'Living legend' is a term often banded about in relation to supercars, but rarely is the term as appropriate as when applied to the AC Cobra.

AC has suffered like most British manufacturers over the years and produced some great cars and some quirky ones. One common thread of success through that chequered past however has been the Cobra.

The Range

The Surrey based company now offer four variations (and an FIA race version) of the model, from the lower priced Cobra CRS through to the awesome Cobra 427 with the Superblower and new Lotus powered 212 S/C sitting in between.

The CRS (Carbon Race Series) opens the bidding at at a relatively accessible £38,950. Introduced at the 1999 London Motor Show it features the same tubular steel chassis as the other models, supporting a one-piece composite body shell. Significant weight savings are made by using the carbon fibre body. Power is supplied in traditional form by a 225bhp 5 litre V8, ensuring it sounds as good as it looks. The pricing of the car has revived AC's fortunes allowing many enthusiasts to own a genuine AC where previously replicas were the only option.

AC 212 S/C

Slotting into the middle of the range is the new AC 212 S/C (212 cubic inches, Street/Competition). AC were the first manufacturer to make use of the Lotus developed V8 twin turbo engine. Originally installed in the Ace convertible, it's now available in the Cobra in place of the more traditional V8's. It's modern design gives it a distinct sound, very different from Cobras of old.

AC have high hopes for the car. Full performance tests haven't been completed yet, but AC are confident that it will be one of the fastest accelerating cars in the world (abound 4 seconds for 0-60mph) and could well grab the record for 0-100-0mph.

The carbon body of the CRS has been used for the 212 helping towards the 900kg weight. The Lotus unit puts out 350bhp and has been coupled with a six speed gearbox from Tremec. Power steering is standard as is a Hydratrack differential.

Superblower

The 212 S/C overlaps in the range with the Superblower, the traditionally built aluminium bodied Cobra fitted with the supercharged 5 litre V8. 

320bhp is on tap with a tasty 385 lb ft of torque. For anyone with £80,000 to spend, the new 212 will offer an interesting alternative to this traditional sounding car. 

AC 427

The top of the range of Cobras is a real piece of automotive nostalgia recreated for the modern day. The AC 427 houses a massive 7 litre V8 (427 cu in). Using the original wooden jigs, the bodywork is hand crafted from aluminium as has been done since 1962. With the car retaining many of the traditional design features, it's not street legal unfortunately. That's not stopped a number of enthusiasts commissioning them at a price of around £150,000 each though.

The Future

AC's recent success is attributable to the CRS making the cars accessible to a whole new range of buyers. We can expect some more additions to the range in the next few years but AC would do well to dwell in the sub-£40K market if they want to produce in volume again. 

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