In 1954, the AC company, in Thames Ditton unveiled a new car, a beautiful coupe called the AC Aceca. Many at the time thought the Aceca name was a derivation of the popular AC Ace model name but in fact the Aceca name is a palindrome incorporating the letters ACE. The new Aceca was introduced to the public at the 1954 Earls Court Show.
The beautiful new car featured a chassis almost identical to the popular Ace, but the main chassis tube wall thickness was greater for the Aceca. Body construction was similar too, with hand-formed aluminum panels over a tubular frame. The doors and tailgate of the Aceca were framed in ash. Foot bulkheads were made of fiberglass and the differential was carried on rubber mounts. All in, an effort to make the Aceca quieter and more civilized.
AC Acecas were powered by both AC engines and Bristol engines, with 151 Acecas made with the AC engine and 169 built with the Bristol engine. A total of 170 AC Aceca Bristol chassis were manufactured, but only 169 were built. There were 88 cars made with BE chassis prefixes and 81 with BEX prefixes. Bristol-engined cars start their VIN with the letters BE, as in Bristol Engine. The X is again added for those Acecas exported from the United Kingdom. Our subject car is BEX 703, indicating Bristol Engine Export. The 100D2 is considered the most desirable, and that’s the engine in our subject car, BEX 703. In 1958, our subject Aceca, BEX 703, was one of 14 cars exported to the U.S.
The Bristol engine number can be found stamped on the top face of the bellhousing flange, on the exhaust side. The Bristol engine featured a cylinder block cast in chrome iron then fitted with Brivadium nickel/steel alloy dry liners. Although a dated design by the time it appeared in the Aceca, these engines were very well made and featured a nitrided crankshaft. It is no accident that these Bristol engines, also found in AC Ace racecars, made for a very powerful and durable engine. Personally, I think these sophisticated engines have a very attractive appearance—especially the plates welded to the exhaust headers as in early Bugattis.
Our subject Aceca, BEX 703, left the factory on November 3, 1958. It was painted Bermuda Blue over beige leather. The Bermuda Blue/
saddle combination was not standard to Acecas. Custom color/seating deviations from the listed color/trim factory offerings were an option. The car was shipped to Foreign Cars Incorporated of Detroit, Michigan. The first owner was listed as Irvin Karl. Researching factory records is impossible. This particular car was built just a few months before the disastrous factory fire that destroyed the AC works in February of 1959.
The next owner of BEX 703 was Mr. Dale E. Halter of Daytona, Florida. At an unknown date, Mr. Halter passed the car onto James W. Jones now of Comano Island, Washington. Mr. Jones remembers the car well. At the urging of a friend, he drove the car to Sebring and entered it in a pre-Sebring 12 Hours autocross event in the late 1960s or early 1970s. The Aceca was in virtually stock condition with the original Michelin street tires. He recalls the Aceca both outcornering Corvettes and
outdragging Aston Martins. Jones went on at length about the Bristol 100D2 engine in the car and how fabulous it was.
Mr. Jones cannot recall when he bought BEX 703, but he does remember the purchase involved the part trade of a Jaguar 3.8 sedan. Like all of the Aceca’s past owners, Mr. Jones recalls the car fondly. Mr. Jones believes that Mr. Halter got the Aceca as part trade for an airplane, but he cannot confirm that. Further, Jones thinks the car had some limited racing exposure before he bought it.
Jones kept describing the car as a delight to drive and very agile. He found it difficult to “push” the car, so to speak, in the autocross as he did not like to drive in that manner. The car raced on the front and back straights at Sebring and through a course defined by pylons. Mr. Jones reluctantly sold his Aceca, along with many other sports cars and BMW motorcycles, when he was transferred to Chicago. Mr. Jones states that Tom McClave, the next owner, painted the car grey.
I found and contacted Thomas McClave. He was very happy toremember the car and reminisce about it. After our first conversation, he called a few more times as facts about the car came to mind. Reports differ as to the exact date of Mr. McClave’s purchase. I was able to find a letter from Mr. McClave to the AC works in Thames Ditton regarding an account for spares dated April 19, 1972, so I believe he still owned the car at that time.
Mr. McClave sold the car on to Dana Roehrig of St. Petersburg, Florida, the exact date of the sale unknown, as Mr. Roehrig has since passed away. Mr. Roehrig sold the car on March 28, 2000 to Axel and Hanko Rosenblad. Sadly, Mr. Roehrig died the day after accepting the Rosenblad check for the sale of the car.
The AC Aceca remains with Axel and Hanko Rosenblad in Florida to this day. It recently ran the Colorado Grand, happily with no issues whatsoever.
Jeff Murray researches provenance for all makes. Visit his website at www.vintagecarresearch.com to learn more.
