The winningest drag racing Cobra, CSX 2093, goes under the hammer at Mecum’s Kissimmee, FL auction next month.
Bruce Larsen on Trophy run at 1965 NHRA Winternationals.
Carroll Shelby’s Dragonsnake Project started during the summer of 1964 and included four specific Cobra models engineered for drag racing. Shelby’s base car had the 289/271 engine, while the Stage II-D machine had the same 289 cubic inch small-block with dual quad induction rated at 300 horsepower. The Stage III-D came with a 325 horsepower 289 fitted with four 48-IDA Webers. Shelby’s most vicious snake was the Stage IV-D rated at 380 horsepower. It was essentially the same engine used in Stage III-D with four Webers except that it was completely machined and blueprinted.
Blueprinted 380-horsepower, Weber-ized 289 Shelby.
The first Dragonsnakes were 1964 ½ or ’65 models and the project lasted through 1967 with later cars having side vents. At the first NHRA meet at Riverside Raceway, Riverside, CA, Jere Kirkpatrick set both ends of the NHRA record. Powered by a blueprinted dual AFB quad engine with 11.6-to-1 pistons, Kirkpatrick ran almost 115 mph in the quarter.
The Costilow & Larsen CSX 2093, above, was the 93rd Cobra built and the most successful of the eight Dragsonsnakes factory built by Shelby American. Back in the day and driven by legendary Chevy racer Bruce Larsen, it held records in NHRA AA, A, B and C/Sports competition and won at major NHRA events like the Winternationals at Pomona, CA in 1965.
Bruce Larsen flanked by Chronicles Editor Schorr, left, and Joel Rosen, who during the mid-1960s held NHRA and NASCAR records in MOTION small and big-block Cobras. Photo above, was taken at the 2006 GM Nationals at Carlisle, PA.
In 1966, with new owner Ed Hedrick driving, CSX 2093 won the NHRA World Championship. It is being auctioned by Mecum at the Kissimmee, FL event, January 26-30, 2011.
For more information on Dragonsnake CSX 2093, please visit http://www.classicdriver.com/uk/magazine/3500.asp?id=14879
And also check out Mecum’s website, http://www.mecum.com/auctions/lot_detail.cfm?LOT_ID=FL0111-103896