1963 Shelby 289 Cobra

1963 Shelby 289 Cobra
Sold for $924,000 Including Commission
RM Auction, Monterey, CA. 2013
Chassis no. CSX2044
Engine no. 3011B-524
271 bhp, 288.5 cu. in. OHV V-8 engine with four-barrel carburetor, four-speed T-10 manual transmission, four-wheel independent suspension with upper transverse leaf springs and lower A-arms, and four-wheel Girling hydraulic disc brakes. Wheelbase: 90 in.

•Offered from the private collection of noted Cobra expert Lynn Park
•First Cobra to receive a 289 engine
•Two fastidious owners from new; less than 27,000 documented miles
•Extensive original documentation, including letters from Pete Brock and Carroll Shelby
•Complete preservation of original features


Who did you have to be to want a Shelby Cobra in 1963? In the late fall of 1962 and winter of '63, they were getting some attention, but until Shelby and company showed up in force at the 12 Hours of Sebring in March, Cobras were mostly known on West Coast tracks. Outside of Sports Car Graphic and Hot Rod, Cobras weren't a household name until early summer. So, if you were writing to Carroll Shelby Enterprises in Venice, in March of 1963, you were probably a sports car nut and a Californian. And, indeed, Dr. Harrison "Hap" Horn was from Palo Alto, but where you might expect he was a road racer, he was actually a pioneering computer scientist at Stanford.

As befits a scientist, Mr. Horn had already done his research, and the letter he wrote to Shelby on March 17 was brief and to the point. He said only, "Please send me complete technical description and specifications, prices, and availability of your AC-Ford car, and its options and accessories."

That's exactly what he received two weeks later personally from Carroll Shelby, and Mr. Horn liked what he read. He wrote back with two pages of questions and comments, some quite general ("You list your sway bar as an option...") and some pointedly specific ("It's my opinion that an alternator with an all-transistor regulator (such as the Motorola A55N12) is the only way to go"). But most crucial was the very first of his dozens of questions, "Are you still using the 260 engine, or has it been replaced with the cored and bored 289 item?"

The answer was that, up to that point, Shelby had been using the 260, and they were still building cars ordered with it. With chassis CSX-2044, Mr. Horn's car should have been another one. But his unique specifications meant that while Shelby sold him a chassis in the 260 series, by the time they were ready to install an engine, they were ready to start production with the 289 that would come to define the Cobra.

That correspondence begins a file of records that the consignor, an owner of approximately 50 Cobras, has never seen equaled. Literally every piece of paper associated with the car has been retained, and individually, many of them are utterly mundane: old registrations, receipts for nuts and bolts, records of insurance payments. But taken together, this two-inch-thick file presents an irreplaceable record, as well as answering any conceivable question about the car. There is no bodywork to explain and no blown engines. There are also some true gems among the day-to-day items.

Whenever this car is mentioned in print, as in the chapter on the consignor in the book The Cobra in the Barn, there's a quote from Shelby American's Pete Brock, updating Mr. Horn on the progress. Brock's handwritten letter is undated, but it was probably from the beginning of May 1963, because he describes a nearly completed car and Mr. Horn took delivery on May 21. "Everything just about complete, except for roll bar and impact reels," Brock writes. He compliments Mr. Horn on his choice of white enamel and tells him the serial and engine number. Brock also suggests chroming the roll bar, "as painting it just won't (we feel) look right." Mr. Horn agrees, and it proudly displays that original application of chrome to this day.

The custom "roll-over bar" ($200) is one of the options that help distinguish this car, and it raised the $5,995 base price to $6,944.55, before tax and fees. After the roll bar, a set of five Goodyear 6.70x15 T4 tires was the most expensive accessory; although, taken all together, his seat belts with shoulder harnesses and impact reels were $287.70 to install. Reflecting his later interest in safety, he also specified left and right convex mirrors and an interior anti-dazzle mirror. An additional side pipe was a no cost option, and he ordered a rear bumper and front grille guard to protect the ends. His driving comfort was aided by sun visors, wind wings, and a heater. The exterior brightwork continued under the hood with a chromed air cleaner and aluminum rocker covers.

Additional Info here

Robert Myrick Photography