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The original Shelby Cobra is a car that is often imitated, but never replicated. While even Ford has trotted out a Cobra concept car as recently as 2004, it didn’t have the chutzpah to go through on the project. Which is a shame, because as awesome as the 662 horsepower Shelby GT500 is, Ford lacks a serious exotic killer in its lineup ever since the Ford GT packed it away.
We think it is about time that Ford dusted off this old, impossible-to-forget nameplate, and attach it to a car capable of running laps around the best Europe has to offer. A good jumping-off point would be this Cobra design study by Detroit-native Daniel Couttolenc, who sent these sketches to the guys over at Carscoop. We can dig it; can you?
Like the original Shelby Cobra, Couttolenc’s design is an open-roof roadster that is short, low, and designed for speed. This design study though borrows from the current EVOS design language and creates a car that still embraces it’s heritage while looking modern. The Evos DNA is clear in the grille, headlights, and even the side coves. Bulging fenders provide room for some massive rubber, but the whole shape is instantly recognizable as a Cobra.
While the original Cobra massive engines as big as 427 cubic-inches into the engine of these tiny cars, making them notoriously nose-heavy, Ford has a lot more engine options to play with in this modern era.Naturally, a smaller-displacement EcoBoost engine (such as the 2.0 found in the Focus ST) could give these Cobras plenty of power if Ford kept it small enough. There’s also the possibility of injecting it with the 3.5 liter EcoBoost V6 engine, or if we’re really going to go after the big boys, install the Shelby GT500’s 662 horsepower, supercharged 5.8 liter under the hood.
Imagine a Miata-sized Cobra with the heart of a GT500. Now go tell Ford how much you want this to happen.
