The venomous nature of the Cobra

Last week, Matt Prior drove a totally new kind of AC Cobra. This is a car with one of the strongest allures of all - but also an incredibly complex and controversial history.

It all started in 1953, when British racer John Tojeiro demonstrated his latest competition special to UK car maker AC, which really needed a new sports car to restore its mojo.

Renamed the AC Ace and displayed at the London motor show, it was received well enough that it was adapted for production, being given a new look and an AC straight six.

It really hit the spot, as our 1958 verdict on the later Bristol-engined version shows: "The Ace offers a most rewarding combination of sheer speed and acceleration, with very safe handling, superb brakes and first-class steering, [and] it is a well-established sports car with a reputation for reliability." Three years later, a problem arose: Bristol retired its dated six, and its British Ford replacement disappointed. The solution was unexpected: Texan racer Carroll Shelby and a big Detroit Ford V8. Thus the Cobra was born.

"There is no denying that this car is extremely exciting to drive, or even passenger in," we gushed in 1965. "The acceleration is sensational, very similar to taking off in an open-cockpit aircraft. It is a fine-weather car for clear skies, open roads and life away from it all.