This is one of a few dozen examples of the DRB540 Cobra that were ever made, and if it looks strangely familiar to you, that’s because it was closely based on the wildly popular Ford Shelby Cobra Concept from 2004 – a car that never made it into production.
This DRB540 is powered by a XR8 Falcon-sourced 5.4 liter “Boss 260” V8, delivering 349 bhp to the rear wheels – plenty of power given that the curb weight is just 1350 kgs (2,976 lbs) thanks to its aluminum monocoque chassis and lightweight fiberglass body.
Fast Facts: The DRB540 Cobra
- The DRB540 Cobra is an Australian-built reinterpretation of the 2004 Ford Shelby Cobra Concept, a Detroit show car that never reached production. Styled to closely mirror the concept’s proportions and modernized 1960s cues, the DRB540 translated Ford’s one-off design into a limited-run, road-legal kit and turnkey offering built in Queensland, Australia.
- Developed by Denis Bedford’s DRB Sports Cars, founded in 1973, the 540 followed earlier models including the Sabre, Taipan, GT40, and the widely sold DRB Cobra replica. Bedford’s team studied images and scale models of the original concept before producing a full-size mock-up, ultimately engineering a production-ready version for Australian enthusiasts.
- Unlike traditional ladder-frame Cobra replicas, the DRB540 uses a welded aluminium monocoque chassis clothed in a fiberglass body. Donor components were sourced from the Ford Falcon XR8, including drivetrain, suspension, brakes, wiring, and electronics. Features carried over included ABS, traction control, power steering, air conditioning, and factory emissions systems.
- Power typically comes from the Falcon XR8-sourced 5.4 liter “Boss 260” V8. In this example, output is quoted at 349 bhp at the rear wheels, paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. With a curb weight of approximately 1,350 kgs (2,976 lbs), performance is respectable. Total production is believed to be between 30 and 37 cars, making the DRB540 a rare sight even within Australia’s specialist kit car scene.
History Speedrun: The DRB540 Cobra
When Ford unveiled the Ford Shelby Cobra Concept at the 2004 Detroit Auto Show, it was never intended for anything even resembling a production run. The car was a dramatic reinterpretation of the 1960s Cobra formula with a sweeping hood, prominent side pipes, and a decidedly muscular stance, but it was all built around modern Ford engineering.
This is one of a few dozen examples of the DRB540 Cobra that were ever made, and if it looks strangely familiar to you, that’s because it was closely based on the wildly popular Ford Shelby Cobra Concept from 2004 – a car that never made it into production.
The Cobra Concept was powered by a 6.8 liter DOHC V10 and featured a rear-mounted transaxle and had suspension parts from the Ford GT. The use of a V10 engine was likely a way of Ford thumbing their nose at the Dodge Viper, a sports car that had debuted years earlier as an interpretation of the Shelby Cobra – and with Carroll Shelby’s blessing.
The Cobra Concept became known internally as “Project Daisy,” and although it generated huge amounts of positive press, significant interest from Ford dealers, and a lot of enthusiasm from the general public, it remained a one-off showpiece that would end up in a museum.
Denis Bedford Gets To Work
That decision not to build a production version of the concept car left a gap, and in Australia a man named Denis Bedford (of DRB Sportscars in Queensland) decided to roll up his sleeves and fill it.
DRB Sports Cars had been founded by Denis back in 1973 to build kit cars and low-volume production sports cars. Early models included the DRB Sabre and DRB Taipan, which were followed by the DRB GT40 and the DRB Cobra – the latter of which would go on to become the best selling Cobra replica in Australia with over 350 kits sold.
As a result of all this, Denis was well positioned to actually take the Ford Shelby Cobra Concept and turn it into a road legal reality. Images and scale models of the concept car were studied closely and eventually a 1:1 scale model began to take shape.
This DRB540 is powered by a XR8 Falcon-sourced 5.4 liter “Boss 260” V8, delivering 349 bhp to the rear wheels – plenty of power given that the curb weight is just 1350 kgs (2,976 lbs) thanks to its aluminum monocoque chassis and lightweight fiberglass body.
DRB540 Cobra: Specifications
The engineering team at DRB developed a new welded aluminium monocoque chassis for the car, offering excellent stiffness and low weight, with the added benefit of being impervious to rust. A fiberglass mold was created and the first body was made and fitted over the chassis, and the DRB540 Cobra prototype began to really take shape.
In order to make the car affordable and realistically buildable by Australian home mechanics, it was decided early on to source the car’s drivetrain, suspension, interior, wiring loom, and brakes from the popular Ford Falcon XR8 sedan – a common sight on Australian roads and an easy car to find as a donor.
The car even made use of the ABS, traction control, power steering, air-conditioning, and emissions equipment of the XR8 – resulting in a polished package by kit car standards. It was possible to build the car as either a manual or an automatic depending on the donor car, and the final curb weight was around 1350 kgs (2,976 lbs).
It’s not known exactly how many DRB540s were built, some sources say 30 and others 37, but whichever it is the total figure is around three dozen, making it a rare car even by Australian kit car standards.
It’s believed that no American specification left-hand drive models were ever built. This may seem surprising at first given the almost guaranteed popularity that the car would have enjoyed Stateside, but it may have come down to the fact that there simply wasn’t a left-hand drive version of the XR8 to use as a donor.
The car you see here is one of the original examples of the DRB540 Cobra finished in orange with a black folding roof, and a black fabric-trimmed interior that will be immediately recognizable as a Falcon interior from the period.
The fact that no production version of the original Ford Shelby Cobra Concept was ever offered has helped to elevate the DRB540 above the realm of just another replica. If you wanted a Cobra Concept, the only option you had was to order a kit, buy yourself a Ford Falcon XR8, and get to work in your shed. Well, DRB did also offer a turnkey version for around $100,000 AUD, but most buyers went the kit route.
We do see examples of the DRB540 Cobra come up for sale in Australia every two to three years or so, they’re rare cars and their owners tend to hang onto them long term, so even those with the money and the will often have to wait for one to become available.
The DRB540 Cobra Shown Here
The car you see here is one of the original examples of the DRB540 Cobra finished in orange with a black folding roof, and a black fabric-trimmed interior that will be immediately recognizable as a Falcon interior from the period.
Power is provided by a rebuilt XR8 Falcon-sourced 5.4 liter “Boss 260” V8, delivering 349 bhp to the rear wheels via a 6-speed automatic transmission. The car rides on chrome 18 inch Raceline alloy wheels, shod with Accelera tires.
The car has a dual exhaust system, cruise control, a built-in CD stereo, a central infotainment system, air conditioning, and integrated roll hoops mounted behind the seats for a little extra safety.
The car has a dual exhaust system, cruise control, a built-in CD stereo, a central infotainment system, air conditioning, and integrated roll hoops mounted behind the seats for a little extra safety.
It’s now being offered for sale out of Melbourne, Victoria on Collecting Cars and it comes with an assembly manual, an engineering report, an emissions test report, an Australian Government seatbelt anchorages report, and more. If you’d like to read more about it or register to bid you can visit the listing here.
Images courtesy of Collecting Cars
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
