A 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe has just become the most expensive American car ever sold at auction, and it did so by a huge margin.
The legendary race car sold for $42.905 million at Gooding Christie’s Pebble Beach auction during Monterey Car Week, almost doubling the previous American auction record. That title had belonged to a 1935 Duesenberg SSJ, which sold for $22 million back in 2018.
For any Shelby Daytona Coupe, a massive price would hardly be surprising. Only six were ever built, and they remain some of the most important American racing cars of the 1960s. But this particular example, chassis CSX2300, has a story that makes it special even among the other five.
A Shelby With Serious Racing History
CSX2300 made its competition debut at the 1964 Tour de France Automobile, driven by Bob Bondurant and Jochen Neerpasch. The race did not go Shelby’s way, as the Daytona failed to finish and Ferrari took the top two positions with a pair of 250 GTOs.
The rivalry with Ferrari would soon produce a very different result.
Shelby went on to win the 1965 FIA GT Championship with the Daytona Coupe, giving the American company one of the biggest victories in its history. Once that successful season was over, the Daytona program was brought to a close as Carroll Shelby turned his attention to the Ford GT40.
CSX2300’s racing life was far from finished. The car made its way to Japan in 1966, where it competed in local races and, remarkably for something now worth nearly $43 million, was also regularly driven on public roads.
Only Six Were Built, But This One Is Different
Rarity plays a major role in the Daytona Coupe’s value, with just six examples ever produced. CSX2300 adds another distinction to that already exclusive history because it was the only Daytona Coupe raced by a privateer during its original competition era.
After eight years in Japan, the car caught the attention of Carroll Shelby himself. He purchased it and brought it back to the United States, making CSX2300 the only Daytona Coupe Shelby ever personally owned.
That connection gives the car a level of provenance that is almost impossible to replicate.
It also hasn’t spent its later life hidden away in a climate-controlled garage. The Peter Brock-designed machine has appeared twice at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and three times at the Goodwood Revival, giving enthusiasts the chance to see an incredibly valuable piece of American motorsport history in action.
The Daytona even returned to France to compete in the Tour Auto, bringing its story back to the country where its racing career began decades earlier.
Carroll Shelby was especially proud of what the Daytona Coupe accomplished. He regarded the 1965 championship as one of the greatest achievements of his career, even placing its significance above his own Le Mans victory.
That history helps explain why collectors were willing to push the bidding so high. CSX2300 combines extreme rarity with genuine competition history, a direct personal connection to Carroll Shelby, and a place in the story of how an American racing program took the fight to Ferrari.
Now it has another piece of history attached to its name. At $42.905 million, this Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe isn’t simply an incredibly valuable race car. It is officially the most expensive American car ever sold at auction.
