2008 AK Sportscars Cobra

Powered by the legendary 3.5-litre Rover V8 engine, ‘C536 KER’ breathes through a Holley carburettor, exhales through twin side pipes, sits on 17-inch Halibrand alloy wheels, and is piloted via a Mota-Lita steering wheel.

Of course, it also has the all-important twin silver stripes running over the bonnet and down the boot lid, plus tubular bumpers and a rollover hoop.

It therefore looks, sounds, and feels every inch a Cobra.

Albeit a domesticated one because this one’s got full weather equipment, three wind deflectors, a smokey blue metallic finish, and an uncommonly good standard of fit ‘n’ finish.

It’s also showing fewer than 7,500 miles on the odometer, runs and drives well, and is a credit to its owner, who bought it back in 2016.

The fibreglass bodywork is very nicely aligned, with the doors sitting neatly in their apertures and opening and closing easily. They latch securely too, and the rubber seals all look to be plump and pliable still.

There are no dents, dinks, or ripples either and the overall impression is of a well-presented example that sits four-square with a suitably sporting stance.

The smokey blue metallic paintwork is an unusually appealing twist that brings the Cobra’s iconic lines slap-bang into the 21st century. It’s a subtle colour too, and won’t age in the way some of the more, er, ‘period’ colours might.

But there are some delightfully period touches including the 17-inch Halibrand alloys. These are held on with five studs, but the faux centre-lock spinner is more convincing than most, adding to their charm.

They’re also in great shape with no scuffs, scrapes, or other kerbing damage, and only a slight dulling of their finish.

Tyres are Falken GR3 FK451’s all round, with 215/45ZR17 on the front and 245/45ZR17 on the rear. They’re good tyres and were made in Japan – but they were made there in 2003, so are well past their use-by date.

Nonetheless, we will never get tired of telling you that experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly.

The Cobra comes with a black folding roof, which might be a touch rudimentary, but it gets the job done and it is still in a good condition with no rips, holes, or tears.

It clips onto the bodywork securely and the plastic rear screen is bright and clear. The car also comes with two clear door tops that fit equally well and offer a sliding aperture for ventilation and, perhaps, paying toll fees should you venture further afield.

Even more rudimentary is the tonneau cover. Again, it is in a good condition with no damage and has working press-studs and a zip. The Cobra also comes with a pair of wind deflectors that clamp onto the edge of the windscreen plus a removeable deflector that sits behind the seats.

Thus equipped, turbulence is kept to a minimum, so if it were ours, we’d be tempted to leave the roof at home and take just the tonneau; nothing beats a bracing rush of freezing-cold wind around your head and shoulders while your nether regions are kept nice and warm beneath the cover.

It will also serve to keep the cockpit dry when you park it up and keep your belongings out of sight of prying eyes. As you might have guessed, we’re big fans of a tonneau and think its presence is a real boon.

The P700 headlamps are another delightful touch and they, like the other lamp lenses, are free of chips, cracks, and other damage.

Other nice touches include the rear wing protectors, the metal heatshield that protects the bodywork where the side-exit exhausts poke out, a stick-on front numberplate, and the aircraft-style alloy fuel filler cap.

As for its overall condition, some of the chromework is gently tarnished, the windscreen is delaminating, the exhaust tailpipes are pitted, the boot lid’s nearside edge sits proud, and the front end and the area around the fuel filler cap have some chips.

The paintwork is generally very good, although we note it has microblistering across the front and rear wings, the doors, and the scuttle.

The interior is as elegantly simple as you’d expect of a Cobra – and it’s in the sort of condition the coachwork will have led you to expect.

The half-leather ‘Explorer’ seats, for example, are bucket-shaped to hold you securely yet are still very comfortable. There’s no significant damage to them either, not even on the edges where you’d have every right to expect some rubbing.

The restraints are simple Willans harnesses for driver and passenger.

The padded dashboard is a model of clarity and contains a selection of white-on-black instruments that cover speed, distance, engine revs, oil pressure, coolant temperature, battery charge, fuel level, and time.

A row of four warning lights sit above them, five rocker switches sit below them, the starter button sits in the dead centre of the array, and the heater valve control sits to the left.

The wide transmission tunnel is carpeted and forms a handy place to rest your elbow. The rest of the carpets are in a very good condition too, and the passenger has an alloy plate to rest their feet.

The stumpy gearlever, which falls nicely to hand, is topped with an elegant metal gearknob that fills your palm. The steering wheel is a wood-rimmed Moto-Lita, the handbrake sits to the driver’s right, and the foot pedals are made out of drilled alloy, so offer good grip with minimum weight.

The smoked Perspex sunvisors are both elegant and functional, and storage is by way of two elasticated door pockets and a good-sized glovebox in front of the passenger.

Luggage space is good too, making the Cobra a surprisingly sensible choice for a road trip, and the boot is as well-trimmed as the cabin.

Everything we tried worked as should, which isn’t something that is always the case with cars like this.

Oh, and the boot contains an electrical cut-off switch that will do double duty as an anti-theft device and a battery saver.

The Rover V8 is dressed appropriately with Cobra rocker covers and a matching air filter housing for the Holley carburettor. There’s a Ford Racing oil breather cap too, plus a beautifully fabricated expansion tank for the coolant, a Sytec Pro-Flow fuel filter, and a Lumenition ignition system.

It’s also clean and neatly ordered, and the video demonstrates that it starts on the button (literally!) and idles solidly once it has warmed up. It also revs cleanly and does it all with the V8-whoofle that’s an integral part of driving a sportscar like this.

Of course, the exhaust note is sublime; nothing converts dead dinosaurs into noise better than a V8 with semi-silenced side pipes.

However, as you can hear in the video, it doesn’t idle or rev very well when cold so you might like to treat it to a tune-up and a service.

It drives well once it is warm though, and the instruments show a healthy charge to the battery plus decent oil pressure at higher revs.

Peer underneath and you’ll be able to spot coilover suspension, so you will also be able to hone the ride and handling to suit your tastes.

We spied an alloy fuel tank too, which is bolted to a strong, sturdy ladder chassis.

The Cobra doesn’t have a current MoT certificate, the last one having expired in 2022.

The recent Vehicle History Check is clear bar the marker for not having an MoT, and the history file includes a few old invoices plus a good selection of expired MoT certificates.

It’s had three previous keepers.

If you want a visceral open sportscar that makes all the right noises, then you could do far worse than buy a decent Cobra replica.

But the emphasis needs to be on the word ‘decent’ because there are an awful lot of bad ‘uns out there – and even some of the good ‘uns have been so badly neglected as to turn them into undesirables.

Not this one though. This one was made properly and has been looked after well. Yes, it needs a service and a set of new boots, and we’d be tempted to pop an MoT on it too, but the need for this small amount of work is reflected in our guide price of between £25,000 and £30,000.

Which equates to an awful lot of car for the money.

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at THE MARKET HQ in South Oxfordshire. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays (apart from Bank Holidays) between 10am - 12pm or 2pm - 4pm. To make a booking, please use the ‘Enquire About This Vehicle’ button on the listing. Feel free to ask any questions, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.