AC 428 History

With the Cobra established as a racing weapon, AC's owners the Hurlock family sought a more refined product for road use. Their solution was to take a Cobra 427 Mk III chassis, lengthen it by six inches, and commission Italian coachbuilder Carrozzeria Frua to design and hand-build a grand touring body. First shown at Earls Court in 1965 as the AC 427 (the name changed to 428 when Ford's 428 FE engine became the standard fitment), the car was a handsome creation whose body bore a family resemblance to the Frua-styled Maserati Mistral. Both fastback coupé and drophead coupé forms were offered.

Performance was strong — the 7.0-litre (428 cu in) Ford V8 produced effortless acceleration — but the slow and expensive process of shuttling bodyshells between England and Turin made production glacial. Exactly 81 cars were built in total (51 fastback coupés, 30 dropheads). The 1973 oil crisis, Ford's withdrawal of direct engine supply, and tightening US emissions regulations ended production. The 428 is now among the most desirable and obscure British GTs of its period.