Background
The superbly exotic AC 428 was once the world’s fastest GT car. Although the 428ci (7-litre) Ford Galaxie engine that gave the model its name produced less power than the Cobra 427’s, its 345bhp delivered all the performance that customers desired. Seemingly unhampered by the automatic transmission, as fitted to the majority of cars, this engine delivered a 0-60 time of 5.8 seconds, while 100mph came up in 14.5 seconds on the way to a maximum speed of over 140mph.
But obviously speed isn’t the only reason to be mesmerised by the 428.
The concept of Italian styling coupled with American V8 horsepower was well established by the late 1960s and no doubt influenced AC Cars' decision to reconfigure its fire-breathing Cobra sports car as a luxury Grand Routier.
Underpinning the design was a Cobra MkIII coil-sprung chassis, which had its wheelbase extended by 6 inches before being dispatched to Italy to be clothed in elegant steel coachwork by Pietro Frua (designer of the rather similar Maserati Mistral). The first car, a two-seater convertible, was completed in time for the 1965 Earls Court Motor Show, while the following year’s Geneva Salon saw the launch of the even more sensational fastback-styled Coupé.
However, this international collaboration was both time-consuming and expensive, leading to a bullish asking price that was more than an Aston Martin DB6, and delayed deliveries. As such, the 428 never attained the popularity of AC’s Cobra. Only 80 were made between 1966 and 1973, of which 29 were convertibles and 51 were Coupés. Some were later broken to create replica Cobras, and it has been estimated that around 65 still exist.
