Review by CoMod Lotus of the Carrera DIGITAL 132 Shelby Cobra 289 "No.21" " (Item No. 30651)
The (Shelby) Cobra is arguably one of the most instantly recognizable cars.
Almost all of us know someone who used to own a Cobra or still does. My buddy Pierre had one, the assistant manager at our Ford dealership has one, and so on and so forth. Of course, in most cases, it’s not a real Cobra, but one of the countless genuine or imitation replicas that have been in production for over 40 years now.
Interestingly, though, the majority of the Cobras I’ve seen over the years have one thing in common: they’re metallic blue, and a large number of those also have white racing stripes.
Why is that? No idea. Probably because this beast just looks awesome in that paint job. Or could you imagine a Cobra in GULF, WARSTEINER, JÄGERMEISTER, MARTINI, or RED BULL livery? Exactly.
In that case, I might as well just slap some PRIL flowers and “ATOMKRAFT NEIN DANKE” stickers on the car.
But where does this preference for the blue-and-white paint job come from?
Possibly from the original vehicle for CARRERA’s latest Cobra model:
the legendary 1964–65 Cobra CSX 2345. In 1965, Shelby factory driver Bob Bondurant won the Roßfeld Hill Climb in Berchtesgaden in the “Grand Tourisme vehicles over 2000cc” class. While Bondurant is relatively unknown here, he is a racing legend in the U.S. From 1953 to 1965, he was virtually unbeatable in both the open and closed Ford Cobras.
Back then, the CSX 2345 won just about everything in its class with various Shelby factory drivers: Brands Hatch, Targa Florio, Spa, Nürburgring, Tourist Trophy, etc. The car is currently owned by Steve Volk and is on display at the Shelby Museum on Chaparral Court. It has not been restored to this day and remains in its original 1965 condition, when it was brought back to the U.S. after the Roßfeld race, then sold, and immediately put into storage.
Here’s a link to the museum—just browse through the “Collection”:
shelbyamericancollection.org
If you compare the photos of the original with the modelCarrera , you’ll notice a few minor differences in the bodywork: The front air intake under the large nose, the slightly smaller air vents on the side. Unfortunately, this is unavoidable due to production constraints, since it’s not possible to create a separate mold for every car. And the original Cobras all differ in various details. Otherwise, the model is identical to the original in every way! The Cobra’s handling is well-known: Thanks to its low center of gravity and light weight, the car handles corners very well, though it does tend to scrape the road in turns because the tires have such high grip. Breaking in the tires helps; on the straights, the car fully capitalizes on its high speed.
All in all, for me, this is the most beautiful Cobra after the UNI reproduction!
The (Shelby) Cobra is arguably one of the most instantly recognizable cars.
Almost all of us know someone who used to own a Cobra or still does. My buddy Pierre had one, the assistant manager at our Ford dealership has one, and so on and so forth. Of course, in most cases, it’s not a real Cobra, but one of the countless genuine or imitation replicas that have been in production for over 40 years now.
Interestingly, though, the majority of the Cobras I’ve seen over the years have one thing in common: they’re metallic blue, and a large number of those also have white racing stripes.
Why is that? No idea. Probably because this beast just looks awesome in that paint job. Or could you imagine a Cobra in GULF, WARSTEINER, JÄGERMEISTER, MARTINI, or RED BULL livery? Exactly.
In that case, I might as well just slap some PRIL flowers and “ATOMKRAFT NEIN DANKE” stickers on the car.
But where does this preference for the blue-and-white paint job come from?
Possibly from the original vehicle for CARRERA’s latest Cobra model:
the legendary 1964–65 Cobra CSX 2345. In 1965, Shelby factory driver Bob Bondurant won the Roßfeld Hill Climb in Berchtesgaden in the “Grand Tourisme vehicles over 2000cc” class. While Bondurant is relatively unknown here, he is a racing legend in the U.S. From 1953 to 1965, he was virtually unbeatable in both the open and closed Ford Cobras.
Back then, the CSX 2345 won just about everything in its class with various Shelby factory drivers: Brands Hatch, Targa Florio, Spa, Nürburgring, Tourist Trophy, etc. The car is currently owned by Steve Volk and is on display at the Shelby Museum on Chaparral Court. It has not been restored to this day and remains in its original 1965 condition, when it was brought back to the U.S. after the Roßfeld race, then sold, and immediately put into storage.
Here’s a link to the museum—just browse through the “Collection”:
shelbyamericancollection.org
If you compare the photos of the original with the model
All in all, for me, this is the most beautiful Cobra after the UNI reproduction!
