Most of the auto industry spent the last few years chasing electrons and triple-digit screen counts. AC Cars decided to go in the other direction entirely. And for that, we applaud them.
To mark its 125th birthday, Britain’s oldest active carmaker has finally done something it never managed in over six decades of building Cobras: bolt a permanent roof on one.
This is the Cobra GT Coupe, the closed-top sibling to the GT Roadster that returned the nameplate to production back in 2023. It’s sold as the GT Coupe stateside (thanks to licensing quirks). And, the best part, it’s a fully analog V8 sports car arriving in a world that’s seemingly moving on from both.
Chasing Its Own Ghost
Here’s the part enthusiasts will appreciate. Rather than leaning on the famous Shelby Daytona Coupe for inspiration, AC pointed its designers at a car most people have never heard of: the one-off A98 that raced at Le Mans in 1964.
That obscure racer reportedly hit 183 mph during testing on a UK motorway, a stunt some credit with prompting Britain’s 70-mph limit the following year. The Coupe borrows its flowing roofline and chopped tail, then wraps it all in carbon fiber over an aluminum spaceframe.
The Ford Connection Lives On
Pop the hood and you’ll find a familiar friend: Ford’s 5.0-liter Coyote V8, keeping the decades-old AC-Ford partnership alive. The naturally aspirated version makes 450 horsepower, while the supercharged one cranks that to a properly riduclous 720 horsepower and 605 lb-ft of torque.
Either way, you can spec a six-speed manual, which feels close to a miracle in 2026. The blown car hits 60 in under 3.5 seconds and tops out at 198 mph, and the whole thing weighs around 3,500 pounds despite the carbon bodywork.
Spec Sheet
Model: AC Cobra GT Coupe
Model Year: 2026
Engine: 5.0L Ford Coyote V8 (naturally aspirated or supercharged)
Power: 450 HP (NA) / 720 HP (supercharged)
Torque: 410 lb-ft (NA) / 605 lb-ft (supercharged)
Transmission: 6-speed manual or 10-speed automatic
Drivetrain: Rear-wheel drive
0-60 MPH: Under 3.5 seconds (supercharged)
Top Speed: 170 MPH (NA) / 198 MPH (supercharged)
Weight: ~3,500 lbs
Construction: Aluminum spaceframe, carbon fiber body
Starting Price: $315,105
Pricing & Availability
The Cobra GT Coupe starts at $315,105 (£234,300) for the naturally aspirated version, climbing to roughly $345,000 (£256,300) for the supercharged model. Production will be extremely limited, and you’ll be waiting a while: deliveries aren’t slated to begin until 2028, once AC clears its existing Roadster orders.
Recap
2026 AC Cobra GT Coupe
AC marks its 125th anniversary with the first fixed-roof Cobra it has ever built, a fully analog grand tourer packing up to 720 horsepower from a supercharged Ford V8. Six decades late, but worth the wait.
