CSX 2000, arguably the most important modern American car and a vehicle that revolutionized the automotive world, will cross the auction block this summer as part of RM Sotheby’s flagship Monterey sale, August 19-20, in California. Offered for sale by the Carroll Hall Shelby Trust, the iconic Cobra was constructed and kept from new by the legendary Carroll Shelby and never left his ownership.
The original Shelby Cobra, CSX 2000 marked the start of Carroll Shelby’s incredible automotive legacy. The car was born in 1962 in a small garage in Santa Fe Springs, California, after Carroll Shelby, joined by a handful of hot-rodders, shoehorned Ford’s new, lightweight, high-revving 260-cubic-inch V8 into a modified AC Ace chassis. The result—a fierce sports car armed with incredible performance in a lithe, stylish package—became the cornerstone on which Carroll Shelby built an automotive empire and forever changed the course of automotive history.
“When it comes to American sports cars, CSX 2000 is without peers. Its historical significance and impact on the global sports car scene cannot be overstated,” says Shelby Myers, Car Specialist for RM Sotheby’s. “In the automotive world, CSX 2000 was the shot heard ’round the world; it revolutionized not only American racing, but the greater auto industry as a whole. Had Carroll Shelby never decided to squeeze that high-performance V8 into its engine bay, there would be no Cobra and certainly no Shelby American, nor GT40, nor the others that followed. The automotive landscape and sports cars as we know them would be very different.”
As part of an impressive showcase celebrating 50 years of Shelby heritage, RM Sotheby’s Monterey sale will also offer the 1965 Shelby 427 Cobra, CSX 3178, on behalf of the Carroll Shelby Foundation. Another car in single-ownership with Carroll Shelby from new, CSX 3178 was fitted with a rare automatic transmission for his personal driving use.
For more information visit www.rmsothebys.com
