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quote:Originally posted by nikbj68
   

quote:Originally posted by Chuck M...It's not bad, but I wouldn't want to stray too far from...the original Frua shape.

   
   For styling clues, look no further than the 1991 Aston Martin DB7.  Its coupe body was perfect from every angle, the only one ever to be so.
   
   I would start with that, and superimpose on it the AC428's distinguishing stylistic details - the squared wheel arches, the side vents,(slightly) raised round headlamps, and the roofline. A hybrid and a pastiche, but the best of the two best designs - surely a winning formula.

quote:Originally posted by Classicus
   
Your early experiences pretty much follow my own.

   Like a bird-watcher on the lookout for the rare and elusive Lesser Spotted Reed-Warbler, I'd always looked out for the AC428.
   
   Considering that only 80-odd ever existed, the fact that between 1968 and 1981 I spotted no fewer than SEVEN of them (3 convertibles and 4 Fastbacks) on roads in Central and West London must be a statistical fluke.
   
   It's sad to think that some or all of those beautiful birds were allowed to die from Iron Oxide disease, pushing the species to the edge of extinction.
   
   One, a convertible, I'd seen before; it had been on sale at the London Motor Fair around 1978. Fully restored, its (replacement) 428 engine was stated to have been the very last one to come off Ford's production line.

That Daytona is an elegant car, like an E-Type Jaguar merged with a modern XK.  But the front is too modern-looking (too tapered in profile) for a MKII AC428. The latter, as a road car, would also need a metal front bumper and number plate, which the TVR manages to incorporate neatly.  A large enough air scoop underneath, incorporating a subtle spoiler surely would solve the engine bay airflow problem, as Chuck says.  Perhaps moving the engine forward 1/2" would also allow a sufficient air flow over the transmission.  I'd be against perspex headlamp covers though; I don't think they'd make a significant difference aerodynamically.
   
   Are there no aftermarket fitments for the Ford 428 engine?  I had a Chevy V8 with go-faster headers, camshaft, electronic ignition etc. etc.  These cost little, increased BHP by 40% and actually IMPROVED tractability and fuel economy.

I quite agree.  A Mark II AC428 should keep all the best, trademark stylistic features of the original.  That's very much a retro look, but updated to a 70's retro rather than a 60's one.  Here's the 1970 TVR Tuscan - note the similarities to the Frua, but the much better (nose-down) front, achievable by lowering the headlamps.  Derek Hurlock was perhaps too uncritical of Frua's offering.
   
   
   
   Our hypothetical Mk II might also benefit from a more steeply-raked windscreen and an AMV8-style moulding under the tail to improve airflow and protect the exhaust.
   
   A modern 4, 5 or 6-speed auto box would be a vast improvement, even with the original engine, providing a smooth kickdown and a 160+ mph top speed.  And that track must be widened a good 4", by whatever means.

Yes, the side-on aspect has a certain, unique, je-ne-sais-quoi about it; the headlamp cowlings and horizontal line of the front wings help to give that.  A 1970's TVR, on a smaller scale, had a similar profile to the AC but a less nautical and more aerodynamic and purposeful frontal aspect.
   
   I've often fantasised about a Mk II version of the 428 and what changes might have been incorporated, like a redesigned nose (resolving the engine airflow problem), a wider track (needing only simple chassis mods.), wider wheels and fitment of the later 460 CU Ford V8 (the new model would have been the AC460), a 4-speed auto transmission, anti-roll bars, plus all the detailed improvements like oil coolers, louvres, sound and heat insulation in the bulkhead, flush-fitting side windows, air-con etc.  I'll dream on.
   
   The modern, compact Bristol 'Fighter' comes nearest to my (imagined) AC460.  The concept is very similar, but the Bristol alas is so, so UGLY.

For 25 years I positively worshipped the AC428, from the moment I first saw it at the London Motor Show. It just 'hit the spot'. I came to know every word of the road tests by heart.  A wealthy relative had test-driven one and said it was "a nothing car". I never spoke to him again!  I identified with the AC428.
   
   It was purely aspirational, of course. I was young. I went through the motions - I framed a letter from AC, pressed my nose against the Thames Ditton works window, paid homage annually at Earls Court (wasting the standholders' time), obtained an insurance quote and one from Minilite for wider, offset alloy wheels - the empty space in the 428's wheel arches had always worried me.  I wasted other motor factors' time with enquiries about fitments and modifications for the AC - sun roofs, tyres and engine upgrades.  It was almost a religion.
   
   In my 40's, I had serious thoughts about actually owning a 428, and went to see Andy Shepherd near Brooklands.  He kindly took me for a spin in his own 427-engined Fastback.
   
   I should have kept it all a dream.  I'd always imagined the AC428 to be the best car ever made; the reality (sorry, Andy) felt more like a tractor engine bolted to a trolley jack.  But I did provide Andy with the car report from 'Country Life', which even he had never seen before.