Become a premium member for just $10 your first year - deal ends December 31.
1998 AC Cobra Mark IV CRS

1998 AC Cobra Mark IV CRS

1998 AC Cobra Mark IV CRS

Star of AC Car Group Ltd’s stand B2 at the London Motor Show at Earls Court this week, is its most affordable model ever: the £38,950 AC Cobra MKIV Carbon Road Series (CRS).

For the price of a mass-produced sports car, the CRS puts AC ownership into the grasp of a much wider circle than has been possible with its hand-crafted supercars and yet combines a high tech body with looks which are identical to the beloved Superblower.

The CRS body is the result of a new collaboration between AC Car Group Ltd and Kid Jensen Racing, owners of a leading Formula 3000 team. Its associated company, Pro-Tech Motorsport Ltd, is building the carbon fibre pre-impregnated bodies at its Hampshire premises using a high temperature (120¡C) autoclave. The bodies are built with the same hand laminated carbon fibre cloth and thermoset epoxy resin materials technology used in today’s Formula 1 cars.

The AC CRS features a naturally-aspirated US Ford 5.0 litre V8 engine, developing 225bhp at 4200 rpm which, with the car’s kerb weight of only 1080kg, delivers a power-to-weight ratio of 211bhp per tonne. Performance is therefore electrifying – 0 to 60 mph in an estimated 5.3 seconds. The car uses the same five-speed gearbox as the Superblower, together with a Hydratrak limited slip differential, independent front and rear suspension, rack and pinion steering and disc brakes all round (featuring AP Racing 4-pot callipers at the front and single-pot, floating callipers at the rear).

‘Interest in the CRS has been intense since we first revealed it six months ago’, said Alan Lubinsky, Chairman of AC Car Group Ltd. ‘This new body material, which we share in road car applications with all leading F1 racing teams, is at the cutting edge of technology and presents CRS customers with a unique combination of advanced engineering and the legendary AC Cobra experience’. The Show car is the prize in a ‘Daily Telegraph’ reader promotion.

In Detail

price $ $57 069 USD
engine V8
valvetrain OHV 2 Valves / Cyl
fuel feed Electronic Ful Injection
displacement 4942 cc / 301.6 in³
bore 101.6 mm / 4.0 in
stroke 76.2 mm / 3.0 in
compression 9.0:1
power 167.8 kw / 225.0 bhp @ 4200 rpm
specific output 45.53 bhp per litre
bhp/weight 214.29 bhp per tonne
torque 406.75 nm / 300.0 ft lbs @ 3200 rpm
body / frame One Piece Carbon Fibre Body over Tubular Steel Frame
driven wheels RWD
front tires 225/50VR16
rear tires 255/50VR16
front brakes AP Racing Vented Discs
f brake size mm / in
rear brakes AP Racing Vented Discs
r brake size mm / in
front wheels F 40.6 x 17.8 cm / 16.0 x 7.0 in
rear wheels R 40.6 x 20.3 cm / 16.0 x 8.0 in
steering Rack & Pinion
f suspension Unequal Wishbones w/Twin Tube Dampers, Coil Springs
r suspension Unequal Wishbones w/Twin Tube Dampers, Coil Springs
curb weight 1050 kg / 2315 lbs
wheelbase 2285 mm / 90.0 in
front track 1409 mm / 55.5 in
rear track 1485 mm / 58.5 in
length 4200 mm / 165.4 in
width 1746 mm / 68.7 in
height 1200 mm / 47.2 in
transmission Borg Warner T50D 5-Speed Manual
gear ratios 3.35:1, 1.93:1, 1.29:1, 1.00:1, 0.68:1, :1
final drive 3.23:1
top speed ~233.4 kph / 145.0 mph
0 – 60 mph ~5.3 seconds