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Indeed but the entry into the world of AC and Cobra is one that I will now turn into commercial success. I have a Gardner Douglas which I am using to firm up the specification of our own car..
   

quote:Originally posted by Chafford
   
Clive
   
   Rather depressing.
   
   However you won't go far wrong with Gardner Douglas. They now do a nice replica based on the MkIV shape.
   
   
   
   

Maybe so but that is not a proper car manufacturer facility owned and operated by AC. It is a specialist repairer/builder which amongst other classic brands specialises in AC and would appear to have some commercial association with the brand owner. The great shame is that when the Malta factory existed there was tremendous potential with over 40,000 sq feet.  Properly financed and run the aluminium bodied cars could have been built there too.
   
   

quote:Originally posted by Chafford
   

quote:Originally posted by Clive Sutton
   
Joking apart it is a shame that there is not an onging British production of such an iconic brand.. Morgan have succeeded where AC have not.

   
   Don't forget AC Heritage's new build cars at Brooklands!
   
   http://www.acheritage.co.uk/newbuildcobra427.html
   
   

Actually a blend of Uk 'Monte Pythonesque' humour with a sense of amazement that the AC brand continues to go forth and multiply ! Joking apart it is a shame that there is not an onging British production of such an iconic brand.. Morgan have succeeded where AC have not.
   
   

quote:Originally posted by Mark IV
   
Why Clive, I sense some Luby induced bitterness.................
   

The DNA of the AC spreadeth like (edited - admin) flu  across continents , Now as valuable as a Blue Peter badge it only needs to attach itself to a motorvehicle of green credentials to endear it to the motorists of tomorrow...  A showroom stablemate for the ironic AC could be the AC Tesla.. based upon the electric Tesla but fitted with external loudspeakers conveying unsilenced '427' exhaust musac for each prod of the AC embossed throttle...   This would balance my UK proposal for the AC GWiz , an urban electric competitor to the Aston Martin Aygo Volante.
   Meanwhile the standard bearers of historic iconic Cobra/AC/Shelby/ in the guise of Superformance, Kirkham, Gardner Douglas continue to remind us of what was great in a former time.. Here endeth todays lesson..[}:)]

Following close on the heals of Aston Martin and its commercial tie up with Toyota to make the £20K Aston derived from the Aygo, a great follow on for the deutcher lubinsky consortium could the 'Mk V1 GWIZ.  A modern day city electric variant complete with external loundsprechers blasting sampled sounds of the 427 exhaust tone. Only one problem, they might get sued by Brabus who got there first with the Brabus tuned Electric Smart.. Then to quote the classic line from the film 'Life of Alan (whoops I meant Brian!) ' What have AC ever done for us ?

The 'Mark V1' and the 'continuation Heritage' appear to have one common theme ; royalties for Lubinsky's company for use of the AC brand.  Had the Kimber project gone forward there would have been a third 'genuine AC' in the shape of the Smart roadster. There lies a similarity with the great Carroll Shelby who takes royalties on 'Shelby continuation ' and production Fords ! Taking the unfortunate stewardship of the brand to one side there is clearly room for a 'genuine continuation aluminum bodied car' as Mr Gray apparently has some of the original factory templates and a long history with AC's so one would presume that he can stick the AC moniker on his cars ( subject of course to paying suitable fees for the brand!). Although I ought to have a jaundiced view following the MAlta Mk V debacle, I also believe that a modern AC should exist and if the Gullwing people are properly funded then the GM LS3 motor is an excellent unit aand combined with the stated specification the car could be successful. Perhaps they should pay less royalties for the badge and put the car out at around £70K..  What is of course of interest to any potential customer is how the new car fairs against the established replicas and by that I mean essentially the Superformance and the Gardner Douglas. The latter has already been using the GM power unit and is more in character with the Mk V1 . From what I understand Lubinsky refused to allow a direct comparison with the 2 key replicas which eventually will happen (provided of course some Mk V1 cars actually arrive in the market place.!)  In the meantime we have now sold our remaining Mark V's after having them in stock for over 2 years and we will continue to be active with genuine and replica Cobras and AC's . In my view at around £70K there is a ready market for a car such as one of these as a weekend car.We have a database of people who enquired about the MarkV when we first had it but were never able to offer them a funcitonal car. We are looking into producing our own high quality car in the UK in association with proven specialists. Ironically as the 'UK distributor for AC we still have had no formal word on the Mk V1..
   
   
   
   

quote:Originally posted by nikbj68
   
Ok...Several points to address here!
   Aaron, yes. I take it all back. Well, no actually.[:p] My opinion that 'AC' wouldn`t be able to build another car successfully still stands, BUT I said that before it was clear that the respected German company would be building the MkVI on their proven replica platform.
   
   John Owen was at the ACOC 60th Anniversay meeting with Alan Lubinsky & Jurgen Mohr,although I don`t think they ventured down the hill from the AC Heritage centre where a Mercedes replica & the MkVI were on display) and looked well and at ease, not at all Gollum-like!
   
   Jurgen Mohr was pleasant to chat with, explaining to me many(too many for me to keep track of!)of the improvements and developments made to what was originally the Dax Supertube upon which his respected replica is based. Now making their own uprights & wishbones, using a 'vastly' superior diff, sat nav, traction control, aircon, even the door latches are of their own making; Jurgen Mohr has my respect and I certainly wish him well.
   
   Having seen the MkVI put through it`s paces at Mercedes Benz Brooklands track, it certainly appears to perform well, but you could build 2 very nice Dax` for the same money, or have a Gardner Douglas with the same engine, or a Kirkham and change...[:)]
   

I am sure you are right about John Owen's loyalty and support to the AC brand as he was the sole AC DNA'd employee in Malta.
   You are correct that 2 of the Mark V's were at Hawk for a while and Gerry did do some initial work on one of the cars. However we used about 5 specialists to do various works to the vehicles and certainly 2 of the cars ended up in a very acceptable condition.Not comparable to the earlier cars but to a standard that we were happy to sell to a retail customer. The remaining vehicle was much improved and 'functional' but we disposed of it by auction .
   Whereever an AC is manufactured, there is a large market as we discovered when we'launched the Mark V' but found we couldnt deliver them a properly built car by a properly funded manufacturer. I have a fair size database of regular sports/luxury car owners who would jump at the chance.. Alas they will probably never realise their interest..
   
   

quote:Originally posted by Alan Faulkner-Stevens
   
Having read the many posts on this topic I would like to add my small thoughts on one or two of the statements made. Essentially, I believe Mr. John Owen always tried his best and was a hugely loyal employee and supporter of the AC brand. He also did a great job with the CRS and Superblower models, however each has their detractions. However the Mk V cars were of a very poor build standard and cannot be in anyway be compared to the two model I have just mentioned. I know, because I critiqued two when they were are Gerry Hawkriges premises. They were hand lay-up carbon/fibreglass mating which lacked any consistancy of thickness and subsequently led to uneven and very poor panel gaps and finish. The general build quality was also sub-standard. I did not drive one so cannot comment upon that part of them, however from the build quality as delivered would decline such a task if offered. The extensive remedial work subsequently carried out may have made them a better product, but I have not seen one since.
   Should it not be considered by other AC Club members that the last of the true Factory production built cars died with the CRS and Superblower models? One note I read was also about the Superformance Cobra which is hugely popular in the States and looking at one recently, offered a very well built and finished product to a very high standard. However it has one huge problem, its body shape is very wrong and proportionally incorrect, especially when you compare it with a MkIV Lightweight which is probably the best looking of the late generation cars. This leads us on finally to the MkVI, based upon my earlier question, should not a real AC be made in England using a Ford engine and built by the same group of talented men/women who built the product up to 2002?
   

However good it may be both the price and the connection with previous models will be stumbling blocks.No mention of the ever faithful John Owen the former UK engineer whose die hard loyalty to the brand and brand owner caused him so much personal grief than when I last saw him when he flew into the UK to try and get one of the my 3 Mark V's running (unsuccesfully!) he cut a forlorn Gollum like figure..  Ah the venom of the Cobra !
   

quote:Originally posted by nikbj68
   
Thanks for sharing the contents of your letter with us, Clive.
   Diplomatic, as Rick (MarkIV)says, but candid, too. Maybe a shock or 2 there for some!
   Can we assume that you may not be acting as an agent for the MkVI?
   It would be interesting to know what (if any) differences there are between the MkVI & the 'Mohr' Gullwing Cobra, and what was the pricing of it before the AC 'alliance'?
   I presume that one can no longer buy a Gullwing Cobra, and I have to agree with Clive`s opinion that they may well be pricing themselves out of the market...and who better to judge the value of the 'premium' of the AC badge.
   Again, it`s time to draw up a seat, settle in, & see where this chapter of recent AC histery History leads.
   

Diplomatic ; Maybe ! This is a factual response to a magasine who have covered the 'new MkV1' in a vanilla style and as i am 'still contractually' the UK distributor for AC (albeit with no product to distribute) I had to ensure that the letter was not'sour grapes' or potentially libelious.  There are many things that could be said about Lubinsky but that is not my style. Try wikipedia and the history of AC there is much there!

Originally posted by Trevor Legate
   

   There's a lot of engineering about!
   
   This is a note I have sent to the editor of Octane today.
   
   
   Dear Mr Coucher,
   
   The latest AC Mk V1 and the curse of the Cobra.
   
   I read your recent article about the AC Mark V1 and was surprised that there was no mention of the most recent predecessor the AC Mk V. In fact you speak of predecessors and refer to the mark IV but nothing about the Mark V.
   
   Whilst the prospect of another 'new AC' is of course exciting, you have done your readers a disservice by omitting any overview or the history and in particular the recent past, i.e. the Malta period. As the official distributor and UK dealer for the Mark V I am well qualified to fill you in on this troubled chapter in the chequered history of the AC and the Cobra. From the various company failures to the legal wrangles even with the great Carroll Shelby personally.
   
   Back in 2005 there were similar fanfares when having gone bust in the UK , Alan Lubinsky brought about the transfer of the old presses to Malta where with the help of the government of Malta a 40,000 square foot factory was the base were the Mark V was to be built. As a petrol head motor dealer and a genuine Cobra enthusiast I went out to Malta to find that there was much promise and seemingly the resources to build a modern Cobra. The Mk V also had more legroom and power steering. Notwithstanding the very public chequered past I agreed to become the UK distributor. Regretfully after bringing just 3 of these cars into the UK it became clear that there would be much remedial work to bring these up to a condition that we could contemplate selling on as a functional motorcar. It has taken me 2 years and many thousands of pounds with established Cobra specialists to enable all 3 cars to be sold. The factory seemed always underfunded and closed down. It was reported in the Maltese Star that Alan Lubinsky had fled the country and was being pursued for 500K Euros lost by the Maltese government. I was told that the AC brand was warehoused in an American company. So it figured that it would be reapplied to another 'Cobra'. I never heard from Lubinsky again until  I bumped into him and the Gull Wing crew at the recent Top Marques show in Monaco. The car you have road tested was there also not with the Gull Wing roof . That does look like a great idea and would love to see one in the flesh.
   
   Most Cobra aficionados would agree that it was the Mark III that was the finest hour for the Cobra and it is this that most replica Cobras and most iconic with the side exhausted 427. In your short leader article you refer to the 'Superformance Cobras'. Globally there are two Cobra replica bodies that are well regarded, the Superformance and the Kirkham.
   
   Certainly the Superformance body and rolling chassis is first class and is manufactured in South Africa in a factory led by enthusiast Jimmy Price. This high quality composite body is now used by Carroll Shelby in the US to install the drive train and sell as a Shelby continuation Cobra. Equally the Superformance rolling chassis is completed into a turn key car in many countries. We are in the throws of selling one for a client at present and it is a solid well built body. New Superformance Cobras imported from the USA can be bought from around £60K LHD and the UK RHD supplied cars from £69K.
   
   Kirkham manufacturer a very high quality pressed aluminium body in a former Polish military aircraft factory. Most of these bodies go the USA. These end up in finished cars from around £70K
   
   Finally a UK Cobra manufacturer Gardner Douglas should not be forgotten. They make their own excellent get coat body and fit the same Corvette LS 6.2 motor that Gull Wing are going to fit to the new AC. Gardener Douglas actually carried out essential works to one of the AC Mk V's we had  and they are a first class organisation. They offer finished cars from £50K.
   
   We will continue to sell Cobras either classic original cars or some of these very high quality replicas. We are yet to hear formally about the Mark V1 but  the suggested price of £93500 seems to represent over £30K more that an excellent replica which seems a high price to pay for a stick on AC badge . Then that is I suppose the royalty for the brand.   Let's hope that the Gull Wing team are well enough funded for the car to be built and succeed although I am not sure how many takers there will be at that price point.
   
   For details of Cobras we have sold recently see
   http://www.clivesutton.co.uk/carsavailable/cobra.php
   
   
   Any queries please call.
   
   Kind Regards
   Clive

Nick
   I have spoken to Jonathan Bradburn who has said he was willing to talk about it. We have yet to meet ! The link is better than nothing at the moment. Do you know him ?
   
   
   

quote:Originally posted by nikbj68
   

quote:Originally posted by Clive Sutton
   
In June 2006 Clive Sutton Premier Marques became the sole UK distributor for the AC Mk V....There are no other officially appointed agents in the UK for AC cars at this time.
   

   Clive, have you considered trying to purchase the WWW.ACCARS.CO.UK/ACCARS.COM websites fron Jonathan Bradburn?
   `Twould look significantly more 'official' than a link from their site to yours!
   regards, Nik.
   

In June 2006 Clive Sutton Premier Marques became the sole UK distributor for the AC Mk V. We have recently received the first newly produced vehicle which we displayed at the recent MPH06 show and which we are now carrying out our own testing and evaluation prior to offering it up for demonstration > We have taken some orders for the Mk V and there are 2 further cars due into the UK before the end of the year. In time we intend to provide support for previous AC models. There are no other officially appointed agents in the UK for AC cars at this time.

The AC MkV that we displayed at the MPH06 show was the first production example from the MAlta factory. I can confirm that this was not the same Silver green car that was pictured in Top Gear recently. !

See the next issue of Octane for an exclusive insight into the MkV and the Malta years.. Out this coming weekend.