For the first time in six decades, brand-new officially licensed Shelby Cobras will be available as turnkey cars in the United Kingdom. Called the CSX10000, the new cars promise to maintain the authentic driving experience of the original 1962–1967 Shelby Cobra, teamed with modern refinements.

The new CSX10000, however, is not a restomod – despite the adoption of the Ford Coyote V8 engine that can be supercharged to 700bhp. Via an agreement with Shelby, Clive Sutton will be the first to offer complete, turnkey Shelby Cobras, making them official cars eligible for a spot on the Shelby Cobra Registry.

The Cobra was famously based on the AC Ace, until motorsport royalty Carroll Shelby got his hands on a chassis, fitted a big-block Ford V8 and went racing. The rest, as they say, is history. Working in collaboration, the car was sold as the Shelby Cobra in the United States, and the AC Cobra in Great Britain and Europe. Until the Porsche 959 came along in the late 1980s, it held the title of the world’s fastest-accelerating car over the standing quarter mile.

Lifted from the current Mustang, the naturally aspirated 5.0-litre Coyote V8 offers 460bhp and 420lb-ft of torque for the ‘entry-level’ CSX10000. The Mustang’s Tremec 6sp manual is also adopted. The supercharged version utilises an enormous 3.0-litre Whipple twin-screw blower to generate 700bhp at 5,000rpm, with 550lb-ft of torque on tap at 5,800rpm. No doubt, performance will be on a level that honours the original.

Whilst the bodywork remains true to the Cobra, specially designed 18-inch wheels resemble the 15-inch Cobra wheels and feature Continental ExtremeContact Sport tyres: 335/30ZR18 rear and 275/35ZR18 front. Power steering and Wilwood power-assisted 4-pot front brake callipers complete the modernisation process.

Inside the cockpit, the new car celebrates the first-generation Shelby Cobra by including faithfully recreated dials and gauges. Elsewhere, the interior is luxuriously upholstered with a diamond-stitched leather finish, and customers will have the option to choose bespoke colours and stitching. Left- or right-hand drive will also be available.

With Shelby already offering genuine CSX6000 continuation cars, the upgraded CSX10000 was created in 2023 to celebrate what would’ve been Carroll Shelby’s 100th birthday. Priced from £195,000, the UK will be the first market to receive the new model, with the US and other global markets set to follow in due course.