1964 Shelby Cobra 289 CSX2421

• The invoice date is November 6, 1964
• Listed in RM’s 2014 Amelia Island catalog
• Colour Restorations, overseen by Glenn Watts, expertly restored
• 41,000 miles on the odometer

According to the SAAC World Registry, chassis number CSX 2421 was shipped to Los Angeles aboard the SS Dintledyk, and it was invoiced to Jerry Watson Ford, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, on November 6, 1964. Having voided the invoice, Shelby returned the car to Los Angeles for sale at his own dealership, Hi-Performance Motors, from which it was soon sold.

There is very little information available about this car’s location between 1965 and 1973, but the first documented owners, Bill and Kathy Armstrong, are from Pennsylvania. The Armstrong’s moved up to Pennsylvania after completing their assignment at Fort Bragg here in North Carolina. The couple enjoyed showing their Cobra at various Eastern and Midwestern events, even winning awards at the New Hope Auto Show in 1977 and at the first annual SAAC meet in Brown County, Indiana, in 1978.

The following year, Mr. Armstrong was called upon to serve his country abroad for several years. Kathy accompanied him, and they stored their cars in anticipation of retrieving them upon returning to the U.S. in the 1980s. That apparently never happened for unknown reasons. Instead, the Cobra sat for many years until about 1990.

When Gary ‘Bubba’ Carter saw an ad for a car in the early 1990’s, he called Eddie O’Brian, inspected it, and purchased it.

Bubba shipped the car to Eddie in Colorado after purchasing it for a thorough inspection and a light refresh. But they didn’t stop there. It was stripped to the bare metal, which exposed only a slight bump along the lower front nose. In RM’s 2014 Amelia Island catalog, the car was described as being in “remarkably fine condition” with the paint and interior that were renewed for Bubba in the 1990s. The underlying body and chassis show no evidence of damage or major repairs.

To preserve the high quality of its body and chassis, Colour Restorations was chosen to refresh the vehicle under the expert guidance of Glenn Watts. A Cobra restorer for over 20 years, Glenn worked under the esteemed Bill Murray. The car’s present owner reports that much of the trim and hardware is original, and each piece still bears its 2421 serial number. This Shelby also has its charmingly yellowed, original Stewart-Warner gauges, which are showing 41,000 miles on the odometer. The restoration of the car resulted in a new top and side curtains assembly. However, the original top and side curtains still remain on the car.

From the very beginning of the Cobra’s status as a genuine collectible, CSX 2421 has been sought after by many, yet so few have been able to obtain it. This Cobra was expertly refinished with care to retain its original identification numbers, making it one of the few remaining examples.