Bill Thomas' Legendary CHEETAH - Evolution of the World's Fastest Cat - Stacey David's Gearz S9 E5

[@godchi1dvonsteuben770]

The most beautiful car I've ever seen...

[@johnderekmitchell1510]

Those guys, drivers, had some BIG BRASS ONES!

[@starmanskye]

I had a blue Cheetah back in '67-68. Fastest damn car I ever owned and drove. Would be worth a small fortune today. On a lark, gave it to my sexy HS English teacher who drove a souped-up 'stang. My best slot-car ever, maybe helped get me an 'A' in class. Ah, to be 17 again ....

[@HowardKelsey68]

Actually, the wooden rollers Stacey fabricates and mounts on the Cheetah Evolution in this video are high-tech! I saw this crazy car on TV the other day with stone wheels! The driver yelled something like,"Yabba-dabba-doo" as he peddled off!

[@rickstormer2852]

i just had the thrill of a life time we have the 16th cheeta built in car collection i look after and got it running and drove on the road on Friday what a thrill great channel!!

[@godchi1dvonsteuben770]

Everybody knows that Carroll Shelby had the Cheetah plant burnt down, right??

[@BoatLakeHouseKids]

AWESOME SHOW BROTHER!!! My family cannot get enough!! keep them coming!!

[@troybrown6012]

would love to see a retro cheetah made. My favorite car ever.

[@kurtl8425]

Cheetah Evolution

[@fanghicheck]

i still have my little slot car HO CHEETAH somewhere , i think the motor was like a 377ci sbc ?

[@MrMakemyday3]

377 was in the 63 vette grand sport

[@daveburchfield9105]

The #64has a 327/375 with fuel injection. I have known the car since new.

[@jeffschwartz5199]

Hey Stacy , I'm a big fan of your show , but you saying it blew the Cobra off , when did that happen?

[@rileypaterson7117]

Nice to see uploads

[@mrc4912]

Beautiful car: looks like a cross between a Jaguar roadster and a Corvette done tastefully.

[@paulmokidespaul5347]

Nice car...you do good work!

[@OfficialStaceyDavid]

Thank you!

[@geraldstephens6612]

Perhaps Mr David can do a video about how Chevy engineers were constantly getting around the GM ban on building & racing .

[@voltron63]

love the full vids

[@Joaephw336]

Great video

[@domenicozagari2443]

You can put an electric water pump that pumps when needed and saves you parts and power.

[@grampasmurf4761]

Good show!!! I believe that you missed The beginning of the story . Carol Shelby , upon the original designing of the Cobra , approached Chevrolet asking them to supply the engines for the Cobra . Mr. Corvette ( Zora Duntoff ) refused because that it would compete with his Corvette . Carol Shelby , went to plan "B" . Shelby approached Ford . Ford racing was on it's way !

[@michaelrevis1191]

*Duntov

[@addiumuppicus5738]

Listen up , this was not a Chevy . Actually Chevy or Ford or both burned down the factory so he couldn't build the car . There were molds for the original body in Tampa Florida back in the mid eighties . . . .

[@rabiamaysam1965]

Grampa Smurf to

[@StarChaser027]

Carroll also pitched his own version of Corvette (1959 Scaglietti Corvette) with more Euro styling, GM's top brass didn't like the idea of Shelby having his own Corvette...

[@ToJuRacing]

We gave a Cheetah slot car. It's the fastest car on the track. Race On!

[@robertsmith.472]

where can I get one of those Volkswagen bus at the end of the video

[@bobdambra4421]

215 mph at Sebring you state? Where is the time slip documents.

[@jojojack4975]

I watched a chaparral beat the Cobras at Walkins Glen sometime early 1960's. Possibly 64 or 65 . The Cheetah looks really unstable in the curves.

[@AtropalArbaal-dk8jv]

Those front fenders look like the car, at speed, would pop wheelies.

[@MrMakemyday3]

gm pulling out wasn't the real reason the car was not developed further...the shop burned down with about 17 cars inside

[@fanghicheck]

that is past horrible ?

[@addiumuppicus5738]

Absolutely ! Finally someone who remembers ! This is a case of the ' victors ' rewriting history . . . was about engines etc being pulled out it was about dirty deeds that stopped it's production . A buddy of mine was trying to get the last known molds for this body . They were in a shop in Tampa Florida . My buddy designed and built the ' oscelot ' race cars that held the 2/liter record at Watkins Glenn for six or seven years straight. Larry S. They started out with the old two stroke water buffalo engines and went on from there . . .Wound up running the Ford OHC 2000 cc power plants in open wheeled cars . Fast ! ! ! Be well .

[@tphvictims5101]

The Ford Daytona was nicer the cheetah was BEAUTIFUL.

[@AtropalArbaal-dk8jv]

Daytona COBRA. It was still a Cobra.

[@MrMakemyday3]

WRONG!!! the reason it was discontinued , dork, was because thomas's shop burned with most all the cheetahs and parts inside

[@Devilicus07]

GM's racing history in the 60's and 70's is filled with a lot of "almosts" Also there mindset of nothing can be made better than our corvettes. It limited any real innovation from happening

[@OlympusHeavyCavalry]

I think that the "almost cars' from chevy were used to improve on existing models sadly. I say this as the Cheetah share similar features to the early-mid 60's-onwards style corvettes. It's a real shame that corvettes took precedence over a better looking and performing car as I've never been a fan of corvettes after the C1 and never will be.

[@lokisgodhi]

Later than the 60s and 70s and beyond racing. I read an article in a hot rod magazine circa 2000 about how the GM W bodies could easily fit on the F body platforms. GM could have been making RWD muscle coupes and sedans from 1988 on with V8s and manual transmissions to compete with the likes of the Ford Taurus SHO and Chrysler LeBaron GTS and GTC. Imagine modern GTOs, Chevelles, 442s etc with V8 rwd muscle. They would have owned the market segment hands down. But GM being GM passed.

[@user-neo71665]

I bleed chevy orange but they tended to shoot and then nail their own feet to the floor nonstop when they could have been leading. They were the first of the big 3 to come out with production fuel injection. They were leaders in big block power for years. They actually was involved in road racing before others. They coulda took a cue from Yenko or Baldwin and ran things but insisted on trying to play it safe. Mr Shelby actually went to chevy first to power the cobras but gm pissed it away. Ford and Shelby actually built racer's cars for the street. Dodge bucked the small engine rule gm liked and built big power in small cars. GM could have been playing dirty putting all aluminum 427s in camaros and novas they were getting left in the dust.

[@jedidethfreak]

Speaking of "nothing can be better than our corvettes," I can only imagine how much GM execs HATED that Pontiac won the 1963 Manufacturer's cup with a modified Tempest, beating out 6 Corvettes, 2 equipped with 427 Mystery Motors.

[@bigblocklawyer]

Our government forced GM to have many almosts. Chevrolet outsold all of Ford and many other OEMs combined...let alone GM as a whole. Congress threatened to break up GM making Chevy its own brand because there was no competition and Chevy winning so many races only sold more cars, making congress even more concerned. Now of course, that's all changed with Microsoft. If GM had not abandoned racing, the cobra, the hemi, caroll shelby and so many other non GM performance programs wouldn't be a blip. The small block (and big block) Chevy V8, are some of the most prolific and successful product ever produced, automotive or otherwise. Certainly, GM has been its own worst enemy since the beginning. And yet its success is undeniable.

[@AaronRhodeen]

I would like to see a true mid - engine Cheetah. Also, there is a guy on KZbin who has an L - 88 powered Cheetah. Insane!

[@jeffpark4256]

I sat in one when I was a kid at a car show in Seattle, there's no way I could have driven it, I was way too tall, these were built for little people, lol.

[@andremessier7619]

hello mr stacy yes cool project what happen to the cougars was there any pay back day and being driven on the street yet?second you benchaee is possible to change the engine to the 3.5 liter ecoboost ? that would be a nice touch to it

[@davidstansell3463]

Can you still buy one as a kit car

[@tphvictims5101]

David Stansell , if you have the $ any car can be purchased in kit form.

[@edwhitson9873]

Id hate to crash one. As beautiful and fast as it is, itd be a deathtrap

[@lokisgodhi]

Except if you talk to Brits they'll vehemently claim that the Cobra is British because it's based on the AC Ace.

[@AtropalArbaal-dk8jv]

It IS an AC Ace. Just with beefed up frames, and pushrod V-8s.

[@detomasopantera1966]

Nothing like a Cobra...👌👌👌

[@marktoombs6276]

Thank God

[@dylano7242]

Factory five makes great component kits pakages. And proven on road and track with the 65 Daytona, gtm, 818, cobra models. The 65 Daytona being the best still with its iconic looks If some one made a component kit of the cheetah be a interesting build too.

[@SofaKingTouge]

This car and layout are just begging to be made AWD. If you look at the R32-R35 layout it's very similar. Engine is further forward but very similar layout.

[@jack-wl8uj]

No room at all for transfer case.

[@paulbeck6410]

Shelby was planning on building a big block Daytona but the plug got pulled to race the GT40's. Called the Super Coupe. One was built but not completed until well after Shelby-American closed its doors. The Super Coupe was going to neuter the Cheetah but never came to be.

[@randykirchhevel7311]

There was 6 Daytona Shelby coupes built by Carroll Shelby's workers Pete Brock.

[@jimmieroan9881]

you might want to check your sources, all those 427 daytona coupes didn't just hatch.

[@paulbeck6410]

@@jimmieroan9881 you should check your sources. There were 5 289 Daytona coupes built. A 6th chassis was built to take a 427 side oiler but when one of the five was sidelined, the 427 was shortened and made into the sixth 289 Daytona. The type 65 as it was called, was built to take a 427 and designed off a 427 Cobra. It was not finished due to the GT40's being raced. The type 65 was sold by Shelby at their garage sale when Shelby got out of the car business. It was later finished with advice by Peter Brock. There were six 289 Daytonas built by Shelby. And one 427 Daytona.

[@darrellsomers5427]

There was one super cheetah that was big block powered aluminium body car but it was never finished ,but it now has been finished

[@AtropalArbaal-dk8jv]

You do realize the Daytona was only beaten by the 7 liter GT40s?

[@gentilejoshsaved1646]

great

[@pierremitham2964]

"High quality" fiberglass body...made with a chopper gun...Sure!

[@user-neo71665]

You forgot the part where he said hand laid then showed squirting it on with a chopper gun.

[@gregorytimmons4777]

@@user-neo71665 Often they will lay a few mat then chop over it.

[@markdorman52]

May have been a chopped 1st coat then a couple layers of cloth. This is a fast way to do a good job, as matt is not pieced in chunk by chunk, plenty of time to squeegee out excess resin. Cloth in direct contact with gel coat can lead to print - through. Ever done any glassworks - big molds, full bodies?

[@Matthew19002]

What if I'm working on a bicycle XD

[@JB91710]

Porsche 917/10 Can Am Car. kzbin.info/www/bejne/aqCmhomifNuIqLM kzbin.info/www/bejne/mHPWhKZul7WlhZo

[@kmsupercars]

I have owned many weird cars, but never a Cheetah?

[@prun8893]

If a Corvette C2 had coitus with a Jaguar XKE.

[@ThunderboltFan2000]

It’s all fun and games till the cheetah flips on its roof

[@AtropalArbaal-dk8jv]

Or its windows blow out at 100 mph... Lousy design.

[@charlesharper7292]

Steering and suspension wasn't Corvette. Rack and pinion steering, and front and rear suspension was designed after a lotus the had at the garage. And drum brakes! 😬

[@allenlumeyer2428]

Ralph Salyer himself told me the front suspension was Tempest and that it was crap.

[@loilt5091]

The Cheetah...a feline with a fantastic voice & no ass. 🇨🇦

[@clifflee5404]

It's like an American equivalent to the lotus 7 or catherham. Except there's a roof lol

[@allenlumeyer2428]

No, it's not.

[@randykirchhevel7311]

Shelby wanted to work for Chevy to build his race car but Chevy turned him but then he went to Ford and they supplied him with Engines and drive trains.

[@terryduncan5718]

Not many people know that...Ole Shelby knew who had the horsepower

[@jimholthaus9025]

I really like this car. However, I've heard the floorboard really gets hot because they are so close to headers. So hot that would shrink the leather of your shoes!

[@allenlumeyer2428]

Not the floorboard. It's the entire footwell.

[@ricardo8891]

Yippee kyaka MO FO.

[@KnolltopFarms]

Says measurements are extremely precise...then shows a guy using a carpenter's tape measure, LOL!

[@jack-wl8uj]

If you're measuring above nano scale, perfectly accurate.

[@Graham_Wideman]

... adjusts dimensions with hammer... haha

[@dannykrinkle4726]

Let's see the car you built from scratch.

[@jimthvac100]

I am sure there was a lot more precise measuring done than just that one measurement you seen in the video.

[@Coyotehello]

It is always a laugh to see these AC Cobra videos saying the car from Shelby is an USA legend when it is only a stolen design from AC UK manufacturer. The Cheeta on the other hand is a true legend.

[@allenlumeyer2428]

Cheetah.

[@AtropalArbaal-dk8jv]

Stop calling the Cobra a Shelby. It was a Ford.

[@charlesharper7292]

Dodge Viper killer!

[@allenlumeyer2428]

30 years earlier.

[@ronniemchone8473]

lol..could never compete with the legendary COBRA

[@rollinbowtie1]

Ronnie McHone you obviously do not know anything about a 427 tunnel port motor... the top speed of true ac cobra is only 164mph... the cheetah had 100 less cubic inches and 200 less horsepower and can and did well over 215mph... also the factory caught fire and they ad no backing from gm like Shelby did from ford...

[@biaggiwins]

Ronnie McHone lol did you comment before watching video?

[@Buelligan88]

Ronnie McHone is correct. The Cheetah won some minor races and probably came out ahead of a Cobra roadster or two, but the record speaks for itself, the Cobra was clearly superior with a much more successful racing record. Also the top speed comparison between the Cheetah Daytona Coupe doesn't take into consideration the Daytona has an engine nearly 100 cubic inches smaller than the Cheetah. The Daytona Coupes are quite possibly the most valuable cars ever constructed in the US, whereas the Cheetah will always be an odd side note that had limited success before the whole venture collapsed.

[@1183newman]

Jack Griffith also built the TVR Griffith 200 and later 400 in an attempt to replicate the success of the Cobra. Griffith was a responsible for importing the cars from AC used in the creation of the Cobra and decided to import his own small british sports car and shoe horn a v8 into

[@pbford71]

Got your facts backwards Rollinbowtie1. The Cheetah ran a 377ci motor vs. 289ci in AC Cobras, with a roughly 200hp advantage & a lot less drag than the Cobra Roadsters. The "factory team" 427 Cobra is a different animal and they ran the "high riser" motors whereas the "street" 427 Cobra ran a more "civilized" 427. Give the Daytona Coupe an extra 100 or so hp and it would be just as fast or faster than the Cheetahs. I'm not knocking the Cheetah they were great race cars, but hate it when ppl get the facts wrong.

[@Buzbikebklyn1]

What ISN'T this guy selling? Ok, I know that getting and running a channel isn't easy, it's expensive. But EVERY single item is hard rapped for sale? Finish the God Damned Cheetah! I hope you don't drive this slow because your as slow as SHIT!

[@fredere1993]

Yawn . All your videos are like over the top adverts

[@Bluddphart]

Considering Stace's production company pays for everything I don't see that as a problem. He's totally independent from networks and has to raise money somehow, at least he doesn't have some suited network bigwig telling him what he can and can't build on his show.

[@cch201992]

i like the adverts gives me ideas for things i might need or want

[@novaman3509]

Alan Rose No issues with the ads on his show, as they are all things that real car guys might be interested in.

[@bobbowie9350]

Are they subpar products? Just wondering...

[@JohnHall-uv2jm]

This Badass Ride or The Legendary mako shark Should have been brought back before turning what was our Best automotive accomplishment in my eyes The Chevrolet Corvette. Now at first glance It looks like a Ferrari. So instead of something unique and all ours. Now we have a copy of a foreign car company. They Sold Out for Greed. Just like that other trader that wants to ruin our Country and is doing a damn good job of it 🤬 makes me wanna 😢 Not about the shit vette. I'd rather have a chevette. Least I know it's an American design and not foreign

[@mikeburks9641]

the cobra was much better looking. this piece of crap weighed 1500 lbs. put the mighty 427 side oiler in a 1500 lb car and it would have done 250 at Daytona easy. chevy had its success back in the day but this was a never was. cobra was king.

[@gregorytimmons4777]

This "piece of crap" never had the advantage of any real R&D or factory support. Once Thomas shop burned the plug was pulled on the contract relegating the Cheetah to little more than footnote status. With that 90" wheelbase it likely never would have been the equal of a Cobra but as they said, it did start racking up some victories but the twitchy handling would have always been a liability for most drivers.

[@jrpellerin]

I love the shape of the car but never a legend, it never won Le mans, yes the engine is fast but lots of issue though, for sure it will broke!