Blog: History of AC Cobra

[What'saCobra?]

AC Cars Limited was VERY successful, at one time the second oldest auto manufacturer after Daimler-Benz.

AC's won their class regularly in SCCA during the fifties and sixties and were bumped into higher classes quite frequently. That flexible-flyer (an old US brand of children's ice sled) chassis allowed the Dunlops, Avons and Michelins to grip the track in very predictable ways to ease the driving control at the limit and allow a brave driver much deeper transitions.
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A Partial Record

USA SCCA Championships, according to Mills, AC in Detail, 2008:

1956 Ace Bristol 4th EP (Class E Production Rules)
1957 Ace Bristol 1st EP
1958 Ace Bristol 1st EP
1959 Ace Bristol 1st EP
1960 Ace Bristol 1st DP (Class D, bumped up a class, too much success)
1961 Ace Bristol 1st CP (Class C, bumped up a class, way too much success)

1957 LeMans 24 hour, 2nd, (S 2.0 liter)
Sebring 12 hour, 3rd, 4th (S 2.0 liter)
1958 Sebring 12 hour, 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th (S 2.0 liter)
LeMans 24 hour, 2nd, 3rd (S 2.0 liter)
1959 Sebring 12 hour, 1st, 2nd (GT 2.0 liter)
1960 LeMans 24 hour, 1st (GT 2.0 liter)

This global success is certainly not the result of loosey-goosey wino-werks, but excellence in design, engineering, manufacturing, championship driving, team-management and preparation. All achieved pre-Shelby.
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Now, if you don't think Mr. Shelby dwelled and promoted at LENGTH on these AC wins in America's premier SCCA and at LeMans and every other European venue, when he was pitching first, Chevrolet, then FORD and AC Cars Limited, you don't understand human behavior. Shelby's timing was propitious for everyone involved in the project. Especially Carrol's. AC's successes were legendary at least, particularly for a smallish hand-crafted specialist company, where race-cars were certainly never the primary focus. But, they were international winners and Shelby promoted himself AND AC to FORD as a winning team effort, available to FORD for a wee dram of cash, a few engines and a brave heart. Dave Evans at FORD had the brave heart.

Chevrolet Corvette was commandeered by Zora Arkus-Duntov (an engineer-driver imported from Belgium) who had shamed Chevrolet into engine hot-rod parts, citing FORD's easy off-the-shelf support to teams and drivers. He was not about to let the Texan share his authority in ANY way. Chevrolet said no, without thanks. Cannot blame Zora. He was also a champion... and today's marvelous Corvette still contains his genes and inspiration.

Shelby was an international championship winning driver of very serious note, including 1959 LeMans with Aston Martin (w/Roy Salvadori as co-driver) and helped Aston Martin win the 1959 World Championship (w/co-drivers Salvadori, Reg Parnell and Stirling Moss). Shelby was proud of his association with AC and vicariously touted the AC chassis strengths and sophistication, including the Girling brakes, fully-independent suspensions, ultra-light all-up weight and fine handling qualities.

Shelby had already raced against and observed plenty of SoCal specials, Masers and Aston Martins with Chevy V-8's and knew how quick and successful they were. Tube-framed and aly-bodied Superleggera construction with a US V-8 was the cat's buttinski. He knew it. He wanted his own.

The final combination of FORD's new engine(s), FORD money, AC Cars Limited design & production strengths and Shelby's promotional and driving strengths was simply unbeatable at the time. From 1963 to as late as 1975 Cobras couldn't often be beaten. All of this was done with two basic designs.

Of course, 1962 saw the AC Cobra first appear in A Production. CP and DP Ace Bristols continued to win, but interest in the car was cannibalized by the appearance of the Cobras, which completely dominated AP and BP (no webers, less fender).

289 and 427 Cobras dominated SCCA (with a few exceptions) until Sam Fienstein's "Ollie, the Fire-Breathing* Dragon", CSX 3009, won his last SCCA AP ARRC Championship at Road Atlanta in 1973... eight years after the 427 first appeared in competition. Sam won the New England Divisional Championships of both 1974 and 1975, and still placed 6th and 4th at the ARRC run-offs against new production Corvettes more than ten years younger.

Sam's car, particularly the chassis bits, was quite literally disintegrating around him after so many years of very successful racing as the Essex Wire (Skip Scott, **** Thompson), Eger Ford (Ed Lowther) and then Sam's wins. Recall that GM's Corvettes had another decade of chassis, suspension and engine development to try unsuccessfully to beat a car that had an essentially frozen design in 1964/5.

IMHO, this story and this car is the greatest testament to the design and specialist engineering excellence of the original 427 Cobra. People like Shelby, Phil Remmington, Ken Miles, Klaus Arning, Bob Negstad, and many others placed a big well-earned laurel wreath on the industry and the sport.

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i failed to take Sam's offer of 10K USD for "Ollie", one of my more stupid decisions. Who wanted to pay the price of a used 275LM for a used and abused FORD? i was too smart for that.

On the other hand...
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Sam's "Ollie", an alloy-head 427 SO special, frequently belched under-hood fire during start-ups or over-priming when cold. Ollie usually "surprised" the rubber-necked pit-pilots as they warmed their hands in their pockets at Bryar, Limerock or Long Pond's chilly-morning practice.