1967 Marcos 1600 GT

History

In 1964, Marcos introduced a very attractive two-seater coupe which is still being produced in modern times. Little changed from the initial design and it has proved to be a timeless and alluring creation.

These coupes were created in an unusual fashion, using laminated plywood for the chassis construction. GRP was used for the outer body panels. The front seats were mounted to the rear bulkhead which meant they could not be moved. To accommodate the different sizes of passengers, the foot pedals could be adjusted to the correct length. A small wheel located under the dash made the process a little less cumbersome, though highly unusual.

The 1600 was powered by a Ford Cortina MK II GT engine which was capable of carrying the car to a top speed of around 115 mph. This was a vast improvement over the prior version of the car, the 1500. Zero-to-sixty for the 1600 was in the 11 second range.

The Marcos Company was founded in 1959 by Jem Marsh and Frank Costin. The name 'Marcos' was formed from the first few letters of their surname. They established their business in Bedfordshire, England. Costin was one of the first individuals to pioneer the use of monocoque chassis and for his work with aircraft aerodynamics. His brother Mike is also a famous automotive individual, the co-founder of Cosworth.

The first prototype car appeared in 1960, the Marcos GT. It featured gullwing doors and a windscreen in four panels. The production version was more traditional, though still retaining the gullwing doors. Under the bonnet was a Ford powerplant in varying sizes, ranging from 997cc to 1498cc. Production continued until 1963 with a total of 39 examples being produced.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jul 2007