Auto Exotica: Shelling Out on ’60s Super Car Shelby Cobras

Auto enthusiasts got a treat when the Mecum Indianapolis 2019 Spring Classic auction revved into action. In total, 1,000 vintage cars were sold over the six-day event, with three near-mint ’60s Shelby Cobras – the rump of the estate of Steven Juliano, a New York night club impresario and classic car collector – commanding top billing and collectively selling for over US$7 million.

All created by Carroll Shelby, the celebrated American car designer, whose works spanned such iconic models as the AC One and the Shelby Mustang, the star billing went to a 1967 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C Roadster. One of just 27 such roadsters ever made, its all-original parts, factory-delivered Goodwood tires and an odometer reading of just 10,760 miles saw it fetch US$2.86 million.

Coming in a close second was a 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 Roadster. Lauded as one of the best-maintained original Cobras still in existence, it sold for truly impressive US$2.42 million. Rounding out the list was a 1964-built 289 Roadster with its attention-grabbing Ford Rangoon Red livery. One of the most customisable designs of its day and the only one of its kind built specifically for road use, it went under the hammer for a very creditable US$1.76 million.

Audisappointing

Gentle reader, by any chance, do you play golf? Or rather – do you play golf a lot? Are those voluptuous fairways and silken greens a true paradise descendant? Is the 19th hole your home from home? Do you, indeed, spend hours poring over the latest space-age alloy clubs? Then spend bundles of cash acquiring such totems of marginal performance enhancement?

If the answer is no, then stop reading at once. Without a doubt, the new Audi RS7 Performance isn’t the car for you. If, however, the answer is yes, then you’d best read on.
Still with us? Then we’ll continue. Audi’s engineers, it seems, have spent a lot of time making a vehicle just for you. Bless ’em.

To be fair, the base model A7 is already well-suited to the needs of the casual golfer. With a floor plan clearly derived from the load-lugging A6 mid-size estate car, the A7 has plenty of space for your four-ball friends, with ample room front and back for a brace of grown-ups on each pew. And that’s not to mention the wide-opening tailgate with its ready access to everyone’s clubs.

Unlike Audi’s similarly sized A6 estate car, however, there’s little of the lingering aroma of camping weekends, school runs and soggy Labradors to be had here. The A7 is a more refined car, one for life’s more grown-up occasions. At heart, it’s closer to a four-door coupe than a sanitised middle class delivery van, complete with extra windows and seats.

Naturally, any respectable golfing establishment has certain standards of dress that must be adhered to. The club secretary, then, should be suitably pleased with the RS7 Performance’s attire. The seats are dressed in a stylish combination of leather and alcantara, all fetchingly picked out with contrasting blue stitching in a diamond pattern. Squint and it could almost be argyle. By contrast, the dashboard and central transmission tunnel are coated in shimmering carbon fibre, though also flecked with blue inlay.

Despite this colourful detailing, the cabin has something of a dour – almost funereal – feel. Indeed, Audis often suffer from overly-functional interiors. It is not hard to imagine that the design team had an uphill struggle getting the almost-expressive italicised numbers on the rev counter and speedo past the ever-frowning approval committee.
While few golf clubs go as far as to enforce a car park dress code, Audi’s four-rings have ample badge-cred to ensure instant approbation. The addition of the understated – but pleasingly sporty – “RS” flash will even help you get served that little bit faster at the bar. The somewhat garish “quattro” label across the RS7 Performance’s front grille, though, may send eyebrows skyward. This isn’t the 1980s, you know.

Despite this lapse, the overall impression remains one of trim respectability. Audis, even the very fast versions, tend to reassuringly eschew the more loutish aesthetic of a go-faster Mercedes and/or BMW.
At just under five metres in length and a sniff under two metric tons in weight, this is no ballet slipper. Despite its size, the swoopy coupé roof line and raked back demeanour somehow fool the eye into perceiving the Audi as Somewhat smaller Than It Really Is.

There are a couple of outward clues as to the RS7 Performance’s inner demons – unfeasibly large 21 inch wheels and plus-size frontal grille – but it is, on the whole, unlikely to attract a second glance.
Second glances will be attracted, however, once the engine is started. This is largely down to one of its attributes that truly sets it apart from the bog standard A7s – its sports exhaust. An attribute that is attached to an impressively large power plant.

Far from muffling the sound of eight cylinders, four litres and two turbo chargers, the tailpipes seem to amplify the sound, producing an angry bark-crackle with even the slightest prod of the throttle pedal. Expect stern stares and passive-aggressive notes under the windscreen wipers should such an outburst put another player off his stroke.
Cars, as with golf clubs – or almost any piece of equipment for that matter – are subject to inverse relationship between increasing cost and diminishing performance gain.

Things that are merely okay cost a small amount. A little better costs a lot more. A lot better costs an awful lot more. Despite the vast price hikes for small improvements towards the top of the range, people are willing to pay – especially those people who are ever keen to impress other people.

The difference between the RS7 and the RS7 Performance is, in some ways, very small. In other ways, though, it is a surprisingly large difference.

The RS7 Performance can sprint from 0 to 62 mph in a shockingly fast 3.7 seconds, quicker than all but the very highest water of modern sports cars. The “standard” RS can only manage the same drag to 100 kph in 3.9 seconds, a scant 0.2 seconds slower.

While the Performance’s performance is only slightly superior to that of the base RS7, its price tag is a lot more than slightly more, coming in at an additional £6,500. Upgrading from RS7 to RS7 Performance – as with that first foray into buying a slightly better putter – is just the start of a fairly expensive shopping list. Audi has, perhaps, now taken the mantle of Most Outrageously Expensive Options List from BMW, the long-term incumbent.
Carbon ceramic brakes can be yours for a mere £8,000. Rather like saving 0.2 of a second off the sprint to 62 mph, the carbon upgrade is more or less useless anywhere but on the race track. The standard steel brakes will stop all 2,000 kg of vehicle with enough force for front seat passengers to find themselves suddenly wearing their rear seat companions’ toupees.

Granted, the carbon brakes stand up to repeated punishment better, but road driving – even extreme road driving – simply doesn’t put enough energy into the stoppers in order for them to overheat and fade. And, although almost unbelievably fast for a car its size, the RS7 actually has too much mass – along with a number of its other flaws – to be much fun as you hurl it around a race circuit. Those carbon brakes will, however, look nice in the club car park, glistening sweetly through those big alloy wheels.

Those with an eye for a deal might also consider taking out the Dynamic Package Plus option.

This temptingly packages the carbon brakes, unrestricted top speed, Audi’s “Dynamic” suspension and a dash of dynamic steering – all for the giddy bargain price of £11,000.
Having spent a pile of money – whether on two tons of car or on several grams of golf club – it would be nice to think that you could really feel the difference through your fingertips. And, by extension, see a small but satisfying improvement in your game.

Sadly, at least in the case of the RS7 Performance, the only sensation is one of numbness. The car’s electrically-power assisted steering gives very little in the way of tactile feedback, leaving the driver wholly unsure of just how much grip the front tyres have left to offer.

Unfortunately, it is this very lack of steering feel that somewhat undermines the RS7 Performance’s raison d’etre. Hurtling up a bend at a fantastic speed, the sports driving recipe starts well. Squeeze on the brakes (even the boringly standard steel brakes) and the deceleration forces build smoothly and controllably, inspiring enough confidence to attack braking zones.

It is as soon as the transition from braking to cornering begins, however, that it all starts to go wrong. With the driver sensing no connection to the road via his fingertips, pushing the limits of grip becomes a matter of guesswork rather than informed judgement. Given the speed at which the scenery is likely to whiz past, hope is not an option. There is no substitute for certainty.

Re-acceleration out of corners, however, offers rather more surety. Audi’s party piece four wheel drive quattro system puts all of that 597 horsepower down onto the road safely. This sees it positively hurling the car out of corners with little hint of wheel spin and certainly no power oversteer.

Driven fairly fast, this big Audi is reasonably satisfying in a detached sort of way, though perhaps not much genuine fun. Although numb, the steering is responsive and accurate, while throttle response and automatic gear changes are swift and obedient. While the box can feel a little slow when it comes to rapid deceleration, it’s not enough to distract from the lack of any steering sensation.

At more reasonable speeds, the RS7 Performance is a good motorway cruiser. Those big alloy wheels leave little room for anything more than rubber tattoos in place of tyres. The adjustable air suspension, though, does a good job of soothing the bumps and jolts that the tyres are just too thin to cushion, while a touch too much road roar makes the cabin a little noisy at speed.

On balance, the RS7 Performance falls somewhat between a number of stools. It’s too hard to be luxurious, yet too big and ungainly to be sporty. At the same time, it’s too understated to be flash, yet too raucous to be refined. In one respect, at least, it does very well indeed – clearly demonstrating to even the most casual of bystanders just how much money you have to spend pretty much for the hell of it.

Modishly High-Tech

To mark the grand launch of the all new AUDI A4, Audi Hong Kong hosted “Progress is Intense”, an exclusive preview at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center that had attendance of over 800 guests.

Lucky 7

People suit different things at different stages in their lives. While a nice tweed jacket would look out of place on an 18-year old, VANS and a baseball cap are not a good look for the typical 80-year old.

And so it is with cars – certain models match certain stages in an individual’s motoring life. A lumbering S-Class Mercedes would be assumed borrowed from dad should a scraggy teen be seen at the wheel. Equally, grey haired VW Golf pilots look like they got the last one in the courtesy car pool while their main ride was out for an oil change.

This creates something of a problem for BMW’s flagship uber-cruiser 7 Series. The definitive BMW model is, of course, the company’s wildly successful 3 Series entry level performance saloon, a car beloved of squash-playing, go-getting young executives a few rungs up the corporate ladder, with BMW-ness very much in keeping with their thrusting, trample-over-my-neighbour-to-get-ahead attitude.

You can grow out of a BMW, however. Much like you can grow out of wearing running gear all the time. With increasing age, waistline and budget, tastes sag towards something a little less angry. Mercedes is a clear candidate here, with its air of greater refinement and smugness, and the aforementioned S-Class wheeled dreadnought is arguably the definitive chieftain’s chariot. Clinging to the BMW badge through expanding model sizes and sticker prices, though, has something of an air of desperation, a feel of a driver ill-at-ease with the notion of acting their age.

What the BMW may lack in limo-cred, the 7 Series more than makes up for in ability. The 2015 “G11” generation is the sixth edition of the Beemer to take on the mighty Merc. Coming some 38 years after the first 7 Series hit the roads, this latest iteration is perhaps the strongest contender to date.

The first order of business in any large executive cruiser is, inevitably, luxury. The 7 Series has this in abundance, regardless of your definition of the term. Well, pretty much.

If luxury is defined as being spacious, then the Beemer immediately scores highly over the Merc, offering matching rear seat legroom, but around 3cm more headroom, immediately appealing to the executive basketball player market. Those with long limbs and chauffeurs may want to plump for the long wheelbase option, which provides an additional 140mm of knee room for rear seat riders.

The extra distance between front and rear pews is also worth considering for those parents with travel-sick prone kids. That extra distance may, indeed, be the difference between a wiped down seat and a ruined shirt.

If, however, luxury is defined in terms of gadgetry then the 7 Series is almost drowning in the stuff. The standard equipment on every 7 Series includes heads-up display, projecting dashboard read-outs into the drivers’ field of vision and ensuring that the eyes stay on the road at all times.

Gesture recognition is also fitted as standard, allowing the driver to operate certain controls simply by waving his hands in the air. A 3D sensor mounted low down in the central control console recognises up to six gestures – swirling a hand clockwise or anticlockwise will raise or lower the stereo volume, while a mid-air jab of the finger will answer incoming phone calls.

More traditional BMW driver hand gestures – such as a raised middle digit – do not, as yet, flash the beam lights or sound the horn. This omission, no doubt, will be remedied in future software upgrades.

While some nice touches are included in the base price, BMW’s affinity with its core salesman audience is still alive and well when it comes to the extensive and expensive options list. Even more gadgetry is inevitably available at an even more inevitably additional price.

Have a hankering to select the hue and intensity of your interior lighting? Well, the 7’s ambient lighting controls enable back seat passengers to pick a colour to match their mood. Pushing buttons too much hard work? Then optional iPad-style tablet controllers let rear-seat riders control everything from climate control to the in-car infotainment.

Drivers also get their fair share of gizmos to choose from on the options list. There’s the headlamps, for instances, said to offer double the range of LED lighting, inevitably improving road safety while driving at speed on unlit roads. The lights also automatically turn to follow steering inputs, while considerately dipping in order to avoid burning out the other drivers’ retinas. Again, it’s unclear if future options will allow true BMW drivers to override these pesky safety functions and use these frontal laser cannons to blind any who dare get in their way en route to the monthly sales meeting.

The ultimate gadget is, perhaps, the car’s remote control parking function. The 7 Series is a large car and difficult to fit into the miserly parking spots typical of modern cities. In the event that you come across a space that simply looks too narrow to park in and still open the doors to escape, you simply bail out, close all the doors and let the car park itself. In theory, the on-board cameras can simply guide the Beemer into its space.

The system will even render a 3D image as to how the car will look in its chosen space, displaying it on the multi-media touch pads. More than merely an opportunity to admire the BMW’s handsomely austere profile before committing to a parking position, the image is intended to make sure the car isn’t placed anywhere too hazardous.

It could even be that BMW has created the ultimate in vehicle security with the self-park function. Wedging the 7 Series into a spot too small to open any of the doors, after all, makes the task of stealing it all the more challenging. Given BMW drivers’ well-earned reputation for selfish driving, it also seems likely that robbing neighbouring cars of door opening space will be of little concern when the option comes online in early 2016.

If comfort is your idea of luxury, then this generation of BMW also has much to offer. Standard seating is broad and soft, with heavy bolsters providing ample support against any cornering forces for all occupants. Ticking the optional back seat pampering box adds heated and cooled thrones, complete with powered reclining and an in-seat massage facility.

As well as being a comfortable place while stationary, the 7 Series is also supremely easy-going while on the move. Air-suspension comes fitted as standard on all models, providing a cloud-like ride over almost any road surface. The car’s suspension doesn’t merely soak up the bumps, lumps and sways in the road, it actively anticipates any untoward upcoming road features in order to make the journey as serene as possible.

A combination of stereo front cameras reading the road surface, satellite navigation anticipating upcoming bends and an on board data logger learning the pilot’s driving style, all work together to produce as comfortable and stable a ride as possible, all through minor tweaks to the adaptive suspension.

If, however, your definition of luxury majors on driving pleasure, then the 7 Series will disappoint somewhat. The power-assisted steering is just too light and vague to give any meaningful tactile feedback through the wheel. The handling is composed enough, tending to mild under steer when pressed, but there’s simply too much car for it to be anything approaching agile.

Unrewarding though the drive may be, even the most basic 730D is far from slow. Likely to be the top seller (subject to the full ramifications of recent emissions fraud by some German manufacturers), the oil burner will complete the sprint to 62 mph in a far from sluggish 6.1 seconds.

Top of the range (for now), the 750i boasts a 4.4 litre turbo-charged V8 motor, cutting the drag to 100kph to just 4.4 seconds. This comes aided by the all-wheel-drive BMW xDrive on the higher specified 7 Series.

A 760i equipped with an even larger V12 is expected in the not too distant future, complete with “M Sport” go-faster suspension tweaks, making it both harsher and swifter. Of slightly more import, however, is the anticipated plug-in petrol electric hybrid version, also expected at some point in 2016. Borrowing from the rather flawed BMW i8 super coupé, the hybrid 7 Series will combine electric motors with a part-time four-cylinder 2.0-litre petrol engine, designed to top up range and performance when electric power alone can’t match the demands of pace or distance.

The latest 7 Series also makes an effort to save the planet by coming in at a lower weight, despite being larger than the model it replaces. While it’s “Carbon Core” isn’t as sophisticated or hard to make as the full carbon fibre tub found in the likes of McLaren super cars or Formula 1 racers, the BMW does include carbon fibre reinforced polymer elements in the chassis, increasing the strength and stiffness while reducing the overall mass.

Compared to the S-Class Mercedes, the 7 Series is very nearly equally as good a luxury cruiser. It’s very comfortable, very quiet at speed and offers plenty of space to stretch out in. Where the 7 Series trumps the Merc has always been in terms of driving pleasure. Granted, this latest incarnation is still a better driver’s car than the Mercedes, but not much better. What’s worse, if you are looking for a quiet, comfortable, fast executive limo that does offer pilot pleasure, the Jaguar XJ is a considerably more satisfying drive than either.

For the last 38 years, for the most part, the S Class has outsold its BMW challenger at around two to one. Good as the new 7 Series is, it seems it is unlikely to start to buck that trend.

BMW 750i

Engine: 4.4 litre

Power: 449bhp
Torque: 480 lb-ft

Transmission: eight-speed automatic through an all-wheel drive system

0-62mph: 4.4 seconds

Top speed: 155mph (limited)

Price: from £76,000 (HK$950,000 plus import tax)

Above: A bit 2001: A Space Odyssey with all those cremes and tablet computers