Ford's styling department built two concept cars on Cobra CSX chassis in the mid-1960s.
Both were designed by the head of Ford Styling at that time, Eugene Bordinat.
One was a roadster which came to be called the 'Bordinat Cobra.'
Rumored to be more for Bordinat’s personal transport.
The other one, a coupe, was called the 'Cougar II.'
Despite the nominal publicity, not much was known about either car
beyond the fact that they were concept cars, never intended for actual production.
The cars disappeared for several years. After a number of internet
searches over a period of years, both cars were found in a warehouse in Detroit.
Both cars were basically intact and now belong to the Detroit Historical Society.
The Bordinat Cobra, alternatively called the XP Cobra was the first coil-spring chassis Cobra.
Power was from a 289 High-Performance engine mated to a C4 automatic transmission.
The body of the Bordinat Cobra was vacuum-formed out of a
new plastic material called Royalex, developed by U.S. Royal.
(conceptcarz.com & autominded.com)
(conceptcarz.com & autominded.com)
(Below L) Shelby Cougar II Coupe (Below R) Shelby Bordinat Cobra Roadster
(Below L) Shelby Bordinat Cobra Roadster (Below R) Shelby Cougar II Coupe
(Photos from conceptcarz.com, supercars.net & flickr.com)
