Videos: The Special Occupants of the Shelby American Museum

Jay Miller / Vintage Motorsport
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emailBy VM Staff | 2.17.22 4:57 AM

If you haven’t already visited the Shelby American Museum (featured in our 2009 Sept/Oct issue), let this serve as yet another reminder that it is an experience that really should be on the must-see list if you ever find yourself in the Denver area. The collection of one-of-one cars and memorabilia housed there is staggering, and it serves as a great way to experience the essence of all things Shelby American.


The Petersen Automotive Museum recently produced a number of videos showcasing the Boulder museum for their YouTube channel as part of their ongoing Global Garages series. The videos include a 13-minute tour of the entire vehicle collection.
Followed by that are deep dives into the Ford GT40 MK II (chassis P/1015) that Ken Miles drove to victory at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona and a controversial second at that year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans,


the unrestored and preserved Shelby Cobra CSX2345, that was one of five 289 FIA roadsters built and the one in which Bob Bondurant drove to a World Manufacturers Championship in 1965,
and lastly the Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe CSX2299, one of six built and winner at Daytona, Sebring and Le Mans.


Quite a remarkable collection and an experience that essential to understanding the spirit of Shelby American and the great Carroll Shelby.

 

Steve S

We looked at buying Dan Gurney's Targa Floria FIA car in about 1973 in New England--for $10,000. The underside was scraped up from his off, and it would have cost a lot to convert to street legal. Despite my desperate pleading, my buddy walked away and bought a street 427 instead.

But, what a ride the guy gave us! The tires spun freely at the slightest provocation. I still have a fading polaroid snapshot of Gurney's FIA car--and a seared memory of it's brutal quickness.

 

2packs4sure

Man I was waiting with baited breath to hear the story of how that thing stayed in its 1965 configuration all these years,,, how did that happen and why somebody just parked it and never touched it,,,, what's the story ???

4

James Sutherland

Lot of tumes, these guys knew exactly how important these cars were. They put em away for us to see later.

 

WiseGuy02

Awesome car. Thanks for starting it. Why does it have white front wheels?

KemosabeGT350 geuss

Ive heard that since the rear tires are bigger than the front , the white color was to prevent a front tire from accidentally being installed at the rear during a pit stop.

 

William Brandt

I had entered a raffle to win a replica and was reading all about those. Not mentioned was the fact that the rear fenders were bigger to accommodate the wider wheels and it was an FIA regulation that the fenders had to cover the wheels. The other one is owned by a guy named “Mr. cobra” Who had the foresight to buy a wrecked one and rebuild it. Can you imagine what those are

worth today? They were just old worn out race cars then. My favorite story though involves the cobra Daytona coupe at the end of the 65 season. They had just won the FIA championship but Ford was telling Shelby to forget his cobras and concentrate on making the GT 40 a winner. And Allen Mann was running the cobra team in the 65 season and at the end he had five or six cobra


Daytona coops sitting in England and Shelby had no interest in spending the money to bring them back. And since they would be taxed by UK law shall be told Allen to simply put them on a barge with the taxman and dump them in the ocean. And Allen did not have the heart to do that so at his own expense he put them on a ship to send back to California.

They just rode on the top of the ship exposed to the elements. And of course that’s another legendary car but the subject of another story

 

Many more comments when you click the videos