AC

Production engines were designed by Bristol Cars BMW before the Second World War, and in the 1960s were considered outdated. In 1961, Bristol decided to cease production of its engines and use their own cars engine Ford Zephyr (2,6 liters). In September 1961, a former American racing driver Carroll Shelby (Carroll Shelby) sent a letter to the company AC Cars with a proposal to build a car with a V8 engine and its changes in the structure. AC Cars agreed on the condition that will be found a suitable engine. Carroll Shelby first offered to order Chevrolet, but was refused. Ford, who wants to create a car that could compete with the Chevrolet Corvette has proposed a new engine Ford Windsor 260 HiPo («High-Performance») with thin-wall block, which could be used in this endeavor. In January 1962 mechanics AC Cars produced a prototype chassis CSX0001 with a number of engine Ford Windsor 221 V8. After testing and fine-tune engine and gearbox were removed and the chassis February 2, 1962 was sent by air to Shelby in Los Angeles. His team has less than eight hours on it set the engine and transmission and the beginning of a road test.