The 28th annual edition of the American Handcrafted Auto Show was held this year at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California on Saturday and Sunday April 28th and 29th. The AHC show is always interesting but it was even more fun than usual this year because after the Knott's Berry Farm exhibition a special cruise to the Huntington Beach Pier was held. Once there the cars were to reassemble for the second half of the show. As usual Factory Five Racing was a strong presence and there were several other manufacturers as well. Factory Five brought several new and interesting cars with them for show at their busy exhibit.
The level of craftsmanship on most of the vehicles in attendance was amazing with spectacular project results to be seen everywhere we turned. The big block Cobras were dominant this year but there were other Ford product replicas also including but not limited to the GT 40, Shelby Daytona Coupes, and even the '32 Ford. While we can't show you each and every beautiful car we saw we did shoot photos of some of our favorites. Come take a stroll with and we'll show you just a few of the cars we thought were of particular interest.
We decided to begin our tour...
We decided to begin our tour of the show at the Factory Five trailer and work our way around in a great circle back to it. For starters Factory Five had a superb trio of their Daytona coupes on exhibit and they were awesome. Looking just like the original race cars reincarnated the Factory Five Daytona Coupe replica is just the ticket if you've got a hankering to outrun your neighbor's ZO6.
The Factory Five Daytona Coupe...
The Factory Five Daytona Coupe replica is called the Type 65 Coupe. We especially liked this car with its racing sponsor graphics, interesting wheels and white side exhaust. Install a healthy Windsor in this car and it will go 0 to 60 in well under four seconds. Expect a top end around 180 mph if you've got the right gearing and the nerve.
As we moved further away from...
As we moved further away from the Factory Five headquarters we began to see some Cobras. This British Racing Green Cobra is from Factory Five and is a good example of the traditional look. In the bright sunlight this is beautiful color. We'll bet it looks even better at twilight.
Inside this Cobra the saddle...
Inside this Cobra the saddle colored leather continues the overall traditional look of this beautiful car. Black faced gauges and the original style wooden steering wheel complete the journey back to 1965.
The next Cobra we came upon...
The next Cobra we came upon was also a Factory Five unit but this time the look seemed to have a more modern thrust to it. We thought the light blue metallic paint was a winner along with the modern Mustang GT five spoke aluminum wheels. We're sure the double roll hoops give the passenger a sense of security.
Inside this Cobra the modern...
Inside this Cobra the modern theme was continued. The whole instrument panel surface has been carbon fiber enhanced while the instruments themselves are the latest in white faced gauges from Auto meter. Even the traditional steering wheel has been ditched in favor of a padded leather covered wheel. We think that both of these Cobra owners succeeded in creating beautiful cars while following obviously different visions.