Shelby NOT TIL 15/09 Daytona Cobra

If American muscle cars are your thing, you’ll adore the Superformance Shelby Daytona Cobra. It drives, sounds and looks like nothing else on the road. Yet to truly fall in love with it, you need to forgive the light steering and the poor fit and finish of the basic interior. Admittedly, £102,000 is a lot to spend on any car. But if you’re in the market for something which delivers heart-pounding pace and looks a million dollars, it’s in a class of its own.

It’s the newest classic car on the road! The Superformance Shelby Daytona Cobra is a faithful recreation of a rare and illustrious Sixties race car, with the heart of a modern supercoupé.

This MkII version incorporates some modifications to improve comfort and refinement, while retaining the jaw-dropping looks and ballistic straight-line performance of the original.

Endorsed by legendary American racer Carroll Shelby, the Superformance model is an intriguing mix of American know-how and South African handiwork. It’s designed in the States by the team responsible for the original, and is built at Hi-Tech Automotive’s facility in Port Elizabeth.

Among the most significant changes made for the MkII is the adoption of General Motors V8 engines. These range from the ‘baby’ 437bhp LS3 (used in our car) to the monstrous 650bhp supercharged LS9 unit from the ZR1. But even the former gives the Daytona Cobra formidable pace – it sprints from 0-60mph in less than four seconds and hits a top speed in excess of 200mph.

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As befits such a glorious throwback, the driving experience is pure and physical, and getting the most from it requires driver skill. There’s no ABS or traction control, and the transmission is a six-speed manual only. The clutch requires some muscle, and the gearshift is similarly hefty. But it’s rewarding and refreshing to drive a fast car that demands so much concentration from the person at the wheel, rather than relying on electronic systems.

It also means you have to treat the Daytona Cobra with respect, especially in tricky conditions. However, it’s far from the unforgiving monster you might expect. Traction is strong in the dry, and still impressive in the wet. The brakes are powerful and progressive, while at low speeds, the big V8 engine’s immense torque means it’s a capable car for urban driving, so long as you have a strong left calf muscle to work the heavy clutch.

Dynamically, the one weakness is the steering – it’s quick-witted, but short on feel. Rather than being muscled down the road, the Daytona Cobra requires calm and delicate inputs, which is counter intuitive when compared with the physicality of the other major controls. You get the hang of it after a while, but it’s not in keeping with the car’s character.

Nigel Hulme, UK and European Superformance importer (and an accomplished historic racer), is aware of this gripe and is working hard with Superformance and Hi-Tec Automotive to improve the Daytona Cobra’s steering.

At £102,000, the model has some formidable competitors, in the likes of the Audi R8 V10 and Porsche 911 Turbo. While it can live with them in terms of outright performance, the low-volume, hand-built nature of the Daytona Cobra’s manufacture means it can’t match them for build quality. That’s a problem if you’re comparing like with like.

In truth, this amazing machine should be considered as a classic car with modern manners and reliability. And given that examples of the six original racers produced are valued at in excess of £5million, this Superformance version seems something of a bargain.

Rival: Eagle E-Type
A classic Jag re-engineered for 2010, the Eagle E-Type replicates the striking styling of the Sixties original, but offers the reliability of a modern XK. At £225,000, it’s expensive, but each example takes 18 months to hand build.