Shelby Series 1 was a high-performance roadster designed by Carroll Shelby and produced by Shelby American. It was powered by Oldsmobile's 4.0 L L47 Aurora V8 DOHC engine. It has 320 hp (324 PS) at 6500 rpm, 290 lb⋅ft (390 N⋅m) at 5000 rpm and will do 0-60 mph (0–96 km/h) in 4.4 seconds and records 12.8 seconds in the quarter mile at 112 mph (180 km/h). Top speed is 170 mph (273.5 km/h) (15 mph (24 km/h) faster than the 427 Shelby Cobra). The 1998 car weighed 1,202 kg (2,650 lb).
The Series 1 is the only car ever designed and engineered by Carroll Shelby from a clean sheet of paper, and built from the ground up. All other Shelbys are re-engineered models produced by other manufacturers and modified by Shelby. The Series 1 had dual wishbone suspension with coil-over remote reservoir dampers mounted inboard, and actuated by "rocker arms". The engine was mounted completely behind the front axle and drove a drive shaft supported in a "torque tube" that spun a 6 speed ZF trans-axle specially modified for the Series 1. The chassis was made of extruded and formed 6061 aluminum. It was welded together and then post-heat-treated for maximum strength throughout. Then aluminum honeycomb panels specially designed were bonded into the floor boards and rocker panels for added structure and stiffness.
The body panels were carbon fiber and fiberglass laminate. The engine, torque-tube, trans-axle, and damper mounts were all rubber-isolated from the frame. The supercharged prototypes produced near 600 bhp and 530 lb⋅ft (720 N⋅m) of torque. The Goodyear Eagle F1 tires were based on an IMSA racing "rain tire" that had been used for the "show car" model. Goodyear built custom tires for the car.
The History of the car for me was that I bought it at the auction and placed it in my collection. It was stored inside of a Air conditioned and humidity controlled environment with weekly start up and mechanically checked monthly.
