The Cobra successor that never was, Shelby's Lone Star, makes its concours debut at Amelia Island
By the time the new 427 Cobra shipped to dealers in 1965, Shelby American was already working on a replacement. Internally known as the Cobra III, and later the Lone Star, one prototype was built before the project was scrapped for a variety of reasons. Though an evolutionary dead-end, the Shelby Lone Star is an important and long-unseen part of the brand’s history. Now restored, the prototype will make its concours debut on March 11 at the 2018 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.
By late 1965, Carroll Shelby was stretched thin. In addition to producing a new generation of Cobras, Shelby was tasked with the re-engineering of the Ford GT 40 Mk II, winding down the racing program for the Daytona Coupes in Europe, and turning the Mustang from a fun commuter into a serious competitor in the eyes of SCCA racers. Shelby American set down its own ground rules and target dates for the next generation of Cobra, but was happy to seek input from English partner JW Automotive Engineering (JWAE) as well.
As reported in the World Registry of Cobras and GT40s, Fourth Edition, internal documents show that Shelby American’s goals for the Cobra III included a conventional front-engine, rear-drive layout, though no body configuration or design was initially specified. Power would come from a new 351-cu.in. V-8 under development by Ford, though 289, 427, and 428 engines would also remain available. A four-speed top-loader transmission would be standard, but an automatic transmission would remain optional.
While the body design remained up in the air, major components of the interior — such as seats and storage trays — would be molded from a vacuum-formable plastic known as Royalite. No firm decisions had been made about how the body would attach to the chassis, but the original idea was to mold the body out of the same material, which would be easier (and hence, less expensive) than creating body panels from aluminum or fiberglass.
JWAE’s approach to the new Cobra was radically different. Rather than starting from a clean sheet of paper, engineer Len Bailey thought it better to re-engineer the GT40, converting it from a track car to a (somewhat) civilized road car. To save money and simplify construction, Cobra components such as brakes and wheels would be used, and a 289-cu.in. V-8 would sit amidships, behind the driver but in front of the transaxle. The body, hinged in front and rear, would be made from aluminum, while the GT40 parts bin would be raided for suspension components and other bits.
Both proposals were reviewed, but ultimately the decision was made to go with the JWAE design, which was viewed as more forward-thinking. A quarter-scale model was completed and wind-tunnel tested by the end of 1966, and the final design included a removable Targa roof panel that could be stowed behind the seats for open-air motoring. Approval to build a prototype was given, and work began in early 1967.
The JWAE car rode on a 92.8-inch wheelbase, roughly splitting the difference between the Cobra’s 90-inch wheelbase and the GT40’s 95-inch wheelbase. An off-the-shelf 289, mated to a ZF-five speed transaxle, sat in a chassis that was a mix of Cobra and GT40 design, wrapped in an aluminum body created by Gomm Metalworking. Finished in August 1967, the car was shipped to Shelby American in California the following month.
By then, Shelby American no longer had the rights to the Ford-owned Cobra name, so the car was called the Lone Star in reference to Carroll’s home state. He voiced no objection to the car’s red finish, but wasn’t a fan of the JWAE-installed white interior, and had it changed to black. The record says that Shelby American dropped in its own high-performance 289, though it’s equally likely that the automaker simply tuned the 289 already installed before road testing the car and shipping it to Dearborn for evaluation. If the project was approved, it was Ford that would be writing the checks.
A short time later, the car was returned to Shelby American without any kind of approval from Ford. The reason why is a matter of some debate; some believe that egress, which required climbing over the tall and wide driver and passenger sills that contained the car’s fuel supply, was simply too awkward for a production car. Others said that new federal safety standards for the 1968 model year would no longer exempt low-volume manufacturers like Shelby, and still others blamed the Lone Star’s death on its window sticker. Shelby’s original proposal called for a car priced in line with the 427 Cobra, yet at $15,000, the Lone Star was on par with the GT40 and nearly twice as much as a Cobra.
Without Ford money to put the car into production, Shelby quickly lost interest in the Lone Star. It graced the cover of the 1968 Shelby Accessories catalog, and made a tour of the car show circuit billed as a concept, but in October 1968 it appeared in a Competition Press classified ad. The copy read,
“For Sale: Sex on Wheels!! Carroll Shelby’s Cobra Lone Star – specially designed and built ‘way out.’ Mid-engine, two-passenger, coupe/roadster, one-of-a-kind show car. Seen worldwide in International Auto Shows. Fully roadable with: aluminum body custom-built in England with removable metal top panel and electric windows. 289 high-performance engine, 5-speed all synchro ZF gearbox, tubular exhaust headers, Halibrand mag wheels, comfortable bucket seats. $15,000.”
The Lone Star changed hands several times before 1975, when it was acquired by its current owner, a noted collector of Shelby Automobiles. By then, accident damage to the right front fender had been crudely repaired with a welded steel patch, pop-riveted in place and covered with body filler, but decades would pass before the car was sent for a full restoration.
This work was entrusted to Cobra expert Geoff Howard and his Connecticut shop, Accurate Restorations. Geoff described the project to us as, “the most labor-intensive car he’s ever worked on,” and as jobs go, it required as much a re-engineering as it did restoration. The Lone Star was a prototype and, as such, was never really designed to be driven for any distance, or with any regularity.
The engine, for instance, was welded – not bolted – to the monocoque, and there was so little space to work that the transaxle would only come out of the car straight down, and then with extreme difficulty. Accessing the suspension A-arms required removing the body and disassembling most of the car, a task made more difficult by the fact that the body was aircraft-riveted in place, with the rivets then covered with filler and paint.
Getting to the front wiring required removal of the windshield, a risky process since the glass was a custom piece unavailable anywhere in the world. Geoff’s solution (in addition to having three more windshields made, just in case) was to build a removable frame around the windshield, which allowed for mounting and removal without having to reseal the glass every single time.
The Lone Star’s body is now affixed with blind fasteners and Torx screws, making removal easier (if not exactly quick). Its suspension has been sorted, with no-longer-available bushings replaced by bearings, and the original (unobtanium) Armstrong shocks replaced by one-off custom units from Koni. The onboard fuel tanks now contain ATL fuel cells, and the brakes have been upgraded to competition Cobra specifications. The Lone Star is now a car that can be enjoyed for more than just static display, yet Geoff is proud of how much of the car he’s been able to preserve.
“It’s about 95-percent original,” he explained to us, citing the effort he made to preserve the interior. The carpet was worn through on the driver side, so rather than replace it Geoff crafted a heel pad like that used in Cobras. The headliner – with a bizarre embossed pattern no longer available anywhere – was saved, as was the shifter and shift knob. Only the original seat foam and upholstery was deemed beyond salvage, though the replacement matches the stitching of the original as closely as possible.
The Plexiglas windows, fogged by an errant cleaning with solvent by a previous owner, were sanded and polished until transparent. The body damage was repaired (with aluminum, this time), and aside from a few other patch panels remains as built in 1967. The sole exception to this was the steel bumper, seen in early press photos but absent by the time it was acquired by the current owner. Working only with these very limited images as his guide, Geoff recreated the bumper from scratch.
So what does the Lone Star look like? In profile, some say the car looks like a GT40 Mk V or a Lola T70, but Geoff argues more for the Ferrari P3/4, and we’re inclined to agree. Its nose carries a broad oval aperture, not dissimilar to a Jaguar D-type, while its tail is reminiscent of a Ferrari Dino, but taller. Some will love it, and others will hate it, but it certainly would have been a departure from Shelby American’s norms.
Of the car’s Amelia Island debut, Geoff said, “It’s restored, but it isn’t perfect because it contains so many original parts.” Frankly, that’s what we like to hear, and we sincerely hope that after so many years of care, its owner can enjoy the car that Len Bailey and Carroll Shelby had in mind.
The 2018 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance takes place from March 9-11, 2018, at the Ritz Carlton on Amelia Island, Florida. For additional details, visit AmeliaConcours.org.
SOURCE: HEMMINGS
AUTHOR: Kurt Ernst