1960 AC Ace – Classified of the Week

Believe it or not, this AC Ace can be yours for the princely sum of £130K. And for those that know that these things generally go for twice that amount (and then some) no, that’s not a typo. Oh, it’s a replica then? Wrong. Project car? Nope. Insurance write-off? Guess again. OK, just what the hell is going on? Well, ladies and gentlemen, let us explain. This, for all intents and purposes, is a genuine AC Ace and it’s registered as such on the official V5 document, it just so happens that it wasn’t actually put together at the factory in London. We appreciate that a lot of you will claim that by virtue of that fact alone it isn’t a genuine Ace. After all, you could potentially paint a Caravaggio by numbers but that doesn’t make it a Baroque masterpiece, but hear us out.

The bones of the car were built in period by AC Cars, including the chassis, engine and body panels, it was just never all bolted together at the time. Languishing on the shelves for a couple of decades these parts were subsequently snapped up by a keen enthusiast and AC connoisseur who had the brilliant idea of building his own car. We applaud you sir! This isn’t a bitsa car that’s been thrown together in a shed, however. The quality of what has been achieved is second to none. These two-door roadsters weren’t produced by machines on a production line, they were hand built by humans, bolted together with love and passion, and that’s exactly the case with this particular example, too.

With its lightweight all-aluminium body, straight from the manufacturer, it is ostensibly an original AC Ace on an original AC Ace chassis and powered by an original AC Ace engine and we would encourage anyone to go and see the thing in the flesh and try to disagree. Speaking of the car’s engine, although not the standard steel cylinder head version, it is a genuine AC 2.0-litre flat-six designed by John Weller but with an alloy head instead, of which only three are purported to have been made.

Raced in period by the late, great Bob “Sideways” Staples, a well-known and respected figure in the competition history of AC and its Aces, the engine has also benefited from a fully documented pro rebuild just 1,000 miles ago by renowned specialist John Brown, including high compression pistons and a fast road camshaft, elevating the single overhead cam motor over standard Ace fare. Not only that but the car is also fitted with the rare factory-optioned magnesium-cased lightweight gearbox with working overdrive, making for a more usable proposition at higher cruising speeds.

The interior, too, is every bit as well-prepared as a factory cabin would have been, if not better. With recent new carpets care of SM Trimming the inside is just as stunning as the outside. This Ace then presents as an incredibly well sorted (both mechanically and aesthetically) example that is just itching to get out on the road where it belongs.

So in reality, this AC Ace falls somewhere in-between a top class replica and a factory car but whichever way you slice it you can’t deny it looks amazing and is a bit of a bargain to boot. We think it’s unfair to label it as a replica but we’ve waxed lyrical about such endeavours in the past and how we’re all for them, if done right that is, and to say this has been done right is a bit of an understatement. To us, this is an AC Ace that has been built with AC parts but for a fraction of the cost.

So have a jolly down to the south coast and pay HPC Classics a visit. They’re a top bunch and will go through everything with you. Worst case you’ve had a trip to the beach and a chippy tea, best case you come home with a beautiful AC Ace for an absolute steal…