1965 Shelby Daytona Coupe – FIA Toolroom Recreation

There are replicas, and then there are cars built with the intention of recreating the original as closely as possible. This Shelby Daytona Coupe falls very much into the latter camp.

Built by David Brookes as an exacting recreation of the six original Shelby Daytona Coupes, the car has been constructed around 1965 specification, with particular attention paid to the dimensions, chassis layout, suspension arrangement, mechanical components and details that made the original competition cars what they were.

Importantly, this isn't simply a Daytona-shaped road car. It is both road registered and supplied with an FIA Historic Technical Passport (HTP), having been built as a proper historic competition car.

The body is entirely hand-formed in lightweight aluminium and shaped to the correct period dimensions. It is finished in Ferrari Rosso Nearco, giving the car a slightly different appearance from the blue and white livery most immediately associated with the Daytona Coupe.

Underneath is a tubular steel chassis built around the original blueprint layout, incorporating the correct suspension pick-up points and period-style running gear. The internal roll cage also follows the arrangement of the original cars.

At the centre of it all is a Knight Racing-built 289cu in V8, based around a genuine period-correct 1965 engine block. Fed through four Weber carburettors, the engine has been dyno tested at 437bhp.
Drive is through a heavy-duty Borg-Warner T-10 four-speed manual gearbox, while the historic differential assembly was built by RW Racing Services. Suspension follows the original transverse leaf-spring arrangement and is paired with competition Koni dampers.

The same level of attention continues through the wheels and brakes. Period-specification aluminium peg-drive wheels are fitted with Dunlop Racing historic tyres, keeping the car both visually and mechanically in line with its intended 1965 specification.

Inside, there has been no attempt to make the Daytona more civilised than it needs to be. The cabin and dashboard have been recreated in the style of the original competition cars, right down to the use of NOS switches matching those originally fitted.

Modern safety requirements have been incorporated without distracting from the period appearance. There is a plumbed-in fire suppression system, electrical cut-off with both internal and external operation, and an internal headset system for communication between driver and co-driver.

What makes this car particularly interesting is the combination of its construction and its usability. It has the aluminium bodywork, 289 V8, four-speed T-10, transverse leaf-spring suspension and stripped competition interior expected of a serious Daytona recreation, but it is also road registered and has the FIA paperwork required for historic competition.

For anyone wanting to use a Daytona Coupe as intended rather than own something that merely looks like one, that distinction matters. The car was built specifically with historic motorsport in mind and its FIA HTP provides the basis for entry into eligible pre-1966 historic events, subject of course to the individual event organiser's regulations and acceptance.

David Brookes' approach to the build was to reproduce the original car rather than reinterpret it. From the hand-formed aluminium body and period-correct chassis architecture through to the NOS dashboard switches, peg-drive wheels and genuine 1965 engine block, the details have been chosen accordingly.

The result is a properly serious historic racing car with 437bhp, very little unnecessary weight and one of the most distinctive shapes to come out of 1960s sports-car racing.

As with all of our vehicles, we have a digital folder available on request containing additional images, walkaround videos and further details of the car. The car can be viewed by appointment at our West London showroom.