AC Greyhound

[henk4]

After the war AC was mostly engaged in producing its Two Liter two or four door sedan, and the DHC version named the Bucklands. The take-over of the production rights of the Tojeiro Bristol special, set it off into a direction that created the biggest impact the marque ever made. The resulting ACE model ultimately found its pinnacle in the Ford engined Cobra. When the ACE arrived in 1953 it was soon followed by the Aceca, the fast back coupe version of the ACE. Engines at that time were initially the inline ohc six that originated from 1921. Later versions from 1956 also became available with the Bristol-BMW engine, that could be tuned to a much higher level. In 1957 the original Two Litre model was phased out but AC introduced a new four seater coupe to its model range in 1959, the Greyhound.
The Greyhound shared many components with the smaller Ace range, including the same engine choices. Most cars used the 2 litre and 2.2 litre Bristol engines, although the original AC in-house design was also available at first. The wheelbase was extended by 20 centimeters.
A true four-seater with decent luggage space, it further benefited from all-round independent coil-sprung suspension, a slick four-speed manual gearbox, disc / drum brakes and rack and pinion steering. The rear suspension was changed from the transverse leaf spring lay-out to generate more passenger space at the back. The straight-six engine which had done so much to establish the AC name in competition circles was credited with a 100mph-plus top speed and brisk acceleration.
The Greyhounds coachwork looked elegant and contemporary and boasted lines that were every bit as sleek as its namesake. Essentially hand built, production lasted until 1963, by then only 83 cars had been thought to have left the Thames Ditton factory. Being more expensive than an E-Type, it competitive position was not very strong.
Two examples are shown here during the 2006 Le Mans Classic, and interestingly one is a DHC, of which I could not find any reference of its existence anywhere. Is it a special assignment and if so, who was responsible?

[NSXType-R]

I was expecting a bus to be honest.

Thanks for the info, and it looks very Aston Martin-esque, even almost like a Ferrari.

[henk4]

I was expecting a bus to be honest.

Thanks for the info, and it looks very Aston Martin-esque, even almost like a Ferrari.

Coming to think of it, the body was designed in house, but I don't know who was responsible. Any suggestions?

[Q TOY]

Don't know who designed it. But my Great Uncle had one of these and I did a few historic rallys with him when i was a kid. The car always pulled alot bigger crowd than some of the more exotic cars.

Unfortunatly when he died my Great Aunt sold it off very cheaply with his other cars.

[linuxjagnut]

I have driven one of these cars with the Bristol engine in it. It is in quite nice shape and was supposed to be the Paris show car. It is red and is in storage now in NE Ohio.