While reading through the latest copy of Action, the monthly newsletter
of the AC Owners' Club, I came across the following comments in a letter
from Michael Daws, an AC Ace owner, regarding his experience at the
Benson and Hedges Concours at Swansea, England:
We did not fare too well in the B. and H. final but I have to say that
I am quite sure that the TR2s and M.G.s were never turned out by the
factory at levels shown that day. Also I felt that the judges did
not appreciate how hand made and dare I say basic Aces were, bare
aluminum, rivets showing etc.
I suspect the above statement is true of all AC cars built up to an
including my snake and no doubt of the 427 versions that followed.
Basic, dare I say crude, certainly comes close to the mark. Once below
the surface it's surprising how "unfinished" everything seems; sharp
edges, exposed unpainted metal surfaces, very hand-made looking pieces
everywhere. I remember going to Shelby's distributorship once to buy a
u-joint. I asked for a driveshaft u-joint for a '64 Cobra and was told
by the parts man that I'd have to bring the old one in to "match it up."
Whatever parts were on hand at the time of manufacture were what got
used during assembly. In addition Cobras went through a more or less
continuous evolution through most of it production run. Not only that,
parts were regularly pulled from a freshly delivered chassis to finish
up a "hot" delivery or to get a car race ready, making even chassis
serial numbers unreliable as a reference for correct component
identification. There was a kind of rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul attitude
prevalent around the Shelby plant. Probably the same was true at the
Thames Ditton AC works too.
Several years ago when I first started thinking about restoring my car I
had a frame-up concours restoration in mind. It least I did until
looking into the matter and giving it a bit more thought. What I
learned was that a real concours restoration involves fanatical searches
for documented, original replacement parts were needed, absurd and
extraordinary attention to minuscule details, environmentally controlled
storage rooms, special enclosed haulers, huge outlays of cash and
accepting the fact of owning an undriveable car. An acquaintance once
told me about getting docked points on his concours Cougar for NOT
having runs in the engine compartment paint because that wasn't
"original". He had to repaint, making sure he had a run or two. Going
to such extremes seemed more and more ridiculous to me. Not to say that
the concours world is ridiculous or misguided but just not my cupa tea.
What I finally decided I really wanted was a "nice" but driveable car.
Lately I've become more inclined to just settle for a driveable car with
crudely ground off pain, body dings, chromate primer spots, incorrect
engine, ripped leather seats and all. Now if I can just convince the
rest of my household that since I've so drastically revised my
expectations, they should be willing to make a few modest revisions to
family priorities.
Finally a quote from ole Shel himself:
I always enjoyed seeing my cars on the road or on the track- being
driven and being driven fast. When something that was originally
made to be used becomes too valuable, it stops being used for its
original purpose. I guess it then becomes something other than what
it was originally intended to be. Antique airplanes don't get flown
and rare antique guns don't get fired, and although I wouldn't
describe Cobras or Shelbys as antiques just yet, as their value goes
up you'll see fewer and fewer of them being driven. And for me that
diminishes them a little. I like to see the people who own these
cars enjoying them. And you get most of that enjoyment from driving
them- not looking at them.
Roland Dudley
cobra@hpcdcsn.cdc.hp.com
CSX2282
|