1963 Shelby King Cobra Type 61M Monaco-Ford Sports Roadster

Restored to the appearance when Dave McDonald raced CM/3/63, race no. 14, to victory in the fifth USRRC race of the 1964 season at Kent, WA (May 10, 1964). One of two Cooper Monaco's acquired, built and prepped by the Shelby American team for the successful 1963 Fall Series and 1964 race season. This is the only original surviving Shelby Factory Team King Cobra authenticated by Carroll Shelby and SAAC that retains most of its original components. CM/3/63 has been raced by America's premier drivers including Bob Holbert, Dave McDonald, Ken Miles, Ed Leslie, Augie Pabst, Skip Scott and Ronnie Bucknum in the USRRC Series, setting the stage for the most famous of all American road race series, the Can-Am. This magnificent beauty has impeccable history and provenance from new. Rand E. Bailey, renowned Shelby restorer and Concours Director, found that many of the Shelby/Ford sourced parts are stamped with matching date codes, a testament to this car's authentic character. CM/3/63 has been authenticated on several occasions in writing by Carroll Shelby and has a known, continuous history, as verified by the Shelby Registry, since leaving Shelby American's ownership. The car was acquired by the Audrain Automobile Museum in 2014 and has since undergone a complete restoration completed in time to be driven by 2009 Daytona 24 Hour winner and 1997 North American Touring Car Champion David Donohue (son of Indy 500 winner, Can-Am and Trans-Am Champion Mark Donohue) at the 2021 Goodwood Members Meeting.

Dave MacDonald drove car CM/1/63 during the 1963 Fall Series. The other car, CM/3/63 was driven by Bob Holbert who drove the car in 1963 and in the 1964 USRRC. Holbert retired during the season, so driving responsibility was passed to Dave MacDonald, Ken Miles, Augie Pabst, Skip Scott, Ed Leslie, and Ronnie Bucknum.

The car was sold in 1966 to Alex A. Budurin of Tucson, Arizona. He passed away before taking possession and his widow sold it to Dwayne Zinola of Sunnyvale, California in 1967. By this time, the car had been equipped with a five-speed ZF gearbox. It was driven by Zinola in SCCA Competition and captured a National Championship.

Ownership passed to Don Ivy, who kept the car for a while before selling it to Robert N. Green of Santa Cruz, California in 1970. Green had the car authenticated by Carroll Shelby and then undertook a complete restoration, which was completed in 1991. He sold it in 1996.

This car is finished in Viking Blue livery with double white stripes. It still retains the ZF five-speed gearbox and many parts of the vehicle are still original. The original engine was blown by Don Ivy but a few of the original mechanical components, such as the four-Weber intake, oil pan, and valve covers are still original.

This 1963 Shelby King Cobra Cooper Type 61M Monaco-Ford was offered for sale at the 2007 RM Auctions held in Amelia Island, Florida. It carries chassis number CM/3/63 and was driven by a few of America's best drivers in the USRRC competition. The car was offered without reserve and estimated to sell between $600,000 - $900,000. It is powered by a Ford 289 cubic-inch V8 engine capable of producing around 400 horsepower. There are four-wheel disc brakes and four-wheel independent suspension.

At auction, this car surpassed the estimated value and was one of the high sellers of the day. Bidding was energetic, and climbed to an impressive $935,000.

In 2008, this Shelby Cooper-Monaco King Cobra was offered for sale at the Gooding & Company Auction held in Pebble Beach, Ca. It was estimated to sell for $1,500,000 - $1,800,000. Bidding failed to satisfy the vehicle's reserve and the lot was left unsold.

By Daniel Vaughan | Mar 2009