Only six original Daytona Coupes were built between 1964 and 1967, designed by Pete Brock to take on the Ferrari GT250s in the FIA World Championships. Three were constructed under the supervision of Brock, while the other three were under the guidance of Carroll Shelby's chief engineer, Phil Remington.
The Coupe debuted at Daytona in 1964, won at Sebring, and lost to Ferrari by a few points for the championship that year. Daytona won the FIA championship in 1965 and set 23 speed records, driven by Craig Breedlove on the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Today, the handful of originals go for $4 million to $5 million, or you can purchase a replica kit, such as the new Shell Valley Series 1, for far less. That brings us to the car at hand, and the builder, as well. Some guys are just natural born builders; they come equipped with a mechanical gene that allows them to repair, construct, and modify almost anything. This innate ability comes from somewhere deep inside the individual and manifests itself in unexplainable, yet wonderful, ways. This uncanny aptitude to understand just how and why things work and exactly what adjustments will make them function properly or make them more aesthetically pleasing is a natural talent that's enhanced by life experiences and a few good books.
Mahlon Miller is the owner, builder, painter (with an assist from James Abeyta), body guy, and assembly person on the project Daytona you see here. Miller really got into the hands-on end of the automotive hobby when he built his first Mustang at age 14. Over the next 25 years he built a V-8-powered FIA-bodied '60 AC Bristol, a 427-powered Shell Valley Cobra, and a herd of Mustangs prior to deciding to fill out his collection by assembling this Shell Valley Daytona.
Miller selected the Shell Valley (SVC) Daytona because he felt that it was more dimensionally correct, when compared to the original cars, than some of the others on the market and because of his favorable experiences with his SVC 427 Cobra. Of course, that dimensionally correct thing created a few fabrication challenges for him during the construction process. The cockpits in the cars were originally designed to comfortably fit occupants who take up much less space than the 6-foot-3-inch Miller. To correct this little inadequacy he readjusted the floor to allow more foot space and had a seat custom-made to allow more head room; then, he moved it as far back as possible. Once you're in this car, it is quite comfortable. As with any really well-designed, high-performance vehicle, it holds you firmly in place.
Many hours were spent designing the aluminum panels in the engine compartment and the interior-in addition to the time spent designing the functional cool air vents that greatly enhance interior comfort. Then there's the throttle linkage and the fixtures that make the rear Plexiglas functional for ease of access to the 22-gallon fuel cell.
The two other touches that really bring a bit of "real Cobra Daytona" to the project are the use of true MGB headlights and Triumph taillights. With all the rough work finished Miller block-sanded the body prior to James Abeyta's laying on the PPG Mercedes Blue with Ford Performance White racing stripes which mimic the colors and design used on the original cars.
The chassis is pure Shell Valley, 2x4 rectangular tubing with 2x2 and 2x1 bracing in critical areas. The rear suspension is a Competition Engineering four-link arrangement with a Panhard bar attached to a 3.50:1-geared 9-inch Ford rearend and a pair of Quick Silver coilovers with 220-pound coils. The rearend was narrowed 5 inches and filled with Moser hard axles and has Lincoln Versailles calipers and rotors attached to the ends.