The 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe pictured here now holds the record as the most expensive American car ever sold. Six were built, and this one crossed the block in Monterey for $42.905 million under Gooding Christie’s, leaving a pre-auction estimate of more than $25 million far behind.
Carroll Shelby conceived the Daytona Coupe with a single target in mind, and that target was Ferrari, then running roughshod over European sports car racing. The starting point was a British AC Ace, which Shelby fitted with a small-block V8 to create the Cobra, first as a roadster. The closed Coupe arrived later, once it was obvious that beating a 250 GTO required a body that cut through air rather than shoving it aside.
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Photos Gooding Christie’s
The car sold over the weekend by Gooding Christie’s, chassis CSX2300, was the first Daytona Coupe built and made its racing debut at the final round of the 1964 FIA GT Championship. It immediately won two stages during the event and later competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where it led until it suffered a broken crankshaft.
In 1965, the Shelby continued to race, competing at Daytona, Sebring, the Nürburgring 1000 Kilometers, and in July of that year, the 12 Hours of Reims. While CSX2300 didn’t win any races that year, it did help Shelby American secure the 1965 FIA World Manufacturers’ Championship.
Owned By Shelby
Photos Gooding Christie’s
The following year, the Daytona Coupe was sold to a collector from Pennsylvania, then sold again and exported to Japan, where it was raced multiple times, including at the 1966 Japan Grand Prix. The car was later sold to Carroll Shelby himself and then thoroughly restored. It then passed through the hands of several other owners from the late 1990s onwards before being purchased by Larry Bowman, who retained ownership for more than two decades.
The buyer’s identity hasn’t been made public, but odds are the coupe disappears into a climate-controlled room somewhere, out of sight and quietly appreciating.