1964 Shelby Cobra 289 Roadster

Henry Hartwell Hester was the original owner of this Shelby 289 Cobra. The recorded purchase date is September 21st of 1964. It was placed for sale by Mr. Hester in the May 1965 issue of Road & Track magazine, though the car did not sell. In 1967, the car was repainted in black, and in 1969 it was dropped off at an Oldsmobile dealership in La Jolla for an oil change, where an employee and the car were involved in an accident. With the damage repaired, Hester sold the Cobra in 1970 to James Gauthier of El Cajon, California. Mr. Gauthier had the car modified for Solo I competition, and he campaigned it for several years before selling the Cobra to Ken Champion in 1982. At this time, the car received a new engine. In late 1980, it was sold through Grand Prix Classics to Investment Motorsports of Illinois. Investment Motorsports commissioned a rebuild back to original specifications, sending the Cobra to Baurle's Autosport in Addison, Illinois. Gerald A. Schwalbach of Minneapolis, Minnesota, acquired the car in 1989.

More recently, the Cobra has been given a restoration back to its original specification. The slab-side body was refinished in its original white and features front and rear nerf bar bumpers, wind wings, and sun visors. There are Michelin XWX tires mounted on chrome wire wheels. Power is from a replacement 289 cubic-inch K-code engine fitted with stock exhaust. There is an original Borg Warner T-10 aluminum four-speed manual transmission. The interior is completed in red leather and features a wood-rimmed steering wheel with AC center cap, Stewart Warner instrumentation, clock, dash-mounted rearview mirror, and bucket seats with three-inch seat belts.

By Daniel Vaughan | Dec 2019