RARE AND RACE-BRED: This Q-Code Cobra Jet Mustang checks all the boxes

December 14, 2017
Posted by Barrett-Jackson

Written by Barbara Toombs

This incredibly rare piece of Mustang history will be crossing the block in Scottsdale – a 1969 Ford Mustang Q-Code 428 Cobra Jet 4-Speed Convertible (Lot #1420).

The year was 1969. Richard Nixon was in office and “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” dominated the big screen. Three months before Neil Armstrong planted man’s first footprint on the moon, a very special Mustang was born, destined to make history on the racetrack. Now, this extraordinary Ford Mustang Q-Code 428 Cobra Jet 4-speed convertible (Lot #1420) will be writing the next chapter of its history on the Barrett-Jackson auction block.

Detroit automakers were in a race to see who could produce the most powerful muscle car in 1969, and Ford president “Bunkie” Knudsen “ponied” up in a big way. That year was unquestionably one of power and performance for the Ford Mustang, with 10 different engine configurations offered – and among them was the 428ci Cobra Jet. Modified to the NHRA Stock and Super Stock technical specs, that engine made its drag racing debut, ripping up the track at the eighth annual NHRA Winternationals in February 1968 at the L.A. County Fairgrounds in Pomona, California, under the hood of six Mustangs sponsored by Ford.

In April 1969, this Mustang Q-Code was produced – the “Q” meaning it had a 428 CJ non-Ram Air engine; one of only 50 of its kind when all was said and done. It’s also one of just 20 Q-codes to sport a 4-speed manual transmission, and one of only three painted in Acapulco Blue. This pony was bred for racing, with a competition suspension, open 9-inch rear end with 3.25:1 gears, black standard bucket seats … and not much else, with the curious exception of an AM/FM stereo radio. Other options would have just weighed this ’Stang down and reined it in from its destiny.

This car’s first owner drove it for about two years before it was snapped up for the drag strip, competing in the Stock Eliminator class at Englishtown Raceway Park in New Jersey. The convertible’s owners – Terry Dubowick, Rich Baldassari and John Presing – snagged an NRHA national record in E-Stock Eliminator in 1971, running an 11.76 at 115.26 mph. The team moved the car to Super Stock in 1973.

After its racing days were over, in 1999, Presing – after much pestering – sold the car to Mustang enthusiast Phil Quinn, who spent 1,100 hours restoring the Cobra Jet to showroom stock condition. In 2015, the car made its way to Marcus Anghel’s acclaimed restoration shop in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he added some finishing touches before it captured the attention of Barrett-Jackson CEO Craig Jackson, who purchased it for his collection. “It is one of the rarest Ford drop-tops ever,” he says.

Now, this incredibly rare piece of Mustang history will be going to a new stable after it crosses the Scottsdale auction block at No Reserve. With it will come documentation that includes the dealer invoice, Marti Report, restoration photos, magazines in which it was featured – and even an original time ticket from Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey, showing a time of 11.79 at 115.83 mph, with an accompanying photograph.

This is a rare breed of Mustang indeed.

For up-to-date information on this vehicle, click HERE.