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History --- Buyers' Guide --- Maintenance --- Restoration

AC 2 LITRE SALOON

AC 2 Litre Saloon

Information relating to AC's post-war 2 Litre Saloon
(and the Buckland, 2 Litre Sports Tourer and Drop-Head Coupé variants).
By Ian Strange

Update 31st May 2010: More detail photos added to assist restorers. Radiator grill, spare wheel door seal, and various wood frame for the boot area.

The AC 2 Litre (1947-58) was one of the last saloon (sedan) cars built in the old coachbuilding tradition (in Thames Ditton, Surrey, England), from high quality materials. This was just before mass-production techniques, cost reduction, and marketing helped to make family cars better value for money... but poorer quality in ways that cannot be expressed by simple numbers.

In an AC, you are transported in the lap of luxury:
Fine cloth, leather and polished walnut trim, comfortable seating,
a general quietness that allows you to enjoy the sound of
the smoothest of engines.
A surprisingly sporty handling to make driving a pleasure.
Very wide doors for easy entrance/exit, that 'clunk' shut
with a reassurance that confirms a superb build quality.
Superb styling that attracts compliments from men, women, children and teenagers alike.

Like any commercial product, car design 'progress' is like a roller-coaster ride, often plummeting down before rising again! In other words, this AC is far removed from more modern classic/collectible cars, and first time passengers in an AC 2 Litre are pleasantly surprised at the experience.

This website features:

  • Historical information and design analysis
  • Tips for restoring and maintaining these cars
  • Photos
  • Nut and bolt data to help make sense of this confusing topic

"AC HERITAGE"
at Brooklands Circuit, England. Visit their website.

"There is hardly anything in the world
that some man cannot make a little worse
and so a little cheaper,
and the people who consider price only
are this man's lawful prey." (John Ruskin)
Words that are appropriate in the world of mass-produced throw-away cars.
Far removed from the world of connoisseurs such as AC enthusiasts.

"This AC is essentially a car for the enthusiast;
it is a true sports car
yet combines all the comfort, convenience
and elegance of a town carriage."
Motor Manual (Australia and N.Z.) June 1948

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