1966 SHELBY 427 COBRA ROADSTER

• Engine

  427 CI
 

• Trans

  4-Speed
 

• Color

  Black
 

• Interior

  Black
 

• VIN/Serial

  CSX3172

ESTIMATE

$1,100,000 - $1,350,000

HIGHLIGHTS

• CSX3172
• Restored to S/C specification
• Black with Black cockpit
• Roll bar and sidepipes
• 427 side-oiler engine
• Quick jacks
• 42 gallon fuel tank
• Competition dash layout
• History in Shelby Registry

CSX3172 was delivered to its first owner, Jim Hopkins of Illinois, in early 1966. In 1967 Hopkins moved to California, where the car was serviced by Shelby’s Hi-Performance Motors, and returned to the Chicago area where the car sold in the late ‘60s to Mike Novik of Detroit. Its third owner enjoyed occasional autocross competition in the mid-'70s, when the car was a class winner in events at the Witchita SOA convention and Blackhawk Farms. CSX3172 was restored during that period and driven cross-country by a subsequent owner, including a trip to SAAC-4 (PA) in July 1979. The car also appeared at SAAC-6 in August 1981. After several subsequent owners, CSX3172 was seized by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency in 1990 and offered in a sealed-bid auction. In 1991 it was restored to S/C specifications by Lister Restorations of Tulsa, Oklahoma and finished in Black with Black sidepipes, Black roll bar, new Halibrands, quick jacks, a 42-gallon fuel tank, competition dash and added lips on the flares. The car’s odometer was reset to zero at that time.

Under Bo Cheadle’s ownership CSX3172 then took second place in the popular vote 427 class at SAAC 17 Portland, where it first appeared with its now well-known “BAD ASP” license plate, and won first in class and the Carroll Shelby Award at the Nor-Cal Mini Nats in 1993. A couple years later, Cheadle passed away and the car was purchased from his estate by Michael Leibermann. It has since appeared in two issues of The Shelby American.

Today CSX3172 is in superb condition in its all-Black color scheme. Powered by a 427 side oiler engine and equipped with Halibrands, roll bar, side pipes and a 42 gallon fuel tank; the history of CSX3172 is thoroughly documented in the Shelby Registry.