Bumper Made An Impression

One of my big pleasures from owning VPL441 is when people ask me about my Aceca or when I get correspondence from motoring enthusiasts who have information about AC Bluebird.

I was very pleased to get an email from John Thompson, owner of AC Aceca AEX521, who kindly sent me a photograph of Aceca VPL441 being used as a demonstrator in 1956. The grainy photograph was taken, I believe, at Goodwood, on the Lavant Straight. Donald Campbell is reported to have been using the car at this time, although he is not driving the car on this occasion. The car is actually being driven by a journalist for the Road and Track magazine, which published the article in February 1956, and which John has a copy of.

John writes in his email; “What drew interest to me about the photo is that your car has the driving lights installed in conjunction with the signature Aceca tubular bumper. The bumper overriders are the early type which were discontinued around September 1955.”

The photograph and John’s email is very fascinating as I have no other photograph of my car with a tubular bumper. All other photographs of the car show it having the simple overriders. Maybe the tubular bumper was fitted just for the Goodwood event and to allow for the anticipated erratic driving of journalists. What amuses me about the photograph is that the bonnet key appears to be still attached and the wiper blades were as unpredictable in 1956 as they are now!