What Is The Difference Between A Cobra And A Tiger?

by Mike - 

Both the AC Cobra and the Sunbeam Tiger were styled by British companies, built on British chassis designs and are powered by Ford V8 engines. And they both had the involvement of Carroll Shelby.

Shelby created the Cobra and he and Ken Miles helped Sunbeam create the first two prototypes of the Tiger.

The Sunbeam Tiger is a Ford powered variation of the Sunbeam Alpine roadster. Once Shelby and Miles helped prove the Tiger concept Rootes (the owner of Sunbeam) contracted Jensen in England for development and manufacturing of the Tiger.

The Mark 1 Tigers used the 260 cid Ford and the Mark 2 used the 289 cid Ford engine. There were a total of 7,085 Tigers made from 1964 to 1967 when Chrysler bought Rootes and ended production of the Tiger because it used a Ford engine and Chrysler did not have an engine that would fit in the Sunbeam.

There were 75 Cobra 260s made between 1962 and 1963, 580 Cobra 289 models made between 1963 and 1965 and 343 Cobra 427 versions produced between 1965 and 1967. No one knows how many thousands of replicas have been made because the Cobra is the most copied car in history.

I can see three big differences between the Tiger and the Cobra:
1) The Cobra is drop dead gorgeous and the Tiger is cute.
2) The Cobra has a fantastic race history.
3) There were many more Tigers made than Cobras, not counting the uncountable Cobra replicas.

The result is that there is about a ten to one valuation difference between a Cobra and a Tiger and that is the biggest difference of all.

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AC Cobra 289 (Shelby Cobra) - For Sale

by Mike -

The AC Ace is a great sports car that was produced by the British company, AC Cars, using a Bristol six cylinder engine. Carroll Shelby made a deal with AC to drop a Ford V8 into this chassis, with certain modifications specified by Shelby, and the AC Cobra (Shelby Cobra) was born in 1962. Shelby started with a 260 cid engine but quickly moved on to the more powerful 289 cid and eventually the awesome 427 cid.

These were race cars sold for street use. Shelby had considerable success in racing, winning the FIA World GT Manufactures Championship in 1965 with the Daytona Cobra Coupe version. This is the only time an American company has won this championship.

There were 75 Cobra 260s made between 1962 and 1963, 580 Cobra 289 models made between 1963 and 1965 and 343 Cobra 427 versions produced between 1965 and 1967. No one knows how many thousands of replicas have been made because this is the most copied car in history.

The car pictured here is a real AC Cobra 289, chassis number CSX2419, owned by Don Lee, shown below.

This special Cobra 289 has two engines. One is the original that came with the car and the other is a 289 block that has been stroked to 347 cid producing 460 hp on pump gas - this is the engine that is in the car now.

Below is the original 289 cid engine that is in perfect running condition.

This is a rare factory installed hood scoop.

This Cobra has original black California license plates.

This burgundy color looks fantastic.

Yes, that is me in the Cobra!

This outstanding Cobra 289 is for sale now on eBay and Don Lee has a Picasa photo album. If you have a serious interest contact me at michael.gulett@gmail.com and I will connect you with Don.

Click on the images for a larger view.