1956 AC Petite Coupe

The Suez fuel crisis was instrumental in sparking ingenuity, such as the Petite. The aptly named three-wheeler, produced by AC Cars, was capable of carrying two adults on a single bench seat and had a fabric roll-top roof, lightweight aluminum bodywork, and a rear-mounted Villiers motorcycle engine. With a low price and 60 mpg, these AC Petite appealed to the thrifty consumer. AC Cars produced two versions of the car; the examples built between 1953 and 1955 were fitted with a Villers 27B engine. In 1955 a Mark II version was introduced, which featured minor changes to the exterior trim and had a slightly more powerful Villiers 28B engine and 12-inch wheels.

AC Cars produced several thousand of the little cars, most were driven into the ground by their original owners. This example is in the care of Mr. John Moir. The interior is in original (albeit poor) condition and has not been driven while in the care of Mr. Moir. The paint is good, but with a large roof dent. The engine is a Villiers two-stroke single-cylinder unit displacing 350cc and offering nearly 10 horsepower. There is a three-speed manual transmission and rear-wheel drum brakes.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2014