Editing AC Cars (section)

=== AC (Acedes) Ltd. ===
Selwyn Edge bought the company outright for £135,000 in 1927 and re-registered it as AC (Acedes) Ltd., but sales, which had been falling, continued to decline. The company was caught by the crash of 1929 and went into voluntary [[liquidation]].

Production ceased for a time, and the company was sold to the Hurlock family who ran a successful [[Logistics|haulage]] business. They wanted the High Street factory only as a [[warehouse]] (Ferry Works was not acquired), but allowed the service side of AC to continue.

A single car was made for [[William Hurlock]] in 1930. He liked it and agreed to restart very limited production using components left over from previous models.

An agreement was reached with [[Standard Motor Company|Standard]] to supply new [[chassis]], the ancient three-speed [[transaxle]] was replaced by a modern four-speed gearbox (built in unit with the engine), and by 1932 a new range of cars was launched. Production continued on a small scale, averaging less than 100 vehicles per year, until the outbreak of the [[Second World War]] in 1939. The final [[pre-war automobile|pre-war]] car was delivered in June 1940, after which the factory was fully involved with war production.[[File:AC Invalid Carriage 1976.JPG|thumb|left|While the company's sporting cars won plaudits from many enthusiasts, it was the long-running contract with the UK government for the production of three-wheeled [[invalid carriage]]s that may have most impressed those concerned for the company's financial stability.]]
[[File:AC-2litre ca1955 UK.JPG|thumb|A.C. 2-Litre 1947–1956. The four-door configuration and the wider 6.75 × 16 inch wheels identify this as a later example. The flashing indicators will have been retro-fitted.]]
[[File:1958 AC Ace roadster with AC engine.jpg|right|thumb|1958 AC Ace, AC engined]]
[[File:0030 1949 train along pier2.JPG|thumb|left|One of the four [[Southend Pier]] [[Railway car]]s, built by AC-Cars in 1949|alt=]]
[[File:AC Aceca Panamericana.JPG|right|thumb|1957 AC Aceca Bristol prepared for the "[[Carrera Panamericana]]" revival Mexican road race]]
[[File:AC Greyhound Saloon 1962.jpg|thumb|A.C. Greyhound Saloon 1962]]
[[File:AC single seater 1959.JPG|thumb|1959 AC single-seater at [http://motorsportatthepalace.co.uk/ Motor Sport at the Palace], [[Crystal Palace (circuit)]] 27 May 2013]]

After the war, AC secured a large contract with the government to produce the [[fibreglass]]-bodied, single seat, Thundersley [[Invacar]] Type 57 [[invalid carriage]]s with Villiers 2-stroke engines. The invalid carriages continued to be built until 1976 and were an important source of revenue for the company.
Production restarted in 1947 with the [[AC 2-Litre|2-Litre]], using the 1991 cc engine from the 16. The 2-Litre used an updated version of the pre-war, [[underslung chassis]], fitted with the AC straight-six engine and traditional [[ash tree|ash]]-framed and [[aluminium]]-panelled [[coachwork]], available in [[saloon (car)|saloon]] or [[Convertible (car)|convertible]] versions.
They also built an aluminium-bodied three-wheeled [[microcar]], the [[AC Petite|Petite]],<ref>Casucci, Piero. "City Cars: The Answer to the World's Traffic Problems?", in Northey, Tom, ed. ''World of Automobiles'' (London: Orbis, 1974), Vol. 4, p.383.</ref> as well as "Bag Boy" golf carts (with independent suspension to the two wheels).<ref>Advert in "Country Life" 27 April 1951, page 1304.</ref>

In 1953, the firm began production of the [[AC Ace]], based on a lightweight chassis designed by [[John Tojeiro]] and hand built aluminium body designed and built by [[Eric George Gray]] with the venerable Weller-designed 2-Litre engine.

For 1954, a new aluminium-bodied closed [[coupe]] was unveiled at [[Earls Court Exhibition Centre|Earls Court]], the [[AC Aceca]], pronounced A-seek-a. It was only slightly heavier than the convertible Ace, and because of better aerodynamics was also slightly faster ({{convert|128|mph|abbr=on}} top speed).

Acecas are popular at [[historic racing]] events. [[Arch McNeill]], a factory [[Morgan Motor Company|Morgan]] racer from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s told fellow [[Texas|Texan]] and Aceca owner [[Glenn Barnett]] that "the Morgan team spent two years campaigning to beat the factory AC Acecas and finally did in the late 1950s". Though more valuable than comparable AC or Shelby replicas, the Aceca is still a bargain when compared to a Shelby CSX Cobra, while maintaining similar performance.{{citation needed|date=June 2024}}

There was a demand from some customers for a larger four-seater car, for whom AC produced the [[AC Greyhound|Greyhound]]. This was built on a stretched Ace chassis with [[coil spring|coil]] [[suspension (vehicle)|suspension]] all around and a 2.2-litre Bristol engine.

The AC Ace LM Prototype was a single piece from the year 1958 with the unusual chassis number LM5000, which John Tojeiro designed on behalf of the brothers Hurlock specifically for the AC factory at the [[24 Hours of Le Mans]] and for further [[Endurance racing (motorsport)|long-distance racing]]. The vehicle was only {{convert|737|kilogram}} and differed fundamentally from the standard model: it had a load-bearing, lightweight, tubular steel frame without the massive ladder structure, a new front axle with single wheel suspension, this time in the form of upper and lower triangular steering with coil spring / shock units, and a newly designed pendulum axle at the rear. The open aluminium body was much flatter, with larger overhangs at the front and rear and aerodynamically rounded with a lowered down front and high tail. It was designed by artist [[Cavendish Morton (artist)|Cavendish Morton]], who also styled other sports cars. The engine and transmission unit were tuned production unit from the Bristol Type 100D2/S. After a test ride on the [[Brooklands]] circuit, just a few kilometres from the AC factory, the not yet fully tuned prototype completed two events in 1958: in June as a factory car in the Le Mans 24-hour race and in September in the Rudac Racing Team at the RAC Tourist Trophy at the Goodwood Circuit. Due to changes in the regulations, the car was no longer able to compete in the next event in its class in the [[Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile|FIA]] - [[Sportscar World Championship]]. The Bristol drivetrain went back to the manufacturer and the racing car was sold without it and later rebuilt. The Ace LM prototype was acquired by a collector.{{citation needed|date=June 2024}}

The "AC Ace Bristol Zagato" was designed and built by [[Zagato]] from the year 1958. Conceptually, the Berlinetta resembles the two-seat factory coupe ' 'AC Aceca' ', but on the chassis number BEX 477 of a left hand drive  'AC Ace Bristol'.  The idea came about at the [[Geneva Motor Show]] in 1957 during a meeting between [[Hubert Patthey]], the then '' AC '' and '' Aston Martin '' importer for Switzerland and Elio Zagato. The original vehicle from 1957 was delivered to the Swiss company Pattheys in 1958; Who commissioned the '' Carrozzeria Zagato '' to produce a single, individual car body for the vehicle to be used at local races and the Pescara rally. Zagato designed and built a coupé body made of thin-walled aluminium sheet with Zagato's trademark "Double Bubble", a solid roof with two vaults above the driver's and co-driver's seat to ensure sufficient headroom at low headroom. Patthey sold the finished vehicle to an Englishman who lived in Switzerland, who was negotiating with him for various rides near [[Lake Geneva]]; Later the racing driver [[Joseph Siffert|Jo Siffert]] acquired the unique car, which he used at different racing events and historical races like the [[Mille Miglia]]. On the circuit, the single took part only in a well-known race, on 5 October 1958, at the Coupes du Salon, where it won the class in the class up to 2000&nbsp;cc. The vehicle was acquired by an American collector.{{citation needed|date=June 2024}}

The Ace Bristol Zagato was fitted with a modified Bristol six-cylinder engine with 130&nbsp;hp at 5750 rpm, torque 174 Nm at 4500 rpm, length {{convert|3848|mm|ft}}, height {{convert|1245|mm|ft}}, ready-to-run weight {{convert|862|kilogram}}, top speed {{convert|185|km/h}}, Acceleration from zero to 60 miles per hour in 7.7 seconds, to 100 miles per hour in 16.1 seconds.

The 'AC Ace-Aigle' was an aerodynamically improved one-off AC Ace Bristol-based vehicle with the BEX289 chassis number designed specifically for the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1960. The inspiration came from the Swiss ''AC'' importer Hubert Patthey, as was the case with 'AC Ace Bristol Zagato' in 1958, but was conceptually much easier. The [[Aigle]] [[Aigle (district)|Aigle]], which has been legally independent in its own right alongside the design studio and car body builder [[Carrozzeria Ghia|Ghia]] in [[Turin]] existed. In contrast to the standard vehicle, the 'Ace-Aigle' had a modified front and a fixed [[hardtop]]. The roof top had two unusual vaults to give the rider and co-driver plenty of headroom - actually the "double bubble" design, typical of Zagato, and implemented in its 1958 coupé. The normal, aerodynamically relatively unfavourable front body of radiator grille, front fenders and bonnet was replaced by a new front and made of lightweight [[polyester]]. This was rounder, ran longer and flatter forward, and had a flat, oval cooling air intake, backlit headlights clad with [[polymethyl methacrylate|plexiglas]] half shells. It remotely recalled the [[Jaguar E-Type]]. According to the same concept and with very similar lines, '' Ghia Aigle '' had already changed several [[Austin-Healey Sprite]]s from 1958 to 1961 (albeit without hardtop).

The "Ace-Aigle" was used by Swiss riders André Wicky and Georges Gachnang from the Swiss racing team Ecurie Lausannoise. It completed the Le Mans test in April 1960 as the fastest vehicle, but failed to finish the [[1960 24 Hours of Le Mans|June 1960 race]].

A very similar "Ace Bristol" with chassis number BEX1192 appeared in Le Mans in 1962, at the same time the last Le Mans appearance of an "AC Ace" before the "AC Cobra" from 1964 was used. The car of a French private owner suffered accident damage the previous year and had been returned to the "AC" factory, where it received a special lightweight body with an aerodynamically favourable front in the style of the "Jaguar E-Type" / "Ace-Aigle". In the race, there was no clutch damage. The six-cylinder Bristol engine was optional until it ceased production in 1961.

Soon after, car dealer and racing driver [[Ken Rudd]] fitted his own competition Ace with a pre-war [[BMW]]-designed, [[Bristol Cars|Bristol]]-produced {{Convert|135|bhp|kW|0|abbr=on}} six-cylinder engine. This combination was put into production as the AC Ace-Bristol in 1957. In this form, the car raced at [[Le Mans 24 Hours|Le Mans]] in 1957 and 1958.

There is also in existence an AC Aceca fitted with a Bristol six-cylinder engine. One prototype labelled as drawing number "A86" was made in 1959. This Aceca-Bristol had a wider body and was built on a coil-sprung chassis similar to the AC Greyhound. Also, there exists a prototype with chassis number RS 5000, featuring the standard Ace body work.

The production model of the AC Ace 2.6 (as it was later known) is for many people the prettiest Ace of all—and undoubtedly the rarest, with only 36 such cars built. To fit the Zephyr engine, AC had to modify the frame, relocate the steering box and completely change the nose of the car. These changes are often mistakenly attributed to [[Carroll Shelby]]. Prototype chassis number RS 5500 featured the standard Ace body work. Its production model, the RS 5501-5507 (as later known) is one of the rarest models, with only 7 such cars built.

In September 1961, AC was approached by [[Carroll Shelby]] to use a small block [[Ford Windsor V8]] engine in the Ace chassis, producing the [[AC Cobra]]. Shelby needed a car that could compete with the [[Chevrolet Corvette]] in US sports car racing. Only a single example was built (CSX 2000) using a Ford 221 Windsor V8. It debuted in 1962 with a Ford 260 V8 engine. This was then superseded by the Ford 289 V8 engine.

The resulting Cobra was a very powerful roadster, and it is commonly blamed for the introduction of the {{convert|70|mph|abbr=on}} [[speed limit|limit]] on British [[motorway]]s. While this was a major factor in the decision, after a coupe version was caught doing {{convert|196|mph|abbr=on}} during a test run,<ref>{{cite web|title=AC COBRA: The AC Story |url=http://194.109.245.185/cobra/articles/acname.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030429150714/http://194.109.245.185/cobra/articles/acname.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2003-04-29 }}</ref> a then-recent spate of accidents under foggy conditions also helped the introduction of the limit.<ref>{{cite web|title=Frequently Asked Questions: When was the {{Convert|70|mi/h|km/h|abbr=on}} motorway speed limit introduced in Britain?|publisher=Speedlimit.org.uk|url=http://www.speedlimit.org.uk/faq.html#SEVENTY}}</ref> Its European model was branded with the AC brand.

At the end of the 1964 racing season, the Cobra was being outclassed in sports car racing by [[Ferrari]]. Carroll Shelby decided he needed a bigger engine. A big block Ford [[Ford FE engine|FE series]] 390 V8 was installed in a Cobra but it was over-powered and the car was now almost undrivable. It was decided that a completely new chassis was needed. With the combined help of Ford's computers and the experience of the AC engineers, the new MKIII was born with {{convert|4|in|mm|adj=on}} main tubes instead of {{convert|3|in|mm|adj=on}} ones for the chassis, adding huge cross-braced shock towers and coil springs all around. In 1965 a competition version with a stripped interior, no glove box, different instrument layout and revised suspension was introduced. The competition version also had a more powerful motor with only one carburettor, side exhausts, a roll bar and wider fenders to accommodate racing tires. The engine that was installed in the car was Ford's famed 427 FE [[NASCAR]] "Side-Oiler" V8, a power-house engine developing {{convert|425|bhp|abbr=on}} in its mildest street version.

Unfortunately, the car missed [[homologation]] for the 1965 season and was not raced by the Shelby team. However, it was raced successfully by many privateers and went on to win races all the way into the 1970s.
At the end of 1966, Shelby was left with 31 unsold competition cars; it was decided by Shelby American to sell them to the general public under the name of Cobra 427 S/C or Semi-Competition. These S/C cars have become the most sought after models and can sell in excess of 1.5 million dollars.

In 1966, a street model of the 427 S/C was made available. It came with a tamer motor, optional dual carburetors, a glove box, and exhaust running under the car. Meanwhile, AC went on producing a milder version of the 427 MK III Cobra for the European market fitted with the small block Ford motor. The car was called the AC 289 and 27 were produced. Carroll Shelby sold the Cobra name to Ford in 1965 and went on to help develop the famed racing [[Ford GT40]].

[[File:AC at Earls Court.jpg|thumb|AC 428 Frua]]
[[File:Ac Frua Roadster.JPG|thumb|1971 AC Frua]]
At the same time, the company realized they needed a [[grand tourer]] model that could appeal to wealthy customers. AC contacted the famed Italian coach builder [[Pietro Frua]] to design an appealing GT body that could be fitted on a MKIII Cobra chassis stretched by {{convert|6|in|mm}}. The new car was shown at the 1965 [[Turin]] show. A few early models were fitted with the famed 427 Ford FE motors. In 1967 the long-[[stroke (engine)|stroked]] 428 motor became available and the car was known as the [[AC Frua]]. Built out of steel rather than AC's usual aluminium, the Frua is heavier than a Cobra at slightly under {{convert|3000|lb|abbr=on}}. That said, it is still a light and very fast automobile built on a racing chassis. The car was never fully developed and the cost of sending chassis from [[England]] to [[Italy]] and back for final assembly made it so expensive that only a few were produced. Production ended in 1973 after only 80 cars (29 convertibles and 51 coupes) were finished.

In 1970, a special version of the coupé was built. It was based on an extended bodyshell that [[Pietro Frua|Frua]] built for [[Monteverdi (car)|Monteverdi]] which was supposed to become the second ''Monteverdi 375/L'' (Monteverdi chassis# 2002). After the alliance between Monteverdi and Frua broke apart in Summer 1969, that bodyshell remained in the Frua works in [[Turin]]. A year or so later Frua changed some details on front and rear, including some semi-hidden headlamps similar to those seen on the ''[[Iso Lele]]'' and the second series ''[[Iso Grifo]]'' before. The car was called AC 429; it remained a one-off.

{{main|AC 3000ME}}
[[File:AC ME3000 yellow.jpg|thumb|1979 AC 3000ME]]

The 1970s were not a good period for luxury car manufacturers and [[Derek Hurlock]] went searching for a totally new, smaller car. Mid-engined designs were in fashion at the time and in 1972 the [[Bohanna Stables Diablo|Diablo]], a prototype with an [[Austin Maxi]] engine and transaxle, was built by privateers [[Peter Bohanna]] and [[Robin Stables]].

In much the same way as they had taken up the Tojeiro prototype and turned it into the Ace,  AC acquired the rights and at the 1973 [[London Motor Show]] showed their own version, the mid-engined ME3000 with the 3.0-litre [[Ford Essex V6 engine (UK)|Ford Essex V6 engine]] installed [[transverse engine|transversely]] over a [[bespoke]] AC-designed gearbox. Development was virtually complete in 1976 when new [[Type Approval]] regulations were introduced. A prototype failed the {{convert|30|mi/h|km/h|abbr=on}} crash test, and the chassis had to be redesigned. On the second attempt, the car passed with flying colours. This was a huge achievement for a tiny firm — [[Vauxhall Motors|Vauxhall]] had to make several attempts before the contemporary [[Vauxhall Chevette|Chevette]] passed. For AC, such delays meant that the first production cars (later renamed 3000ME) were not delivered until 1979, by which time they were in direct competition with the [[Lotus Esprit]]. Although comfortable, brisk, nicely built and practical, the car's handling was heavily criticised by writers from Car Magazine, Autocar and Motor. AC's ambitions of selling 250 cars per year were a distant memory. After just 71 cars were sold, Hurlock called a halt to production as his health was suffering and the company was struggling in the teeth of a recession. In 1984, production stopped at [[Thames Ditton]] and the car and the AC name were licensed to a new company registered as AC (Scotland) plc run by David McDonald in a new factory in [[Hillington, Glasgow]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=q8tAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zKUMAAAAIBAJ&pg=5583%2C1139901 |title=Scottish Car industry is back on the road |work=The Glasgow Herald |date=7 September 1984 |page=5 |access-date=13 April 2017}}</ref> Here, 30 cars were built, including a development car tested with [[Alfa Romeo]]'s 2.5-litre [[Alfa Romeo V6 engine|V6 engine]] and a nearly complete Mark 2 prototype of the same. Regardless (or possibly because) of these developments, AC Scotland called in the receivers in 1985.
[[File:AceBrooklands.jpg|thumb|[[AC Brooklands Ace]]]]