Unrestored, All Original 'Barn-Find' Cobra Replica

[2FAST4U]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Shelby-Pilgr...US_Cars_Trucks

HAHAHAHA! This is classic! The seller is hawking an unrestored, original replica Cobra and actually believes it is worth $40K. I've had several back and forth emails and he believes his car is more valuable in its rundown, ragged condition than a similar model in pristine condition. He goes on to dis Factory Five as a "snap together" car that is poorly engineered, as well as all other Cobra kit cars. Check out the questions and his delusional answers at the bottom. This car has come up before in 2012 when he called it an original unrestored Shelby Cobra. He claims the body is aluminum but its clearly fiberglass. He also claims (and believes) it is a low production car and not a kit car. He somehow seems to ascribe additional importance and value to the car with the picture a friend took as he was driving next to an original Ferrari 250 GTO.

I told him that no matter how much be verbally polished his "turd", at the end of a day its still just a "turd"

[RM1SepEx]

Funny, he's lucky that Shelby is dead... Should be listed as Pilgrim Cobra Replica. Shelby had nothing to do with this "car". Is it really a 6 cylinder?

[2FAST4U]

Yes, it's a V6. Based on ford Cortina running gear. There is no such thing as a "rare unrestored" replica. Nothing rare about it at all. And being un-restored means that it is run down, ragged, and not taken care of

[2FAST4U]

If you look closely at the pictures you'll see someone moved the fuel filler. Whoever did the modification did a very poor job.

[MPTech]

I saw this one the other day and the more I read the more I wanted to tell the guy he was a Jack-a$$.
He really thinks he has something special and that his is an OEM, NOT a built replica.
I looked and could not find any reference to a Pilgrim manufactured car, before the 80's replica versions.
He may be, but his attitude toward replicas is mis-informed and definitely a put-off.
What a piece of work, the car and him!

Apparently this market doesn't appreciate an honestly presented car, judging from all the crazy and ill-informed emails I've gotten from so many mentally challenged individuals.

Someone sent me an anonymous email stating that all the Kobra Kit Kar forums are castigating me and my car - as if I should care what a bunch of uninformed self aggrandizing buffoons think. It's obvious their only purpose is to impress themselves and peers with how much they really don't know.

NICE

[bil1024]

Never ever will he get that amount, unless some idiot buys it. Anybody going to go look at it ?

[gswartz]

I have saw the car last summer at a few car shows. Its very very very very rough and yes a small engine and a he is right a lot of dings. read the ebay posting and that is the first time I saw a lot of back and forth between the seller and potential buyers with so much negativity.

[skullandbones]

I felt somewhat sorry for this guy, at first, as he probably believes everything he has said about his car and the kit car industry. Unfortunately, he has not kept up with the progression of the hobby and is using old knowledge or hear say to support his rather weak argument. He also got very defensive about it. I was hoping to get some interesting reading but the feedback has turned to bashing the kit car industry. I wonder how he got so off track with his views on Factory Five Racing. He obviously hasn't been reading the automobile news and technical articles. This isn't too hard to understand when you hear things like 26% of Americans didn't know the earth rotates around the sun!

As they say in the south, "God bless his little heart!". (translation" he's an idiot)

WEK.

[tirod]

And by feeding the troll we keep him from being able to learn anything new. It's no wonder he's got a defensive attitude.

I visited the zoo in St. Louis many years ago, and as we approached the primate section, there were a lot of visitors congregating near an old freestanding cage. It had about a dozen chimps in it, and it appeared they were taking exception to the harassment of other bipeds outside the bars.

They were amply armed with an abundance of excrement, which seemed to match the antics of the humans.

That display no longer exists. Apparently the keepers got tired of trying to handle chimps conditioned to expect nothing but harassment from humans.

People get that way, too. So, y'all go ahead and pile on, while the rest of us stand out of harm's way and try to figure out which is which.

[carlewms]

As Ron White says..."You can't fix stupid!

[Ray]

He just replied to my E-bay comments:

My comments:

"I have a question about this vehicle. In the vehicle description, you have the model listed as a "Pilgrim Cobra" but you further describe it as "NOT A KIT CAR." However, here is Pilgrim's web site (http://www.pilgrimcars.com/company.html) and they are clearly a "kit car manufacturer: Pilgrim: What we do. www.pilgrimcars.com/
Manufacturers of Cobra and Porche replica road legal kit cars. Company information and contact details.

Are you sure that the vehicle that you have listed is NOT A KIT CAR? It certainly is not an original, un-restored Shelby/AC Cobra.

I would welcome the opportunity to discuss/debate this if you'd like. You may send a reply and I'll get back to you.

Ray"

His reply:

"But it IS an UNRESTORED and therefore ORIGINAL (Original paint, chrome, upholstery etc) Pilgrim Cobra that was factory built, not an owner assembled kit car. What on earth is so hard to understand?? And since it doesn't present the potential problems regarding insurance, registration, smog etc. that typically plague kit cars what is so hard to understand about my car?? You may not like it (and I doubt you would if you saw and drove it) but there's no reason to disparage it. It is a 1977 Pilgrim. 971-998-2703"

[bil1024]

He just replied to my E-bay comments:

My comments:

"I have a question about this vehicle. In the vehicle description, you have the model listed as a "Pilgrim Cobra" but you further describe it as "NOT A KIT CAR." However, here is Pilgrim's web site (http://www.pilgrimcars.com/company.html) and they are clearly a "kit car manufacturer: Pilgrim: What we do. www.pilgrimcars.com/
Manufacturers of Cobra and Porche replica road legal kit cars. Company information and contact details.

Are you sure that the vehicle that you have listed is NOT A KIT CAR? It certainly is not an original, un-restored Shelby/AC Cobra.

I would welcome the opportunity to discuss/debate this if you'd like. You may send a reply and I'll get back to you.

Ray"

His reply:

"But it IS an UNRESTORED and therefore ORIGINAL (Original paint, chrome, upholstery etc) Pilgrim Cobra that was factory built, not an owner assembled kit car. What on earth is so hard to understand?? And since it doesn't present the potential problems regarding insurance, registration, smog etc. that typically plague kit cars what is so hard to understand about my car?? You may not like it (and I doubt you would if you saw and drove it) but there's no reason to disparage it. It is a 1977 Pilgrim. 971-998-2703"

I see what he is saying, since the factory built it its not a kit, kits are only considered a kit if assembled by a customer! HUH? Give hime a call Ray ! But I doubt you will get anywhere with him.

[2FAST4U]

I see what he is saying, since the factory built it its not a kit, kits are only considered a kit if assembled by a customer! HUH? Give hime a call Ray ! But I doubt you will get anywhere with him.

You can buy a turnkey Cobra from several manufacturers. That doesn't make them low production originals. His "replica" was made from used parts. And you can't have an unrestored barn find replica.

[68GT500MAN]

Hey Bill I think that you have a new friend! This is his response to a question:
Dear 68gt500man,

In many cases you're right - some kit cars are extremely well built and properly engineered and I've never meant to imply that there is something 'tainted' about all of them, per se.' I have owned a number of kit cars, from some very early 1950s fiberglass specials such as you would see in a Mechanics Illustrated or similar magazine 50 - 55 years ago, such as Devin, Victress and LaDawri to some very new designs. I hope to someday own a RHD Hawk 289 Cobra. I've imported quite a few Lomax and NG kits from England too. But there are situations where registering/insuring or just plain regularly driving a kit car can be problematic . . and there have been people 'victimized' by unscrupulous eBay sellers who have had to unload cars that for one reason or another cannot be registered in a particular state or can't be insured at anything approaching reasonable rates. It happens. It won't happen with my car however. Yes, it's a replica. Yes it's a fake, but no, it is not a kit car - it was not assembled from a pile of parts in someone's backyard or driveway. It is an original unrestored fake with genuine patina, heck it's almost 40 years old, but no, it is not a kit car. eBay is a vicious market, filled with unscrupulous sellers and fraudulent buyers and even someone trying to honestly portray their car can get crucified by philistines who mistake their nescience for cleverness. Self-appointed 'experts' trying to hide behind a veil of anonymous emails - but ask ol' Billy Dobbins how effective that hiding strategy is! Again, I'm not trying to hide anything or evade anyone - my phone number has been out there from the beginning - 97I-998-27O3. How many other eBay sellers do that? Do you really want to do business with someone who won't talk to you?

Doug

[2FAST4U]

Yeah, I saw that. I got under his skin. He called me on the phone and told me he was getting tired of my ***tty emails. I told him what he can do with himself.

He firmly believes he has some valuable piece of history. He just doesn't understand that replicas are not originals. There is nothing that makes them valuable like an original Cobra. Unrestored only applies to original cars, not replicas. And his isn't even accurate.

[2FAST4U]

HAHAHAHAHA that worn out, ratty, neglected "original" kit car didn't sell despite him sending me an email that he had a buyer lined up. Now he can put that POS turd back in the barn where it belongs.