Rebuilding a legend, one car at a time

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Bob Wingard, a self-admitted adrenaline junkie, had trouble finding a sports car that fit his six-foot, nine-inch frame. So the Goddard Systems Engineer, who designs satellites, decided to build his own.

Not just any car would do. Wingard bought all the remaining stock parts from the legendary car builder Carroll Shelby’s defunct “Series 1” project and started a new company called FII Roadsters and Motor Sports.

In a cramped warehouse in Crofton are the parts to make Wingard’s dream; an updated 21st century “Cobra” with an old style 427 CI engine, which he can now fit in and others can purchase to share in his dream. The car is the “427 Roadster” and is a streetcar built on a Formula One platform.

In March 2011, he began marketing the 427, selling the first car in June 2011 without a motor (due to EPA rules) for $105,000 each. Clients now include a pro ball player, several businessmen and, of course, Shelby fans.

This car will knock your socks off with its acceleration, top speed, braking and handling ability. How many speeding tickets you accrue is up to you, as the top end speed is over 200 miles per hour.

Wingard doesn’t view his success as luck, but more as fun. His company will do whatever the customer wants; even match the threads of the seat to the car color. Wingard says his job at Goddard is to take a problem and fix it, so he just applies the same principles to these cars.