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100th anniversary of AC Cars in Thames Ditton


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#1 SamoanAttorney

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 09:05

Not sure that this is the appropriate spot for this, so apologies to the Mods in advance. The event is fairly local to Autosport's Offices and free, so some of the crew who sail in this forum may have an interest.

I spotted an ad on the front page of the local free newspaper last weekend.

The Owners’ Club of the former AC cars, Britain’s first car manufacturer, will mount a plaque on Ferry Works on August 21, to celebrate the centenary of the company’s move to Thames Ditton.

That will happen at 2.30pm.

From 11.00am to 4.30pm the AC Owners' Club will stage a Concours d'Elegance on Giggs Hill Green, Thames Ditton. Sure to be some Cobras involved.

I am sure that some of you might like to pop along to see this, as I am local I am certainly going to be there.

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#2 D-Type

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 09:21

There are some members of this forum who contend that a Cobra is not an AC.

#3 Tim Murray

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 09:28

The Owners’ Club of the former AC cars, Britain’s first car manufacturer

I beg your pardon ... :confused:

#4 David McKinney

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 09:30

Recalling the ABC car, he can't even mean alphabetically :lol:

#5 Vitesse2

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 09:40

"Britain's first car manufacturer to move to Thames Ditton"?

#6 Sharman

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 09:46

Look here fellas, this chap is obviously well intentioned if a little misguided and misinformed. Any celebration of A.C. is worth recording. Thank you SamoanAttorney for bringing it to the forum's attention.

#7 Tim Murray

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 10:02

It's the local newspaper, not Samoan Attorney, which is misinformed.

#8 SamoanAttorney

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 10:30

A rookie's mistake, assuming that the hack who wrote the piece in the Elmbridge Guardian that I quoted would have applied the same diligence and fact checking that I would, when writing an article.

http://www.elmbridge...s_rich_history/

Pre-WW1 cars are not my area of speciality, so I do not have the knowledge to spot an obvious howler, but I should have checked. So apologies for that.

The point of the post remains valid though, that there will be a Concours on Sunday, free to see, of some historic high performance cars.

The other benefit was to encourage me to get the Peter Brock Daytona Cobra book off the shelves and immerse myself in that for a few hours.

All we need is some sunshine on Sunday, not much in evidence here in the parish of Esher today.



#9 Allan Lupton

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 10:40

Why not nip down to Brooklands and buy the last Vintage AC to leave the Ferry Works.
It's on eBay here
But better still if you can find one of these:
Posted Image

Edited by Allan Lupton, 18 August 2011 - 10:43.


#10 Odseybod

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 13:19

Why not nip down to Brooklands and buy the last Vintage AC to leave the Ferry Works.
It's on eBay here
But better still if you can find one of these:
Posted Image


Lovely pic, Allan - but can't help wondering about the forward view with the hood raised, assuming it meets the top of the windscreen and the couple maintain their upright stance (to crouch down might be thought unseemly, after all).

#11 David McKinney

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 14:51

You got a wet face :)

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#12 Gary Davies

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 15:18

Look here fellas, this chap is obviously well intentioned if a little misguided and misinformed. Any celebration of A.C. is worth recording. Thank you SamoanAttorney for bringing it to the forum's attention.


Hear, hear. As for 'There are some members of this forum who contend that a Cobra is not an AC', how very TNF. :rolleyes:

#13 D-Type

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 15:28

Hear, hear. As for 'There are some members of this forum who contend that a Cobra is not an AC', how very TNF. :rolleyes:

My apologies if this was misconstrued. It wasn't targeted at this thread but was meant as a dig at those Americans who claim that it was always a Shelby Cobra and deny the AC involvement..

#14 fbarrett

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 16:14

Folks:

One way around the Cobra issue is to call it an Anglo-American car (these days the word "hybrid" seems inappropriate).

Frank

#15 Odseybod

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Posted 18 August 2011 - 16:29

You got a wet face :)

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Thanks for the elucidation, David. I notice this one has been denied the sporty wire wheels, so maybe the rain and spray didn't arrive so quickly. Wind resistance from the raised hood must in any case have been 'not insignificant', taking the edge off performance.


#16 Allan Lupton

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Posted 19 August 2011 - 07:16

Thanks for the elucidation, David. I notice this one has been denied the sporty wire wheels, so maybe the rain and spray didn't arrive so quickly. Wind resistance from the raised hood must in any case have been 'not insignificant', taking the edge off performance.

Ah but that's not an AC Sociable, Tony.
It's a forecar which I don't immediately recognise and is driven from the rear seat so hood and occupants obstruct the forward view quite well. At least the driver of the AC can see the next accident clearly, even if he has a wet face.

#17 D-Type

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Posted 19 August 2011 - 07:48

I hadn't appreciated that - it's a case of a proper "back seat driver" isn't it.

Back on topic: did anybody make it to Thames Ditton yesterday?

#18 BRG

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Posted 19 August 2011 - 19:43

I hadn't appreciated that - it's a case of a proper "back seat driver" isn't it.

Back on topic: did anybody make it to Thames Ditton yesterday?

Yesterday? I thought it was Sunday 21st?

Checked post #1, yes it's Sunday. Must get along as I am all of 3 miles away.

#19 D-Type

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Posted 19 August 2011 - 21:52

:blush: The date on my watch is wrong - sorry.

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#20 BRG

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Posted 21 August 2011 - 17:59

There was a pretty good turnout today. A good range of cars from a 1924 AC 6 to several Brookland Aces from the 1990s. A lot of Aces - I didn't know there were so many around, and more 3000MEs than I thought they ever made! If only I had got around to buying a camera the other week, I would post pics....