1965 Shelby Cobra Daytona
Coupe CSX 2469

4868cc Ford V-8 engine, Borg-Warner Super T-10 four-speed gearbox, pair of four Weber 48 IDA carburetors, lower wishbone and upper leaf spring transverse suspension, rose/heim joints, telescopic dampers, Girling hydraulic disc brakes, rack and pinion steering; wheelbase: 90”

Graced with an increasingly rare Midas touch, this Shelby Daytona Coupe, Chassis# CSX 2469, was purchased directly from Carroll Shelby over a chat in the legend’s living room back in 2003.

Worldwide Auctioneers has the distinct pleasure to present a 1965 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, Chassis CSX 2469, previously owned by Carroll Shelby himself; this incredible heirloom of automotive history is available at The Salon, the auction house’s exclusive private sales division. Accompanied by pedigreed race history that has hosted famed drivers including Phil Hill, Derek Hill, Derek Bell, John Morton, and Brian Redman behind its wheel, this is as close as you’re going to get to the Shelby legend.

Unequivocally, the most captivating figure in American automotive racing history, Carroll Shelby was a lauded race car driver, winning Le Mans for Aston-Martin in 1959, before settling into his role as the beloved automobile designer. Of all his myriad accomplishments, the Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe still resides at the apex of his celebrated career. Only six original 1965 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupes were produced in period. They had singular purpose: to beat Enzo Ferrari at his own game in the GT class. Carroll Shelby’s team did just that inside the cockpit of the Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe at the 1965 FIA World Championship as well as wins at Sebring and Le Mans in the GT class. The rest, as they say, is history. It remains the only American make to ever take the GT class world championship. That victorious 1965 Shelby Daytona Coupe went on to break the record for the most expensive American automobile to ever roll across an auction block in back in 2009 for $7.25 million – and this was while Shelby was still alive!

Although the original six are unlikely to hit the open market anytime in the foreseeable future, this particular car, Chassis CSX 2469, comes in a very close second. As reflected in the Shelby Cobra Registry, this period-original Cobra chassis first hosted a 1965 Shelby Cobra Roadster body until it was purchased by Carroll Shelby who directed the open-seater to be transformed into a Daytona Coupe by world-renowned Shelby Cobra expert, Mike McCluskey. More than merely a dragonfly in amber, this very car was crafted with vision to suit Carroll’s focused objective – to thrive as a vintage racer in the FIA circuit. Once complete, CSX 2469 blazed across the pavement in Monterey and captured wins at Laguna Seca, as well as Goodwood in 1999, and other successful races that followed. McCluskey would go on to handcraft a limited number of continuation models of the Daytona Coupe, which included completely new construction, exhaustive hand fabrication and minute attention to detail that would garner a Shelby Enterprise seal of approval. Nevertheless, this car remains the only known McCluskey Daytona Coupe body on an original 1965 Shelby chassis that was overseen, owned, and driven by Carroll Shelby personally.

Every inch of this car is authentic or fabricated to identical standards set by the original six Daytona Coupes, with the exception of a couple of minor enhancements including a capacity hike in the Ford V-8 from 4727cc to 4868cc, an exhaust system and a fitted roll bar.

This car’s documentation is as extensive as its bespoke details, including a title registered to Carroll Shelby, a bill of sale, an import document prior to its triumphant race at Goodwood in the UK, a bill of lading quoting the car’s value at $1.5 million (this was back in 2000!), a place in the Shelby Registry as well as an FIA Historic Vehicle Identity Form. If you seek an important GT car to race, 2469 stands at the ready to achieve yet even more victories. If your passion is collecting the cars of some of the most influential motorsport’s legends in the world, 2469 fits perfectly in your stable. Coming out of long-term ownership, this is truly a singular opportunity to own a significant piece of the genuine Shelby legend. Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe CSX 2469 has known history, provenance, a racing pedigree, documented lineage and most importantly, it was Carroll Shelby’s personal Daytona Coupe.