The GTO is of German origin. It came to the US, made US legal, as soon as the cert was handed over, he took it to a shop and remived all of the "cert" parts, and oh yeah through a bunch of money at them to increase the bhp by over 100+.
He also owns a Ford "re-released" Bullet Mustang, and a 1 off special Kenny Brown SC Mustang that is insanely fast. This shop is just going to be a hobbiest hangout for the most part. He made his money owning a large electrician company. He also used to own a C5R from GM direct, that he raced with Grand Am with John Powell and Doug Goad.
http://www.grandamerican.com/ARCHIVE/grandamcup/news_10_25_01_1.html
The car is still in the area driven by a different local hot shoe.
Here is the story on the Cobra......
The reason I'm writing this today is that I have recently encountered an enthusiast who has single-handedly done his best to preserve the Cobra legend for more than 35 years. His name is Rollie Stephenson, and he has owned his 289 Cobra since 1970. You can look up his car (CSX2350) in the Shelby American Directory, but we're presenting these images of his magnificent machine so you can see one of the finest original Cobras existing today. It started out as a street 289 Cobra, as he tells the story, but when the old AC factory in England was going under for the final time, Rollie found out that the last, factory-built rear "FIA" Cobra bodywork clip in existence was still there. So, he made hasty arrangements to purchase it and have it shipped back to the states (the shipping costing more than the bodywork itself). He had the authentic rear clip grafted on his Cobra, completing the conversion to full factory 289FIA configuration - and the car has been kept in its same condition ever since. Bob Bondurant has driven it in vintage racing events at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, and Rollie can often be seen at the track with his car during the summer race weekends. Oh, and one more thing - in this day and age of "trailer queens" and cars that are sentenced to a life of hermetically sealed isolation, Rollie's car has 79,000 original miles, and he drives it on the street all the time. If there were ever a living, breathing example of a true Autoextremist in every sense of the word - and the ultimate Autoextremist car - Rollie Stephenson and his Cobra are it. Read more about Rollie's Cobra - in his own words - after the pictures below. - PMD
Photos courtesy of Rollie Stephenson
1964 Shelby Cobra CSX2350
(Almost Famous, Junk Yard Dog) I bought the car in 1970 for approximately $6,500.00 from the original owner (Ted Frentz - nameplate from Shelby American still on the dash) with approximately 10,000 miles on it. Currently the car has 79,000 miles on it. I started running High Speed Autocrosses and working toward my race license in Midwest Council Sports Car Club at Blackhawk Farms and State Fair Park. I got my SCCA license and continued to race at Donnybrook and Brainerd, Minnesota, Nelson Ledges in Mid Ohio and at miscellaneous tracks in the Midwest. Then I started a business, got married and had children, so just for a while did high-speed autocrosses and drag raced the car at Wisconsin International Raceway and Union Grove (South of Milwaukee). At a later date, started racing at the Chicago Historic Race (CHR) and Vintage Sports Car Driver Association (VSCDA) at Road America, Elkhart Lake: 1982 CHR 1st Ford Race
1983 CHR 2nd OA
1984 CHR 1st OA
1985 CHR 2nd IC VSCDA 1st OA
1986 CHR 1st OA VSCDA 1st IC
1987 CHR 1st OA VSCDA 1st OA
1988 CHR 1st OA VSCDA 1st OA
1989 CHR 1st OA I then met Bob Bondurant at the Grand Bahamas Vintage Speed week (Auto Week, January 7, 1985 issue by Bill Lovell). Bob took 1st in the Ford Race and 1st in class with my Cobra, 2nd overall in the Reunion Race. In the nine days of ongoing events and races, I won the Ford Motor Sport trophy, finished 2nd overall between the two original Grand Sport Corvettes and 1st overall (Driven by Mike Baghy) and second ahead of Patterson's Grand Sport, taking 3rd overall. Bob Bondurant also raced this Cobra in 1987 and 1994 at CHR and 1989 at Sebring Vintage Race and took 1st in class both times. At the Road America Annual SAAC Solo II Event I took 2nd in 1976, 1st in 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85 and 86. As Historic racing evolved and cars became more modified, I decided to retire the car and keep it in a more original state. After owning the car for 35 years there are a lot of stories. I met my wife in 1971 at a race and then later that year proposed at a race in Brainerd (Donnybrook), Minnesota. Have given 100's of rides and have let others drive over the years and not always under the best conditions. One short episode was when driving back from a race in Nelson Ledges, Ohio on the Indiana Turnpike a State Trooper pulled us over and could have thrown the book at us with the license plate wired to the roll bar and open exhaust. After my mechanic got back in the Cobra, he said you won't believe this, we got a warning for a burned out tail light. Then the Trooper talked to us over the loud speaker in his car to go through the gears because he really wanted to hear it. We did up to 85 mph then turned off the next exit. Years back, the car was used as collateral a few times for the business. My wife occasionally reminds me that when I turned down an offer to sell the Cobra so we could buy an acre lot on the Gulf of Mexico, which was $100,000 back in the early 90's and is now worth $3 million. I always tell her "how can you put a price on fun?" There were three people in particular that made the winning possible over the years; Jerry Monson, Steve (Jet) Mondloch and my brother Jim. "I got by with a little help from my friends." Rollie Stephenson
. That garage must do very well. 
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