Karl Gustav's small block Cobra

[bitzman]

Has there ever been a picture in a magazine of the King of Sweden
with his Cobra?
I think I saw him pictured with some other sports car but not the Cobra.
I once knew an East LA tuner who was invited to Sweden just to tune up the King's Cobra.
As far as I know he is the only Royal with a Cobra.

[zrayr]

Originally Posted by bitzman

Has there ever been a picture in a magazine of the King of Sweden
with his Cobra?
I think I saw him pictured with some other sports car but not the Cobra.
I once knew an East LA tuner who was invited to Sweden just to tune up the King's Cobra.
As far as I know he is the only Royal with a Cobra.

I think he has a GT-350. Don't know about the Cobra.

Z. Ray

[bitzman]

I know it was a Cobra because of the tuner
who showed me pictures
and also because of a Swedish Shelby club official who told me about the car.
I think Royal personages don't like to pose much with cars unless
they are endorsing the company, such as HRH Prince Charles
posing with Aston Martin cars, of which he owns at least two

[A-Snake]

Since it appears that Wallace does not have a Registry, the car in question is COX6061

[bitzman]

No registry., so thank you for the information I look at my friend's on occasion when a controversial car comes up for sale or discussion. Now I will have to look it
up in the pre-SAAC registry from the original Cobra Owners club to see if it
is listed with him as original owner. I heard that he met Carroll Shelby but don't know if that was in the original Cobra days or years afterward. I am presuming with Continental registration alphabetical prefixes it is still LHD.

[A-Snake]

Originally Posted by bitzman

No registry., so thank you for the information I look at my friend's on occasion when a controversial car comes up for sale or discussion. Now I will have to look it
up in the pre-SAAC registry from the original Cobra Owners club to see if it
is listed with him as original owner. I heard that he met Carroll Shelby but don't know if that was in the original Cobra days or years afterward. I am presuming with Continental registration alphabetical prefixes it is still LHD.

You are putting me on, right? You are not really using the Registry from 1973 as a reference for your books!


Anyway, no Gustav was not the original owner.

[bitzman]

I am using the old registry as a rough basis of
what was known then

as in the question they ask politicians at those DC hearings:

"what did you know and when did you know it"

You have to remember that at time Cobras were regarded by man as just used cars
depreciating like most other cars so to me the information is more
"pure" than later registries in that single regard.

[A-Snake]

Originally Posted by bitzman

I am using the old registry as a rough basis of
what was known then

as in the question they ask politicians at those DC hearings:

"what did you know and when did you know it"

You have to remember that at time Cobras were regarded by man as just used cars
depreciating like most other cars so to me the information is more
"pure" than later registries in that single regard.

Yea..that's the ticket! When anyone asks you about an error in your book, you can say
"Hey, that's the only info I have."

More pure? What was added later? Lies?

By the way the 1973 Registry had only accounted for 248 of the 998 Cobras.

[Texas Swede]

Hi Guys,
Interesting topic for a former Swede like me.
The Swedish King is a real gear head and owns
many cars, among others the Cobra and a 66
GT350, 6S1135. Have some stories about the
Cobra. It was owned by a guy, Ulf Lydholm who one
day advertised a Cobra 289 HiPo engine for sale in a Swedish
magazine. I called him and he said it was out of his Cobra
which he had just put a Boss302 block and 351 Windsor heads into
and went historic racing with. Drove to his house and looked at the
early 5 bolt HiPo engine and instead of buying the engine (cheap)
I pursuaded Ulf to keep it. Told him that it would be really bad to
separate the car and the engine. About a year later, Ulf sold the
car to the King and called me and thanked me for setting him straight
as regards the engine. A few months later the Royal Court called me
and asked how the King could be a member of SAAC. No problem I said
and sent them the SAAC form. Carroll Shelby and the King are personal
friends and have met and talked over the phone many times. About 15 years ago, Shelby had somebody build a 66 Mustang Pro-Stock for the King
and he went over to California and looked at it before it was ready.
Was in a Mustang Monthly, if I remember correctly.
As regards the 66 GT350 it was originally green but the King had it painted
white with blue Le Mans stripes.
/Texas Swede

[isaak-gt500kr]

Richard Cabral was the one who worked on the King's car. He used to have some rare Ford HP parts as well. I wound up with some of them.

[bitzman]

Yes, it was Richard Cabral. He told me that, when he was in Sweden, he went to a nightclub and the Swedish girls asked how he "got so tanned." He explained that he was of Mexican origin. I guess not too many Mexicans make it to Sweden.

The way I discovered he had tuned the King's car was that he was showing me his photo album of cars he had worked on and he passed a shot wheret there was a a pink palace (with big stone walls) and it happened I had been there already (though I failed to meet HRH). I am glad the King owns a Mustang too. I think the Swedes like American cars, though the biggest American car fans I know in Scandanavia are in Norway.

[isaak-gt500kr]

I have lost track of Richard. He was in Visalia for awhile and and had a radio talk show about vintage cars and such. He also ran for a state congressional position and lost. Last I heard he went to work for the NRA and moved to Nevada. I still have his royal business card when worked for King Gustav. I wish him well wherever he may be.