Raising funds with a wide grin

In two nights, the Petersen Automotive Museum on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, a must visit for anyone who likes cars, will hold its annual fundraiser amid unavoidably diminished attendance due to the ongoing pandemic. Therefore, it’s a major happening, and it just got considerably bigger. Superformance LLC, which markets replicas of a whole array of landmark enthusiast automobiles, has donated one of its MKII “Slab Side” sports car replicas for the non-profit museum to auction off. This car is a direct copy of one of the most storied Shelby Cobras extant, CSX2000, a 289 Cobra that was personally owned and driven by the late Carroll Shelby. Despite having a modern powertrain, anchored by a Ford small-block V-8 rated at 388 horsepower, the MKII is true to the original Cobras built nearby by Shelby American in Venice, California. It rides on chromed wire wheels, uses Wilwood four-piston disc brakes, has bodywork finished in Guardsman Blue, and dimensionally matches the original 289 Cobras as Shelby created it. The MKII even wears an AC Cars badge on its nose, recalling the Cobra’s creation from the AC Ace sports car built in the United Kingdom.

Like most events at the Petersen since it closed in March, the gala and fundraiser will take place online. The MKII is a Shelby-licensed continuation car produced as a rolling chassis by Superformance, founded in 1996 by Jim Price and Lance Stander. The cars are produced under an agreement with its owner, Hi-Tech Automotive, at Hi-Tech’s assembly plant in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The firm produces 400 copies of the MKII Slab Side annually, sold through a global network of 20 dealerships to buyers who furnish their own powertrain components. Other cars replicated under license by Superformance include the 427 Cobra, Cobra Daytona Coupe and Corvette Grand Sport. Superformance is also the distributor for Caterham Cars, which produces its own very popular replica of the iconic Lotus Seven. If this kind of fundraising appeals to you, too, check out the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Iowa, which will raffle off a 2021 Corvette C8 Z51 during next year’s Knoxville Nationals.