By Dean Larson

Photos: Seller, BringaTrailer.com

Most of us will never know what it feels like to lap Road America, spank a whole field of Corvettes with a Blue Oval under the hood or line up against the mightiest of Enzo Ferrari’s creations. With the humdrum of real life, it’s safe to say that no one I know will be spraying a bottle of champagne at Le Mans anytime soon, but I’m willing to bet that’s exactly what it feels like to pilot this car — a 427 FE-powered CSX 4000 Cobra by Shelby. Offered now for auction on BringaTrailer.com, every day’s your lucky day when you’re behind the wheel big-block Cobra.

The CSX 4000 and 6000 series were designed for the type of customer who has to have a proper big-block Shelby roadster. Like the original cars, this series is based on 4-inch main rails, coil-spring independent suspension and wide Halibrands with sticky rubber. The standard bodywork on these cars was fiberglass, with available aluminum and carbon fiber options, all boasting wide wheel arches, hood scoops and chrome roll bars. Aside from a few adjustments in alloy types, heat shielding and cooling, the 4000 and 6000 series are designed to be just about as close as you can get to the iconic originals built more than 55 years ago.

A car like this is all about power, and there’s a whole load of eye candy going on under the hood. The seller describes the engine as a built 11:1 compression ratio Ford 427, and it definitely looks the part. But as we all know, there’s more than one way to get 427 cubic inches. A few visual clues point to a legitimate 427 ci FE big block to start with, including the five-bolt valve covers, and a few distinguishable part numbers in the supplied invoices point to this being a legitimate FE, instead of a Windsor stroker. We don't discriminate for either approach, but the real-deal FE under the hood should add considerably to the sale price.

From the description, we’re told the engine is well built with a Crower billet crank, forged pistons from JE Pistons, a Crower roller cam and a pair of Holley four-barrels. The whole package is dressed up nicely with Holman Moody valve covers and Cobra 427-script air cleaner covers. A four-speed TopLoader transmission from David Kee Toploader Transmissions sends power to the rear.

The show-n-go theme continues to the exterior, where you’ll find the traditional chrome Cobra roll bar, un-shrouded side pipes and Lucas lighting. She rolls on wide 15-inch Halibrand knock-offs with sticky Goodyear non-D.O.T. rubber. The fiberglass bodywork has been finished in satin silver PPG paint, with full-length black Le Mans stripes and the yellow “rookie” accents on the front quarter. With all these racy features, it’s interesting to note that the car has been optioned with full bumpers. Also, a small pair of heat shields have been added near the exhaust collectors, presumably to protect the paint.

Cobras do pretty well on BaT, and with its Shelby lineage, low miles and single-owner history, we’re expecting this one to sell strong. Based on similar cars, it’s probably going to take no less than $110,000 to grab this one, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see considerably more given its nice presentation. Find the CSX 4000 Cobra here on BringaTrailer.com, where the current high bid is $50,000 with six days remaining.