The Mustang MkI had an Allison engine because of two key reasons. Firstly, the British Purchasing Commission sent to the USA in 1938 was vastly inexperienced in modern fighter design, their main priority being to buy just about anything available. Secondly, when the BPC's engineers sat down with John Attwood of NAA to flesh out the Mustang spec between January and April 1940, no-one in that team (or, indeed probably anyone) had realised how important altitude performance was going to become in the ETO by the end of the Battle of Britain. If they had of, they would never have ordered any of the available American designs. Instead, they were operating with the little data available from fighting in Poland, which had involved lots of low-level action, and didn't have any reason to suspect the Allison would make the Mustang as altitude-crippled as the P-40. After all, the BPC had originally asked NAA to build P-40s, it was NAA whom insisted they could build something better. So, no, the British did not want a low altitude fighter, it's just all the Americans could offer.Explain, then, why the Mustang Mk.I had the same engine (V-1710-39), but was built to British specifications.
Did the British want a low altitude fighter too?