Kirkham Motorsports

The dawn of, what they now call “Slab Side”, first started way back in the 50's when Carroll Shelby used to race cars in Europe and South America.  Back in those days, Shelby always had one dream.  While racing across the heated pavement and daydreaming about the future, he wanted to produce the world's fastest sports car. Shelby Cobra Replica owners still keep the dream alive today and they call it “slab side” when they purchase a new 289 KMS/ Street. 

Kirkham Motorsports was founded in 1995 by brothers David and Thomas Kirkham with the shared goal of creating the world’s finest replica cars.

The two were working to restore their own Cobra CSX3104 when they learned that a relative had purchased and restored a Polish fighter jet. Reportedly after seeing the Cold War relic, the two inquired about the possibility of working with the craftsmen who built the plane to build an exact replica of a Cobra.

They contacted the former jet manufacturer and learned that such a partnership was, in fact, a very real possibility.

With a Cobra toy replica in hand, David Kirkham flew to Warsaw, Poland where he spent a week at the plant, which had produced aircraft for more than 60 years.

When one talks about dream cars, AC’s Shelby Cobra almost always finds a spot in every car enthusiast’s list.  Since it was first manufactured in the early sixties, the cobra has become an icon amongst performance cars. Its unique design and the power and speed it posses has easily made it a symbol of power and class.  It is not surprising then that this car along with its signature dual stripes has long been a favorite of collectors everywhere.  Even Hollywood has shown an affinity to the Cobra, featuring it in movies like Bad Boys, Gone in Sixty Seconds, Austin Powers and the recent box office Iron Man.  Movie directors have used the classic to somehow subliminally exude aggressiveness, masculinity and strength in the characters they create in the big screen.

The Shelby Cobra was pretty much a dream car even on its inception. 

Ever wonder if a car could fly?  Apparently, the designers at Kirkham Motorsports have been wondering the same thing.  They’ve recently taken their designs even one step further in an attempt to make a virtual flyer out of what others thought was nothing but a race car. In fact, those boys at Kirkham have been breeding race cars and jet fighters together for years and it won’t be long before one of these cars actually takes to the sky.  Don’t turn your eyes to the ceiling too quick when you get ready to see the 427 Lemans on the runway.

Two Cobras ready for a few laps around the track. The one on the left is an aluminum bodied car. I would imagine it was from Kirkham Motorsports.

Kirkham Motorsports was founded in 1995 with the mission to build the finest replicas in the world. It all began when brothers, David and Thomas Kirkham, were restoring their own Cobra,CSX3104. At the same time, a relative bought and imported a Polish fighter jet and invited them to see this relic of the Cold War. As the brothers looked at the airplane, they couldn't help but notice the striking similarities between it and CSX3104. They wondered if the people who built the plane could build an exact replica of a Cobra. They found the name of the manufacturer and sent them a fax. The simple note they scribbled read, "Can you guys build an aluminum bodied car?" Within 12 hours, they received the reply, "No problem."