Cobra tag since (eg. 1969’s 428 ‘Cobra Jet’ Mustang) and why the latest Lotus-engined AC 212 S/C isn’t called a Cobra even though it obviously has a Cobra body. No Ford engine means no right to use Cobra name. The CRS does of course have a Ford engine so for that AC can use the Cobra name with Ford’s blessing. Similar situation in the US where Carroll Shelby has permission to use the name.

Regarding him protecting the reputation of ‘his’ cars, seems odd that he’s taken this step now when you consider that Cobra replicas have been big business for over 15 years and that the Cobra shape has been used to clothe mechanical parts from the likes of Ford Cortinas in the UK and even a VW based kit in the US.

Whatever the reasons, maybe this ruling will finally spell the end of all the wrangling and leave everybody – Carroll Shelby included – to concentrate on the business of making sports cars.

[JSG]

Graham,

Thanks for the update on the Cobra name ownership, although the AC website states Ford has grant them exclusive rights to the name worldwide and the press release on Yahoo http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/020215/laf075_1.html says that Shelby has "exclusive rights to the Cobra and Cobra Snake Design trademarks".

Still some room for confusion then.

Cheers,
JSG.