The 2.6 proved to be the best Ace of all, with up to 170 horsepower from the Ruddspeed-tuned engines, which were offered as options by the factory. This engine was more compact than the AC or Bristol sixes, and the lower engine height gave AC’s designers latitude to redesign the body from the cowl forward with a lower bonnet line. Its redesigned, smaller grille eliminated the “moustache” character line under the headlamps of earlier Aces. It is this body that was adopted, with only minor changes to clear wider tires and other small details, for Shelby’s earliest leaf-spring Cobras.

RSX 5009 left the factory on 9 February 1962 as a left hand drive export model and sold via the Paris distributor André Chardonnet. The first owner was Portuguese nobleman, Francisco José Gentil de Herédia based in Switzerland and Portugal. 5009 was fitted with triple 40 DCOE Weber carburettors and a Raymond Mays cylinder head and finished in AC’s Black Pearl with a beige interior and a curved windscreen.

With competition in mind he further developed the car for racing by fitting Borrani wheels, slightly flared wheel arches, modifications to the suspension giving a slight negative camber at the rear, additional brake cooling side and front vents.

His racing exploits were curtailed somewhat when the car was on the dockside at Largo de Cacilhas awaiting the ferry to cross the Tegus estuary at Lisbon. A petrol leak presumably from a carburettor, caused a fire. Francisco later said the electric fan had stuck on, possibly due to the fire shorting a circuit and thus fanning the flames backwards. This occurred 100 metres from the local fire station. Unfortunately, the fire crew had just returned from a fire at a nearby sardine restaurant and their extinguishers were empty! With the damage predominantly in the centre and cockpit received a handsome insurance payout and decided not to have it repaired. It is reported that he had a brother who owned an AC Aceca, chassis number AEX 525. It appears he
removed the engine, gearbox and Borrani wheels which were then fitted to his Aceca. By that time, the Ace had covered 31,000 kilometres - about 19,400 miles. This fire occurred on the 1st August 1964 when it was only two and a half years old.

Fortunately, the stripped car was not scrapped and was discovered in 1990 when an English motoring journalist, Laurie Caddell, came across it whilst on holiday in Portugal. He acquired it, along with an AC engine which had presumably come from AEX 525, brought it back to England and wrote about his find in Classic Car Weekly of 6th February 1991 with an accompanying photograph of the fire damaged car. It was quickly identified as the missing RSX 5009.

His dreams of ending up with a 2.6 Ace were quickly dashed when he enquired about restoring it from Brian Anglis of AC Cars only to be told that it would be cheaper for him to buy a new MK 4 Cobra than to have it restored. Caddell then moved it on to fellow motoring author Rinsey Mills who already owned a 2.6 Ruddspeed Ace, RS 5020. In 1998, the current owner, who previously had RS 5004 from 1973 to 1990, heard that Rinsey had decided to sell it because he had too many projects on. A deal was done excluding the AC engine. Stripped down to its last nut and bolt; the chassis was shot blasted and powder coated. Notable acquisitions included a Ford Zephyr engine with serial number S3124418. Extraordinarily, also located was a brand new unused Mk 1
Raymond Mays aluminium cylinder head number 10098 still in its box along with the lightweight pushrods and cast iron exhaust manifolds. Force drilled and tapped the perimeter which enabled a remanufactured Ruddspeed rocker top to be fitted. Discovered at Beaulieu were three 40 DCO Weber carburettors which had come from RS 5017. Since the car had now come to live in England it was decided to rebuild it as right-hand drive. As a nod to its former life the original steering mounting was left in the front nearside chassis tube rather than being cut off. A new one was fabricated and welded to the offside front chassis tube to take the Bishop Cams steering box and column all of which came from RS 5000 which had been converted to rack & pinion. An original AC style 16” wood rim Moto-Lita steering wheel was fitted.

A new body was made by Gary Pitney of GP Panelcraft in Bracknell. He had had RS 5017 in for some work and made a mould of the nose and took body drops of its rear. All the bolt-on ancillaries such as lights, a Brasscraft curved screen etc were provided to him to fit. That ensured that everything went on easily after painting by Mitchell Motors Restoration in its new colour of a deep metallic blue. The re-trimming was done by the nearby LA & RW Piper.

One of only 37 Ruddspeed chassis 5009 represents a great opportunity, arguably prettier than a Cobra at a fraction of the cost!