1958 AC Ace

The AC Ace was first shown at the Earls Court Show in 1953 and began a new era of British post-war sports car production. The company's owners, Charles and Derek Hurlock, along with AC agent, Ken Rudd, transformed the company's reputation by using a racing special and putting it into production. The styling was influenced by Italian sports cars of the era and its racing chassis was courtesy of designer John Tojeiro. The AC used the same simple tubular ladder-type chassis with an aluminum body that had been used in his earlier specials. It was given an all-round independent suspension by transverse springs (which made it the first British sports car to employ this setup), offering minimal body roll and superb handling. The ACE chassis would later be used by Carroll Shelby for his Cobras and would be powered by over three times the power of the original 105 bhp, Weller-designed, six-cylinder engine.

The AC was later given a more refined Bristol straight-six powerplant, which had evolved from the pre-war BMW 328. This engine was better suited to racing, which had been proved with some success by Cooper. In standard form, the engine offered 128 horsepower at 6000 RPM. The engine was heavier and taller than AC's own engine, however, the BMW-based Bristol was more powerful thanks to its superior cylinder head design and downdraft carburetors. In road trim, the engine offered 130 bhp, which gave the Ace a top speed of around 120 mph. Racing versions had an engine that offered around 150 bhp.

The Ace Bristol enjoyed its own success in competition, being campaigned by enthusiastic club racers, private owners, and most famously by the Ken Rudd team at Le Mans in 1957 and 1958. They raced at Le Mans from 1957 to 1962 by various entrants.

Along with offering more power, the Bristol-engined Ace was considerably more expensive, costing an additional 22% over the price of the AC-engined version.

A hardtop version, called the fastback-style Aceca, was added in 1955. From 1956 onwards, both models became available with the more powerful Bristol 2-litre, six-cylinder engine with its pushrod-operated inclined valves.

By the time production of the Ace ceased in 1963, more than half the 723 cars built had left the factory fitted with Bristol engines. Near the close of production, the Ace was also available with the 2.6-liter overhead-valve Ford Zephyr engine installed. 223 examples were delivered with the 2.0-liter AC engine, 463 Bristol-engined cars, and 37 Ford-power examples.

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2019