Ac Cars unveils Cobra Coupe prototype, targets £400k start

ac cars has shown a three-dimensional prototype of its Cobra Coupe and said it expects to begin manufacturing next year. The hardtop model is now moving beyond renderings, with customer deliveries expected in 2028 and pricing starting from around £400k.

Alan Lubinsky on volume

Alan Lubinsky, AC’s chairman, said he regarded the Cobra Coupe as “the brand’s first proper volume model.” He said AC hoped the car would help push annual production beyond 1,000 units, a target that would move the company well beyond its current scale.

The coupe was first floated in the summer of 2024, when AC began sketching out a hardtop version of its existing roadster. The company had hoped to begin deliveries in 2025, but the timeline has shifted to manufacturing next year and deliveries in 2028.

AC Cobra Coupe powertrains

The Cobra Coupe keeps the same aluminium chassis as the roadster and carries a new carbon fibre body made in-house after AC acquired its supplier. It also retains a Ford-built 5.0-litre V8, offered in naturally aspirated form with 456hp and either a six-speed manual or a ten-speed auto.

For buyers wanting more output, AC lists a supercharged version with 730hp and a Torsen differential. A Clubsport Edition limited to 99 examples is also planned, raising output to 810hp.

AC’s 2026 prototype

The 2026 prototype was a step beyond the earlier renderings and showed the coupe’s final direction more clearly. AC says it is targeting a kerbweight of less than 1,600kg, keeping the car close to the roadster’s lightweight brief while pushing toward a higher-volume model line.

That shift leaves the Cobra Coupe positioned as more than a styling exercise. AC currently builds part of its output in Germany, and Lubinsky’s production target suggests the company sees the coupe as a bridge to larger-scale manufacturing and, eventually, a different factory footprint in the UK.