This glorious 5.8 Ford Cobra somehow ended up in the USA before returning home for a resto as Guy Allen found out when he met up with Sean Santoro.
It’s impossible to ignore the sight of an XC Cobra Falcon Hardtop rolling down the road, thanks to its flamboyant Ford race livery and sheer bulk.
In one of our online features on this series, we note: “Bigger and more brawny than Holden’s smoother, more gentle looking HQ Monaro, the Hardtop was available with engines from a 200ci/3.3-litre six to the mighty 351ci/5.8-litre V8 and was updated with the remainder of the Falcon/Fairmont range to XB and then
XC specs.
“The ultimate – it was definitely the last – was the Cobra. A limited edition suggested to Ford Australia by Ford marketing executive Edsel Ford II, 400 were built with only the 4.9 and 5.8-litre V8s available.
“With two-door sales slumping – but the famous 1-2 Hardtop win at Bathurst ’77 fresh in many buyers’ minds – the Cobra was a look-at-me car and a nice way to sell-off the last Hardtop panel sets. The newly arriving XD Falcon for 1979 wasn’t to include a coupe/hardtop.”
Long-term car nut Sean Santoro had to have one, and takes up the tale: The story of this car is a bundle of coincidences – there is some sort of lucky charm at work.
This car was bought by a guy called George Forbes (from Victoria) – he and his brother bought two. This went through a couple of sets of hands and then was sent to the USA in 2006. These sorts of Australian muscle cars were on the rise at the time and there were one or two Australians making a living out of sourcing them and shipping them across to enthusiasts in the USA.
I have some photos of it sitting next to a Mustang in the deep south of the USA at a time when it was getting prepped to be sold. Then the GFC came along and the prices collapsed.
When I was looking for one, a mate of mine said he had heard of one in the USA, and I asked how we got it back. Weirdly, it had also been seen by George in the USA, when he happened to cross paths with its then owner.
Eventually we managed to ship it back and restore it, and save it. A mate of mine in Werribee in Victoria did a full nut-and-bolt rebuild of the mechanical side.
Fortunately the body was pretty good and able to be saved with a bit of panel work and some touch-ups. The panels and paint are largely original.
We had to get a front spoiler and we had to redo the 3M decals.
Incredibly there was a bolt of cloth in the back which I found out was bought with the car, by George. It was enough to retrim it! He just had the foresight to think one day it might be hard to find and, given the material was made in Switzerland, it’s now very hard to get as it was an exclusive run. Six metres of that cloth would now be worth thousands.
The best way to do a restoration is do it in conjunction with someone who has a workshop, because if you can use their tools and not have to set up and take down every time you do something, if you have access to a hoist, it makes life a lot easier.
When we took the gearbox and diff out, we could see where the original Quality Control (QC) marks had been and were able to redo them. All the markings were put back.
My Dad played a major role in the restoration. He was a mechanic, though he worked in an office job, and used to fix cars on weekends for extra cash. This car is a symbol of the father-son relationship. It’s about family and the good times you have with cars. When it came to restoring it, he gave me advice and helped with the motivation to get it done. We were able to take it to a recent motor show in Melbourne. It was really a street-machine style of show, but we put it on display anyway.
It was a great moment for Dad and me to see it still gets attention and a lot of love. Young kids love it. You can drive this thing around and get waved at by every man and his dog, but you drive a Lamborghini Hurricane or similar and people have more mixed views.
I got the opportunity to drive it around Bathurst on its 45th anniversary. Even the flag marshalls loved it. Bystanders in Bathurst are enamored with it – you roll it through the streets and they just love it.
People generally go for the XY GT 351 – that’s their go-to classic. But this thing is iconic and really stands out visually.
It’s done a few car rallies and it has been reunited with George – we found each other through social media. He had retired and was traveling around Australia with his wife. There was a Hardtop Hustle in Noosa, Queensland, which happened to coincide with the day George was coming through on their trip.
I’ve had Allan Moffat sit in it and sign it and he made my wife promise that she wouldn’t see it sold. He said: “Promise me one thing – never ask him to sell this car!”
It’s part of my family – I’ve had it since my daughter was born, which was 17 years ago.
I’ve got photos of family trips with it, where she’s getting her nappy changed in the boot – so there is no way it is ever leaving the family. There are too many stories about it.
By today’s standards, it’s not fast but it’s got a beautiful exhaust note. I wish it hadn’t been stifled so much for emissions. This one is standard and you can easily free them up.
What’s it like to drive? Stunning. It’s comfortable – I’ve driven it from Brisbane to Melbourne and back. I’ve done a lot of country miles in it and you can cruise all day. The air-conditioning and heater work beautifully.
It has power steering, air, electric windows and four-wheel disc brakes. If you compare this to any other car of the era, it’s quite modern. It has a huge boot and, even though it’s a coupe, the rear seats are spacious.
If you’re in the market for one, beggars can’t be choosers – you may have to deal with whatever you get as there aren’t many for sale. Every one of them has a story.
If I had a choice, I would probably go with a 5.8lt four-speed manual, but that wasn’t available. Every one of them will have an awesome story behind it and you’ll have to invest in it to keep it. Unless you happen a perfect one.
The community around them is fantastic and there are always events to go to. You can take it to a classic-car meet, Parts are easy to get and you don’t have to be precious with it. It’s a Falcon, and an awesome classic to own!
