Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Cobra Experience Museum, with a Side of Cars & Coffee

When we rolled up to Martinez, California for the Cobra Experience Museum and their Cars and Coffee event, we certainly weren’t disappointed. This little known gem of Cobra history located in the East Bay Area of San Francisco is a stunning collection of Cobra cars and artifacts.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel CurveWith the participant cars showing up bright an early on the cold and windy day, each one was worth a good look. The donuts and coffee provided by the organizers just made it that much better.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel CurveWhile the Cobra Experience Museum itself is, of course a collection of awesome old Fords (that we’ll get into in a minute), it wasn’t just one make or model that showed up to the meet out front of the museum.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel CurveIn fact, it wasn’t just one scene represented but instead it was a blending of old and new, German and American, restorations, and completely modded muscle cars.Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve


One of the most eye-catching and definitely a favorite of ours from the morning was Roger’s 64.5 Mustang-turned gasser which we covered last week.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Another car we saw fit to follow up on was this ’67 Plymouth Barracuda with a supercharged straight six. It’s always awesome to run into something different, especially when you don’t expect it. This wasn’t a huge meet, but all of the cars were just quality builds.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Lurking behind the aluminum-bodied AC Cobra was a well-done Mustang, with all the bells and whistles in the engine bay in pristine condition.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Further back from the two sixties rods, two later model ponies lurked in another parking lot. And actually, as more time passes the Foxbody is hardly a late model affair. In fact, as you surely have heard by now, Goodguys is now allowing ‘87 and earlier cars into their shows so expect to see a few of the early Foxbodies making an appearance in this years’ national events.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Of course, a visit to the Cobra Experience Museum just isn’t complete without a stop in the museum itself. It’s an unreal collection of machinery inside.Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Front and center is the second of two original factory Dragonsnakes, originally built in 1964. It’s got the small-block 289 up front and set track records in Fremont and Riverside, California, as well as Arlington, Washington back in the day.

It raced in the NHRA’s S Stock Sports Class clocking a best run of 11.81s with a trap speed of 116.27 miles an hour. It’s pretty insane to think that you could order a form of this car from the factory back in the sixties…

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

It’s not just a collection of Fords, either, and a couple Ford-powered Lotuses snuck in as well. Actually, it’s not even just a collection of awesome old cars, but awesome old memorabilia and scale models as well. This has to be the smallest Shebly we’ve ever seen! Our favorite in the model category had to be the slot car version of Laguna Seca, complete with a couple of vintage Porsches.

Along one wall is a line-up of high-horsepower race motors on display, from a humorous piston comparison to a big-block race motor (check out those carbs!).Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Filling other hallways are photos from previous events, cruises, races, and more. The Cobra Experience Museum has a dining area, kitchen, and theater right inside the museum as well. You can come for VIP tours and lunch with your car club, or even have a wedding at the venue.Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Further in the back are more race-prepped and rare Mustangs, sitting next to a legend. The GT40P here is one of thirteen 1967 J-cars built by Kar Kraft and makes use Ford’s 427 cubic inch engine. Of course, the final version of this car went on to win Le Mans in 1967, keeping the Ferraris at bay.

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

In the corner sits some of the original manufacturing equipment that was actually used in the production of some vintage Ford parts. There’s seriously a bit of everything at the museum.Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel Curve

Cobra Experience Museum, Fuel CurveAnd outside, the Cars and Coffee meet was still in full swing. With events every Third Sunday of the month, the guys meet up at 8:30 in the morning before the museum opens at 10am. Come on out!

Cobra Experience Museum Photo Extra!

Trevor Ryan is a track day photographer from Northern California. He has experience in many different areas of photography but always comes back to automotive work in the end. To him, nothing is more rewarding than creating an amazing image of a car. Having purchased a ’66 Mustang almost six years ago, he had no choice but to end up immersed in car culture sooner or later. He also owns a ’99 Miata that he takes to the track. He has love for every part of car culture and besides track days often makes it to drift events, Cars and Coffee, tuner shows, and anything else he can find.