The AC Cobra, also called the Shelby-AC Cobra or Shelby Cobra, is probably the most successful example of what happens when a big American engine is installed in a light British roadster -- an idea that also spawned such cars as the 1930s Railton-Hudsons and Cadillac-Allards and Nash-Healeys of the 1950s.
But, in the Ford-engined AC Cobra, the genre was pushed to new performance horizons -- the AC Cobra's acceleration was second to none among production sports cars.
AC's roots date back to 1900 when John Portwine, a prosperous London butcher, decided to enter the emerging motor industry. Needing expertise, he teamed up with John Weller, a talented engineer.
Weller's first prototype car, displayed at the 1903 Crystal Palace Motor Show in London, was well designed but beyond the resources of the young enterprise. Instead, the company started with a light, inexpensive commercial delivery van called the Auto Carrier.
The 1904 Auto Carrier was a small three-wheeler with a one-cylinder, air-cooled engine and chain drive to its single rear wheel. It proved reliable and popular and, by 1907, Portwine and Weller produced a passenger version, later called the Sociable.
Now under the name Autocarriers Ltd., (from which came AC), the company prospered, moving from London to Thames Ditton, Surrey in 1911. By 1913, Weller had developed a smart four-wheeled car, but the First World War delayed it until 1919. At that time, Weller also brought out a 1.5-litre, SOHC (later 2.0L) six-cylinder engine that was so sound it stayed in production into the 1960s.
In 1922, AC came under the control of S. F. Edge, a former race car driver and pig farmer. It went into voluntary liquidation in 1929, but it was bought and revived by brothers William and Charles Hurlock, who resumed production in 1931 and built a variety of cars.
By the 1950s, AC was concentrating on sports cars, which, unfortunately, were becoming obsolete. In 1953, the Hurlocks were introduced to a roadster designed by proprietary sports car builder and engineer John Tojeiro. Its sleek modern lines appeared Ferrari-inspired. A ladder-type tubular frame and four-wheel independent suspension via transverse leaf springs was a big improvement over AC's solid axles.
The Hurlocks and Tojeiro made a deal and his car evolved into the AC Ace, which was enthusiastically received at the 1953 London Motor Show (the Aceca coupe came a year later). It had AC's venerable six and was joined in 1956 by the Ace-Bristol with the Bristol six of BMW heritage. When Bristol discontinued the engine in 1961, AC briefly used modified Ford Zephyr sixes.
At about this time, a tall Texas racer named Carroll Shelby, now out of racing due to a weak heart, was attempting to develop an American sports car. Upon learning that Bristol no longer built engines, Shelby approached AC about installing American V8s. A deal was reached and AC began shipping Aces to the United States without engines. Shelby convinced the Ford Motor Co. to supply its light, modern, small-block overhead-valve V8, recently introduced in the intermediate-sized Ford Fairlane. An assembly plant was set up in Venice, Calif., and the first AC Cobra emerged in 1962.
The AC's chassis was strengthened to take the 260-cubic-inch Ford V8, flared fenders accommodated wider tires and four-wheel disc brakes were fitted. The rear wheels were driven through a Borg-Warner four-speed manual transmission and limited-slip differential.
About 75 Cobras were built with the 260, then Shelby started installing the 289-cu.-in. V8. The Mark II version came in 1963 with rack-and-pinion steering.
The 1965 Mark III had a new, stronger chassis, and Aarms and coil spring suspension replaced the transverse leaf springs. In addition to the 289, it could also be had with Ford's 427-cu.-in. V8, a truly awesome engine. Shelby AC Cobra production stopped in 1968 after more than 1,000 had been built.
As would be expected, high power in a small car with a 2,286-millimetre wheelbase and weighing only 916 kilograms produced spectacular performance. Road & Track magazine (9/'62) recorded a zero-to-96-kilometres-an-hour time of 4.2 seconds, zero to 161 km/h in 10.8 seconds and a top speed of 246 km/h with the 260-hp engine. The 427 V8 may have been slightly faster, but tire traction was a limiting factor.
The AC Cobra's competition record became the scourge of Corvette and Ferrari drivers, and original AC Cobras built such a heritage that they are now very valuable collectibles. Over the years, an estimated 150 companies have produced AC Cobra replicas.
SOURCE: nationalpost
