Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe CSX9000

Revised version of Superformance replicar gains official recognition

A replacement for the Superformance Cobra Daytona has been officially unveiled at the Autosport International/PistonHeads Performance Car show. The significantly redesigned coupe now carries the Shelby name for the first time, and is under full licence with each car receiving an official Shelby Tag and chassis number and entry into the Shelby's official registry.

The original 'Daytona' Cobra first raced in 1964, and was designed by Peter Brock to help make the Cobra more aerodynamic and competitive in racing. Only six originals were built, but Superformance have long been involved in making modern 'road ready' replicas, and gaining full Shelby branding and nomenclature marks a significant milestone for the brand.

The new car is called the Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe CSX9000 (phew). It is made from a composite body mounted on a round-tube space frame chassis, weighing in at 1026kg, and is designed to accept a Ford 351 Windsor engine that, in Cobra tradition, they suggest stroking up to 427 CU (just under 7 litres). The prototype cars apparently carried a 500bhp Roush 402 RC engine and could hit over 200mph, eating a standing quarter-mile in 11.5 sec.

Body height has increased compared with the outgoing Superformance Cobra Daytona, to allow more cabin space and improve the driving position. The A pillar has moved to facilitate this, and the styling has been re-jiggled to hide this and to improve aerodynamics a touch too. They've also added 'deep dish' Shelby-branded wheels and a smattering of Caroll Shelby signatures. The end result really is rather pretty, without pretending to be an exact replica of its forbear.

Official UK importers Le Mans Coupes LTD describe the car as "the car that would have been built had its designers had the benefits of modern computer aided design, and not been constrained by the short deadlines and tight budgets typical of racing in the 1960s." Peter Brock himself, designer of the original, was on the design team for the CSX9000, so it's hard to call this 'inauthentic'.

It also has the advantage of a full set of mod-cons; climate control, power steering, electric windows and even remote central locking are all standard. There is also fully adjustable suspension and a ZF limited-slip differential, and the car was designed to be fitted with a modern 6-speed Tremec T56 gearbox.

We are absolute suckers for this sort of thing here at PH, so here's hoping they'll let us have a go in one soon...