3 quick things with this video: 1, Let me know if you like the background music or not, it is the first time I have tried it! 2. Technically before the Xylon there was one experimental race car they built beforehand - if you want to hear more about that search up "Marcos Flying Splinter". 3, The English pronounce the name the way I did in the video, most of us Americans pronounce it differently - I don't know who is right lol. Anyway, cheers - enjoy the video!🤘
But you could, at least pronounce “Porsche” correctly - it’s PORsha. And why not cover the Mantis a little more thoroughly than mentioning its name. Thanks for the video!
The music is ok as I didn't notice it which is how you want it, don't let it become too loud as that becomes annoying, also de dion suspension is pronounced de deon.
Frank Costin only worked for de Havilland after the war . During the war he worked for General Aircraft. The fuselage of the Mosquito was a true monocoque comprising a balsa core to plywood skins. The only parts of the Marcos which comprises such a sandwich were the footwell floors but I’m afraid they used fibreboard rather than balsa as a core .The essential item the Marcos had in common with the Mosquito was the use of Aerolite two part waterproof glue. I have rebuilt 6 wooden Marcoses and made the replacement chassis for the US based orange 1600 which pops up on the internet. Peter and Denis Adams never receive enough credit for their contribution.
Would it be more accurate to compare the Marcos chassis to the wing mainspar, as a stressed wooden box section? Of course, the Mosquito did not just turn up out of nowhere, DH had been building wooden aircraft from the beginning, some of these included the sandwich construction technique (Albatross). This continued after the war with the (partial) wooden fuselage of the Vampire. The original glue used in Mosquito construction was casein glue (based on a protein found in milk), then urea-formaldehyde, and finally resorcinol-formaldehyde. I have used urea-formaldehyde glues when cold molding double and triple, planked wooden boat hulls, a right royal pain in the a...
@@robertnicholson7733 Very interesting. The problem as always is being prepared to admit what you don’t know. When you consider that one of the most important aspects of the Mosquito was the glued joints it is surprising that none of the books including the Haynes manual make more than a passing mention of the glue , other than ‘Beetle glue ‘. I was unaware of how the two part glues developed. Cascein obviously worked - until it got to the tropics. I always warn Marcos repairers against Cascamite - the engine bay of a Marcos on a wet day makes a tropical climate seem quite balmy... The Mosquito spar is really a cantilevered laminated beam which is not a feature of the Marcos . Dare I suggest that that the Marcos comprises 3 parallel boxes transversed by the dash box at the front and axle/fuel tank boxing at the rear- and the whole lot braced by the fibreglass shell. The closest to it is the E Type which raises a few questions. Even if you disagree it’s a more obvious influence than the Lotus Elite. Anyway back to the tropics. When there were wing failures with the Mosquito in Burma, Geoffrey’s brother Hereward was sent to report on the problem and concluded that the problem was poor workmanship by a subcontractor which has always struck me as odd as de Havilland quality control was outstanding. Presumably the Mosquitos that persisted in the tropics long enough to make The Purple Plain with Gregory Peck and Maurice Denham used Aerolite. Well, ‘ You know how Sir Geoffrey saved the World ‘ !
@@richardfalconer1959 Sorry for my tardiness. I have been a bit busy so I have not been able to look in my "archive (mess)" to track down the exact information on the glue issue and my memory is not what it was. Fortunately, Beatle glue was a manufacturer's designation and not a description, unlike shellac which is a secretion of the Lac beetle. Beatle glue was standard urea formaldehyde, I do not think any of the casein glue aircraft made it to the tropics but I have seen other information that contradicts that, so maybe. I am pretty sure that all the Australian-built mosquitos used resorcinol-formaldehyde, but, then again, more contradicting stories. Hereward was sent to Australia and I thought it was he who considered that a newly finished Australian-built Mosquito crash near Sydney (where the wing failed) was caused by glue bond failure but this was actually bad workmanship by the Holden body works. It appeared that Holden management was rather slack and the workers did not understand how important it was for very precise joints, they were more used to building wooden car frames that were bolted to a chassis, so not much load bearing, if any. Unfortunately, a lot of these stories and incidents get conflated so it is hard to get everything straight. After this crash, CSIR did extensive (and impressively detailed) testing of the Mosquito wing structure including significant fatigue testing. I have a copy of this book which includes information on the Mossie's wing testing somewhere: www.eoas.info/bib/ASBS04633.htm Post war Australian Mosquitos were painted silver as camouflage colours increased the heat transferred to the wooden structure which in turn accelerated the deterioration of the wooden structure (CSIR research). The Vampire's wooden structure was far better protected using multiple layers of protective doped fabric in critical areas (post-war so the aircraft was built better by de Havilland rather than contractors and only used wood in the "pod"). Back to the Marcos, I do not think many made it to Oz and I have no experience of it. I have seen a few good photos of the closely related Costin-Nathan structure and it appears to be just as you described. The E-type was much more complicated, my brother had three. One needed repair of the scuttle and another needed mild collision damage repaired at the very rear of the body. Looking at a partly disassembled scuttle made it abundantly clear why the things rusted, very complex, especially where the load from the space frame was transferred to the monocoque, the rear of the car had a similar problem. I tend to think of the E-type as a front, centrally braced box section joined to a similar box section at the back by a box section on either side (the sills), the floor providing a (very) little more rigidity. The Mini Moke was a bit the same, but without the box at the front and back but retaining the load-bearing box section sills. The floor was a bit more important in the Moke. Addendum; I have found the video I was looking for: csiropedia.csiro.au/wings-test-1947/ if nothing else, watch the video for 30 seconds from about 1:20 and again at about 15.30 where it is clear that unlike many metal structures, catastrophic failure of wooden structures occurs with little to no warning.
Nice to see a history of Marcos. Just a point regarding the engine in the original Marcos. Yes, it did originate from the Ford Anglia 105E, with the 997cc version only making 39bhp in standard form. However, as it was going to be used for racing Marcos knew they needed a tuned version. And they knew just where to get one because Frank Costin of Marcos had a brother called Mike Costin, and along with a bloke called Keith Duckworth, Mike Costin had started a small engine tuning company under the name of Cosworth...
My grandfather was killed in a mosquito in WW2 six weeks before my father was born, his story is on the Carribbean aircrew WW2 website and his name was PILOT OFFICER H.F. WESTON.
My uncle worked for Marcos in the early sixty's, the factory visits were fun, the scent of the Oak frame, also the seats were fixed onto the frame, the pedals could be moved forward or backward on a screw thread. My favourite was the Mini Marcos, the customer could bring in a Mini, the lads at the factory would supe up the engine, tune the suspension and drop a highly modified shell on to the wooden frame. These Mini Marcos were super light very fast and highly maneuverable, great fun.
I had a Mini Jem for many years, which was essentially the same as a Mini Marcos but with revisions to the fibreglass shell that made it better looking. It was hilarious fun to drive. With a 1275 cc Cooper S engine it had a top speed of 118 mph compared to the 97 mph of the original metal Mini. The wooden structure also made it immensely strong. When I drove it to Italy, as I left Rome I stopped at a red light and was rear-ended by an inattentive youth in a Fiat 500 (the original tiny one). My car had homemade shock-absorbing bumpers, stainless steel shells on hard foam rubber blocks. Thanks to these and to the strength of the wooden box, the only damage the car sustained was a single chip in the paintwork. But the Fiat got its front pushed in as far as the windscreen.
Funny, I'm currently studying a book from 1913 that is teaching me how to build a car with a wooden chassis. Ash wood to be exact. The techniques back then and the way they describe everything is by far superior to anything I've ever seen in today's world and I've been a mechanic and classic car restorer for about 30 years and come from a long line of mechanics, race car drivers and body men on both sides. Iron or steels is also used, but the main material is of wood. If done correctly it's very strong, durable and long lasting stuff. Can actually last for hundreds of years and that's a real live fact. It's also cheap, abundant and much easier to shape and fabricate and work with. Anyway. Cheers!
@@michaelg4931 Not sure if you're getting these messages, but I've left the information twice, but the comment keeps vanishing. It's strange. Google must be banning me from responding. I must say, I really don't like this platform anymore and wish for something else. UA-cam is done!
In 1964-65, in an after-school job, I worked at High Performance Cars in Waltham MA, a suburb of Boston. As an importer, they had acquired what became the "Refrigerator-White" Road & Track test car. I got to drive it ~ 150 ft., from in front of the dealership to the back lot. I peaked way too early!
Thanks for the very informative video. One thing about the Mosquito during war time was that wood construction meant people and facilities could make airplanes where they had recently made furniture and the like. So it increased the production base for airplanes instead of fighting for metal work resources with other planes.
It also meant you could disperse Manufacturing throughout the country in case of bombing damage. I live in Lancaster in the UK and a former piano factory made wings for the Mosquito.
Friend of mine has a 4.6 Modular Ford powered Marcos. When he first brought it to the car show, he would chuckle how nobody knew what it was, and he would say all kinds of silly stories, that its a Ford prototype. Until I showed up, jaw dropped asking him, if it was a real Marcos. Apparently I was the only one he met that heard of this make. Very cool car in person. Much cooler than photos do it justice.
Another awesome video, I liked the background music. It was quiet and far back enough to be pleasant and not over bearing(like a lot of channels). I don't watch a lot of car channels but I never miss one of videos! Looking forward to seeing you at 100-250k subscribers one day, then who knows 🤙
I got a chance to drive a Marcos that belonged to the husband of my mom’s friend. I took one of my friends along, we were both in our early 20s, and we got a flat tire. I’m sure he almost had a heart attack ack when he got a “ hello, this is Ted” phone call. It was all good after he explained how to get the spare out. Don’t remember exactly ( over 50 years ago) but I think you had to put a crank through the rear bulkhead to lower it. Great handling fun car!
Very well done that man ! I thoroughly enjoyed that on my Sunday morning 👍 I've been watching your channel for a little while now and I'm not surprised that your subs have gone up to 70K. Keep up the good work. Best wishes from Cornwall !
You mention them taking 7th in class at Le Mans, but completely skipped over Le Mans 1966. Sure, it was Ford vs Ferrari at the front of the grid, but after 24 hours of racing a privateer French team crossed the finish line in their Mini Marcos in 15th and last place, the only British car that did not DNF that year.
I am still amazed how many small car companies existed in the UK. Unfortunately they are now nearly all history. The Marcos may have been among the best.
My dad worked for Marcos during the wooden chassis era. He was in the design department making models. Unfortunately, I've not found a picture of him at Marcos, yet...
To fill in a little bit of the history: after leaving DE Haviland, Frank Costin moved to live in the ex slate mining mountain village of Deiniolen and he developed the prototype Xylon in the tiny vilage of Cwm y Glo down in the valley below. This car had a DKW engine. Production of the nine Ford powered Xylons was done in the old stables of the Golden Lion Royal Hotel in Dolgellau where the pictre of Frank Costin with the wooden chassis was taken in 1960. The owner of the hotel was a keen and quite sucsesful local rally driver and Frank probably knew him through competition. The company moved to a converted mill in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire in 1963 and in 1971 to a purpose-built factory at nearby Westbury.
Great video. I don't have anything to contribute about the cars. But as a new subscriber and a philomath, I'm enjoying your historical motorsports content very much. Just wanted to say the work you are doing is reaching farther than you think. Reaching audiences you may have not been aware of. Thank you for your passion and for sharing it with us. GOD bless.
The monocoque plywood structure of the Marcos 1800 GT was incredibly stiff -just like the airframe of the DeHavilland Mosquito. The comment about termites - or “white ants” as they’re called in England - was just silly at the time, and silly now. It became a running joke back in the day, but termites were never experienced by any owners. Gem Marsh and Frank Costin weren’t stupid - the monocoque was made of marine plywood and sealed. How many plywood boats - of which there are millions - do you see with a termite problem?
@@bartonbrown4172 that’s why I said the extremely small chance - the US navy doesn’t like wooden pallets on ships for that reason. Rust would post a greater issue to any car than termites would to this but still - in theory it could happen. I’m sure peoples in period concern about it was overblown
The Marcos was my dream car of my childhood. At my age now, that's what it'll be, a dream. My father in law's brother died returning from a sortie over Norway in a Mosquito shortly before VE day.
FYI - the semi independent rear end set up you were talking about on the 1800GT is called "de Dion" (pronounced day dee-on). It was a great alternative to all wheel independent suspension car Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo has de Dion cars and even Ferrari tried it once on their F-1 cars.
Thank your for the pronunciation correction. Yes I did know Aston had it on some of their cars - I know another car I made a video on used it I just forget the name
Great historical take on MarCos. Didn't happen to show anything about the TSO GT, though. It was featured on Top Gear and actually seemed like a very good car.
I had a 1967 Marcos GT with the Ford Cortina GT sourced 1500 engine from 1973 to 1976. It was a really quick car for a normally aspirated single cam engine of its size and great roadholding too. Jem Marsh had a place in the west country at the time where he sold sold spares for the Marcos cars. I damaged one of the perspex headlamp covers and was able to get a replacement from him at a very reasonable price. One thing I remember about the wooden chassis is that it was sprayed with some kind of sealant on the underside and I noticed there was a split in that going right across the car under the mid section. It was a bit worrying when I first spotted it but never got any worse and I guess it was just down to flexing. I eventually sold it via the Exchange and Mart to a guy who coincidentally lived in the same town as my brother sixty miles away. My nephew said he often saw it around town until ten years later or so, which isn't bad going.
I love the lines of the Marcos GT; for me the later models lacked the Frank Costin influence and looked more 'form over function' and less pure. The plywood chassis was brilliant!
The Marcos, GT6 and early E-types all had those beautiful body lines that are so well cherished now more than 50 years later. (It was really just mainly the U.S safety regulations post Ralph Nader that stopped a lot of sport car production back then)
I owned a Marcos with the Volvo B18B engine. The Laycock electric overdrive saved a lot of gas, The car gripped tenaciously, couldn't be rolled, and accelerated great. Genuine knock-off wire wheels added to the good looks. But the car was so low you were afraid you would drive under a semi truck! The ground clearance was 4 inches, the gas tank was immediately behind the driver, so very unsafe. The seats projected below the car, and your butt was seriously endangered if you were't careful to take curb cuts at an angle. The wooden frame meant that there was no central ground, so all the electrical stuff had to be double-wired. Lucas electrics did their worst on this car. For some unknown reason, mine kept chewing up speedometer cables, and the cramped cabin meant it took about an hour to replace one. Crabby and cranky as it was, out of all the cars I've owned in a long life, the Marcos is the one I loved best.
The Luton Gullwing looks very similar to the much later and larger Bristol Fighter 3:51 Marco made amazing cars that had many interesting and unique design features.
The wooden chassis was ditched for steel because it had no chance of passing the coming MIRA barrier test. At the time, most low volume manufacturers didn't expect to pass the test and accepted the end. Ironically, a couple of years later, the government issued exemptions for these low volume makes so long as numbers stayed below 500/Yr. The Marcos GT looked good but wasn't easy to drive or park. The car that shocked all was the TVR M Series. In 1972, not only did it pass the barrier test but redefined what a pass was.
For a while in the early 2000's, there was a reverse trike built from plans called the Vortex by Steven Pombo. Like the Marcos, it was built with a wooden monocoque chassis, but was powered by a broad selection of motorcycle engines. Traces of the Vortex have seemingly started to vanish from the internet, now that I've started looking for them. The people that built them (not many) laminated the chassis with fiberglass, and I believe one even lined the cockpit with kevlar to act as a "survival cell" like the high end race cars have.
Without getting myself into a lawsuit, I would like to give praise to his "populating" the US with German Taxicabs back in the late 70's, early 80's. His "gift" of rare and exotic automobiles, seldom seen in the us, also "spured" the Collector market often seen at some of the more prestigious Car Auction Houses today!...As a close friend of the "Morgan Guru" and part time "Bow Maker", along with "Bob", I was tasked with repair/rebuilding a great number of these "early gems" and it truly was one of the more memorable times of my life. Just my little contribution to the "Marque"...👍🗽🇺🇸
30+ years ago I saw one of the early GT's on the road here in the USA. I saw it coming up to pass thinking it was a Jaguar but when it passed that rear end surprised me. It took years till I figured out what it was. I always wanted one but knew I wouldn't fit, I'm 6'2". So, I got a 1971 Corvette instead.
I’m around same height as you and fit well in one, actually I have one . Funny because befor I got it I as about to get a c2 or a c3. Regret not going for it. You did a good choice .
Looks like a Marcos.. YEP Marcos.. I Saw one on the Road driving in front of me on motorway in late 90s,(it was new at that time as quite angular) PROPER RACE car! - it was me & 4 pals crammed in a car it was like something out of another world. We all saw it, ALL taking guesses, i said last, "THATS a Marcos!" - They had no clue LOL. As it turned off and we went to pass by we all saw "MARCOS" on the back! - Beautiful car!! Always wanted one since! Ps. Every "Morgan" is ALSO (STILL) wooden Chassis to this day!
Hi there If you have meant the green "Fastback" also known as the Breadvan by 4:23. The car is currently in restoration and should be on the road again this year
Back in 1939 a British Gent named John Rhodes Cobb built a car took it to the salt flats of Bonneville & went 368 mph.. he wasnt messing around with wood my friend ,..LOL
@@philtucker1224 My Marcos had a 3/4 inch thick marine plywood chassis. This was even thicker than the plywood used on PT-109 (Kennedy's PT boat). The other advantage of plywood was that in the event of a crash, the plywood soaked up huge amounts of energy, thereby protecting the driver and / or passenger.
During the mid to late 1960s there was a yellow one lived beside Bridport harbour, owner in a Flemish flat adjacent. The car registration number was PEN15. Owner was a vicar's daughter known as Fiona Richmond, her stock in trade was fiction, testing men. I am unable to say whether wooden or steel or which power unit. What i can say is that double pole electric wiring is good, every petrol tanker wagon has it for fire safety but so did Vintage Bentleys and wise motorcyclists because you don't want your headlamp return via the steering head ball races. I' m guessing that particular car was bought for its looks, not performance - just like a majority of clever quick machines.
I always thought a 215 Buick V8 in a Pontiac Fiero would have made an awesome car. The 215 engine weighed 55 lbs less than the stock 4 cylinder Pontiac Iron Duke.
They certainly did ! There's a seemingly endless list of mainstream and alternative car manufacturers who used this engine. One little-known fact is that it was the basis for Australia's Repco engine that took Jack Brabham and Kiwi, Denny Hulme to victory in F1 in 1966 and 1967 respectively, in Jack's own Repco Brabhams. I think Jack's win in '66 was the first ever by a driver in a car of his own name !!
Hi. Everyone has a tale to tell. Here's mine . I'm 72 on the 12th January.(2025) As a 9year old in 1962 my parents did Bed & Breakfast in a village in Devon , Kingskerswell . One day a gentleman visiting Torquay (looking for sponsers) booked in for a week . His car was a Volvo Amazon . I was very inquisitive and when he said he was looking for sponsors for a new car for a company called Marcos l asked if he had any drawings of this car . He showed me a pre- production brochure of the sensational Marcos . Volvo was the power plant that would power the 1800 or 3litre Marcos .
Poor man's E-Type some say, but in my opinion a interesting car with great potential, it deserved to be more successful. Think people thought of them as more of a kit car.
Minor tweaks... Marcos is pronounced with a short plain O, as in cost. You get it right half the time. Goldwing doors? FFS 😃 The Volvo 1800 engine @ 5:13 has a pair of SU carbs. They were originally fitted with Strombergs from the factory. Nothing wrong with the way you pronounced Porsche, don't know why somebody moaned about that. Other than that, quite good. By god, that first car was frecking ugly as sin. Thank guggery they persevered and produced the GT series - one of the best looking cars to come out of the 60s.
Porsche has been building cars AND ENGINES since AT LEAST 1948. BMW made aircraft engines in 1917, automobiles in 1928. It is difficult to make automobiles; more so, automobiles of distinction.
3 quick things with this video: 1, Let me know if you like the background music or not, it is the first time I have tried it! 2. Technically before the Xylon there was one experimental race car they built beforehand - if you want to hear more about that search up "Marcos Flying Splinter". 3, The English pronounce the name the way I did in the video, most of us Americans pronounce it differently - I don't know who is right lol. Anyway, cheers - enjoy the video!🤘
But you could, at least pronounce “Porsche” correctly - it’s PORsha. And why not cover the Mantis a little more thoroughly than mentioning its name. Thanks for the video!
Your AI voice is getting better, but...
The uncanny valley.
The music is ok as I didn't notice it which is how you want it, don't let it become too loud as that becomes annoying, also de dion suspension is pronounced de deon.
I think you got the volume level spot on, it worked for me anyway.
Frank Costin only worked for de Havilland after the war . During the war he worked for General Aircraft. The fuselage of the Mosquito was a true monocoque comprising a balsa core to plywood skins. The only parts of the Marcos which comprises such a sandwich were the footwell floors but I’m afraid they used fibreboard rather than balsa as a core .The essential item the Marcos had in common with the Mosquito was the use of Aerolite two part waterproof glue. I have rebuilt 6 wooden Marcoses and made the replacement chassis for the US based orange 1600 which pops up on the internet. Peter and Denis Adams never receive enough credit for their contribution.
Keep saving that “Old Gold!”
Would it be more accurate to compare the Marcos chassis to the wing mainspar, as a stressed wooden box section? Of course, the Mosquito did not just turn up out of nowhere, DH had been building wooden aircraft from the beginning, some of these included the sandwich construction technique (Albatross). This continued after the war with the (partial) wooden fuselage of the Vampire.
The original glue used in Mosquito construction was casein glue (based on a protein found in milk), then urea-formaldehyde, and finally resorcinol-formaldehyde. I have used urea-formaldehyde glues when cold molding double and triple, planked wooden boat hulls, a right royal pain in the a...
@@robertnicholson7733 Very interesting. The problem as always is being prepared to admit what you don’t know. When you consider that one of the most important aspects of the Mosquito was the glued joints it is surprising that none of the books including the Haynes manual make more than a passing mention of the glue , other than ‘Beetle glue ‘. I was unaware of how the two part glues developed. Cascein obviously worked - until it got to the tropics. I always warn Marcos repairers against Cascamite - the engine bay of a Marcos on a wet day makes a tropical climate seem quite balmy... The Mosquito spar is really a cantilevered laminated beam which is not a feature of the Marcos . Dare I suggest that that the Marcos comprises 3 parallel boxes transversed by the dash box at the front and axle/fuel tank boxing at the rear- and the whole lot braced by the fibreglass shell. The closest to it is the E Type which raises a few questions. Even if you disagree it’s a more obvious influence than the Lotus Elite. Anyway back to the tropics. When there were wing failures with the Mosquito in Burma, Geoffrey’s brother Hereward was sent to report on the problem and concluded that the problem was poor workmanship by a subcontractor which has always struck me as odd as de Havilland quality control was outstanding. Presumably the Mosquitos that persisted in the tropics long enough to make The Purple Plain with Gregory Peck and Maurice Denham used Aerolite. Well, ‘ You know how Sir Geoffrey saved the World ‘ !
@@richardfalconer1959 Sorry for my tardiness. I have been a bit busy so I have not been able to look in my "archive (mess)" to track down the exact information on the glue issue and my memory is not what it was.
Fortunately, Beatle glue was a manufacturer's designation and not a description, unlike shellac which is a secretion of the Lac beetle. Beatle glue was standard urea formaldehyde, I do not think any of the casein glue aircraft made it to the tropics but I have seen other information that contradicts that, so maybe.
I am pretty sure that all the Australian-built mosquitos used resorcinol-formaldehyde, but, then again, more contradicting stories. Hereward was sent to Australia and I thought it was he who considered that a newly finished Australian-built Mosquito crash near Sydney (where the wing failed) was caused by glue bond failure but this was actually bad workmanship by the Holden body works. It appeared that Holden management was rather slack and the workers did not understand how important it was for very precise joints, they were more used to building wooden car frames that were bolted to a chassis, so not much load bearing, if any. Unfortunately, a lot of these stories and incidents get conflated so it is hard to get everything straight. After this crash, CSIR did extensive (and impressively detailed) testing of the Mosquito wing structure including significant fatigue testing.
I have a copy of this book which includes information on the Mossie's wing testing somewhere:
www.eoas.info/bib/ASBS04633.htm
Post war Australian Mosquitos were painted silver as camouflage colours increased the heat transferred to the wooden structure which in turn accelerated the deterioration of the wooden structure (CSIR research). The Vampire's wooden structure was far better protected using multiple layers of protective doped fabric in critical areas (post-war so the aircraft was built better by de Havilland rather than contractors and only used wood in the "pod").
Back to the Marcos, I do not think many made it to Oz and I have no experience of it. I have seen a few good photos of the closely related Costin-Nathan structure and it appears to be just as you described. The E-type was much more complicated, my brother had three. One needed repair of the scuttle and another needed mild collision damage repaired at the very rear of the body. Looking at a partly disassembled scuttle made it abundantly clear why the things rusted, very complex, especially where the load from the space frame was transferred to the monocoque, the rear of the car had a similar problem. I tend to think of the E-type as a front, centrally braced box section joined to a similar box section at the back by a box section on either side (the sills), the floor providing a (very) little more rigidity. The Mini Moke was a bit the same, but without the box at the front and back but retaining the load-bearing box section sills. The floor was a bit more important in the Moke.
Addendum;
I have found the video I was looking for:
csiropedia.csiro.au/wings-test-1947/
if nothing else, watch the video for 30 seconds from about 1:20
and again at about 15.30 where it is clear that unlike many metal structures, catastrophic failure of wooden structures occurs with little to no warning.
Nice to see a history of Marcos. Just a point regarding the engine in the original Marcos. Yes, it did originate from the Ford Anglia 105E, with the 997cc version only making 39bhp in standard form. However, as it was going to be used for racing Marcos knew they needed a tuned version. And they knew just where to get one because Frank Costin of Marcos had a brother called Mike Costin, and along with a bloke called Keith Duckworth, Mike Costin had started a small engine tuning company under the name of Cosworth...
"Cosworth" - now where have I heard that name before . . . .
Love ❤️ for the *Cozzeh* from a Yank!
My grandfather was killed in a mosquito in WW2 six weeks before my father was born, his story is on the Carribbean aircrew WW2 website and his name was PILOT OFFICER H.F. WESTON.
Rest in peace to your grandad - a brave man I am sure.
@@rarecars3336 thanks for saying that, I appreciate it.
May he Rest in Peace.
Salute to your Grandfather, a member of the greatest generation in history!🎗
God bless your grandfather & All of the men of the RAF.
My uncle worked for Marcos in the early sixty's, the factory visits were fun, the scent of the Oak frame, also the seats were fixed onto the frame, the pedals could be moved forward or backward on a screw thread.
My favourite was the Mini Marcos, the customer could bring in a Mini, the lads at the factory would supe up the engine, tune the suspension and drop a highly modified shell on to the wooden frame.
These Mini Marcos were super light very fast and highly maneuverable, great fun.
I had a Mini Jem for many years, which was essentially the same as a Mini Marcos but with revisions to the fibreglass shell that made it better looking. It was hilarious fun to drive. With a 1275 cc Cooper S engine it had a top speed of 118 mph compared to the 97 mph of the original metal Mini. The wooden structure also made it immensely strong. When I drove it to Italy, as I left Rome I stopped at a red light and was rear-ended by an inattentive youth in a Fiat 500 (the original tiny one). My car had homemade shock-absorbing bumpers, stainless steel shells on hard foam rubber blocks. Thanks to these and to the strength of the wooden box, the only damage the car sustained was a single chip in the paintwork. But the Fiat got its front pushed in as far as the windscreen.
Funny, I'm currently studying a book from 1913 that is teaching me how to build a car with a wooden chassis. Ash wood to be exact. The techniques back then and the way they describe everything is by far superior to anything I've ever seen in today's world and I've been a mechanic and classic car restorer for about 30 years and come from a long line of mechanics, race car drivers and body men on both sides.
Iron or steels is also used, but the main material is of wood. If done correctly it's very strong, durable and long lasting stuff. Can actually last for hundreds of years and that's a real live fact. It's also cheap, abundant and much easier to shape and fabricate and work with.
Anyway. Cheers!
Thanks for keeping alive the memory of times when ingenuity and quality were at the core of every design.
It seems You "beat me to the punch" concerning Mike Costin & Cosworth. lol CHEERS !
natures carbon fiber.
Any chance you'd share the name of the book?
@@michaelg4931 Not sure if you're getting these messages, but I've left the information twice, but the comment keeps vanishing. It's strange. Google must be banning me from responding.
I must say, I really don't like this platform anymore and wish for something else.
UA-cam is done!
In 1964-65, in an after-school job, I worked at High Performance Cars in Waltham MA, a suburb of Boston. As an importer, they had acquired what became the "Refrigerator-White" Road & Track test car.
I got to drive it ~ 150 ft., from in front of the dealership to the back lot.
I peaked way too early!
I remember that write-up. They opined, correctly, that the Marcos heater felt like a mouse breathing on your foot.
What a beautiful story of automotive history! Thanks for your hard work and effort in creating this.
Thank you so much for that - I am very glad you enjoyed it! Comments like this are why I make these videos!
Thanks for the very informative video. One thing about the Mosquito during war time was that wood construction meant people and facilities could make airplanes where they had recently made furniture and the like. So it increased the production base for airplanes instead of fighting for metal work resources with other planes.
That is true with material rationing that did make them more viable from a production standpoint for the backbone of the plane!
It also meant you could disperse Manufacturing throughout the country in case of bombing damage. I live in Lancaster in the UK and a former piano factory made wings for the Mosquito.
Jem Marsh was 6' 4", I saw him back in '88 on the Marcos stand at a car show, yep a tall guy!
Yeah for the 60s especially 6'4' is huge
Friend of mine has a 4.6 Modular Ford powered Marcos. When he first brought it to the car show, he would chuckle how nobody knew what it was, and he would say all kinds of silly stories, that its a Ford prototype.
Until I showed up, jaw dropped asking him, if it was a real Marcos. Apparently I was the only one he met that heard of this make. Very cool car in person. Much cooler than photos do it justice.
Another awesome video, I liked the background music. It was quiet and far back enough to be pleasant and not over bearing(like a lot of channels). I don't watch a lot of car channels but I never miss one of videos! Looking forward to seeing you at 100-250k subscribers one day, then who knows 🤙
Thank you - that means a lot! I am so glad you enjoy the content I make. Thanks for always tuning in!
I got a chance to drive a Marcos that belonged to the husband of my mom’s friend. I took one of my friends along, we were both in our early 20s, and we got a flat tire. I’m sure he almost had a heart attack ack when he got a “ hello, this is Ted” phone call. It was all good after he explained how to get the spare out. Don’t remember exactly ( over 50 years ago) but I think you had to put a crank through the rear bulkhead to lower it. Great handling fun car!
That is awesome that you got a chance to drive one - what year was this in?
@@rarecars3336 72/73
@@rarecars3336 I remember I’d just gone to work for IBM repairing Selectric typewriters.
thanks for sharing this, very cool memory
Very well done that man !
I thoroughly enjoyed that on my Sunday morning 👍
I've been watching your channel for a little while now and I'm not surprised that your subs have gone up to 70K.
Keep up the good work.
Best wishes from Cornwall !
Thank you - glad you enjoyed it and thanks for always supporting the channel!
You mention them taking 7th in class at Le Mans, but completely skipped over Le Mans 1966. Sure, it was Ford vs Ferrari at the front of the grid, but after 24 hours of racing a privateer French team crossed the finish line in their Mini Marcos in 15th and last place, the only British car that did not DNF that year.
That car was missing for decades but has recently been found and is currently being restoredddd to origional 1966 LeMans spec.
Mike Costin was also the 'Cos' in Cosworth.
his bro was
Great video, I love how much detail you get into. Keep up the great work.
Thank you I appreciate that! Thank you so much for watching!
I am still amazed how many small car companies existed in the UK. Unfortunately they are now nearly all history.
The Marcos may have been among the best.
Right? Its gotta be one of the coolest subcultures of automobile history
My dad worked for Marcos during the wooden chassis era. He was in the design department making models. Unfortunately, I've not found a picture of him at Marcos, yet...
I am 72 years old , I have always loved marcos cars , I had no idea of any of their history , thank you so much ,
Great story about persistence. One of the best looking British sports cars ever.
Love that it was made of wood.
Thanks for the work you put into this.
Awesome video , great information, enjoyed it. Keep up the good work
Fantastic information, editing and video production.
Thank you Jake!
To fill in a little bit of the history: after leaving DE Haviland, Frank Costin moved to live in the ex slate mining mountain village of Deiniolen and he developed the prototype Xylon in the tiny vilage of Cwm y Glo down in the valley below. This car had a DKW engine. Production of the nine Ford powered Xylons was done in the old stables of the Golden Lion Royal Hotel in Dolgellau where the pictre of Frank Costin with the wooden chassis was taken in 1960. The owner of the hotel was a keen and quite sucsesful local rally driver and Frank probably knew him through competition.
The company moved to a converted mill in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire in 1963 and in 1971 to a purpose-built factory at nearby Westbury.
Great video. I don't have anything to contribute about the cars. But as a new subscriber and a philomath, I'm enjoying your historical motorsports content very much. Just wanted to say the work you are doing is reaching farther than you think. Reaching audiences you may have not been aware of. Thank you for your passion and for sharing it with us. GOD bless.
Very interesting and well done! Those carburetors at 5:17 appear to be SU carbs.
Totally agree, they are SUs, not Strombergs. I worked on both.
good video, my lm400 (red) at the end :)
Great video. Marcos is one the quirker race cars brands to exist. Loved them from the moment I learned about them. ❤
They are super quirky but they definitely do deserve more recognition than they get
Finally! Thank you! Well done!
The "good" thing about wood is that it is flexible. The "bad" thing about wood is that it is flexible!
Truth lol - and the fact that termites would actually be a serious problem in the extremely small chance they got to the car
The monocoque plywood structure of the Marcos 1800 GT was incredibly stiff -just like the airframe of the DeHavilland Mosquito. The comment about termites - or “white ants” as they’re called in England - was just silly at the time, and silly now. It became a running joke back in the day, but termites were never experienced by any owners. Gem Marsh and Frank Costin weren’t stupid - the monocoque was made of marine plywood and sealed. How many plywood boats - of which there are millions - do you see with a termite problem?
@@bartonbrown4172 that’s why I said the extremely small chance - the US navy doesn’t like wooden pallets on ships for that reason. Rust would post a greater issue to any car than termites would to this but still - in theory it could happen. I’m sure peoples in period concern about it was overblown
The worst thing about wooden structures is, in a hard collision it literally explodes, into millions of sharp splinters. Don't get into an accident! 😮
@@rarecars3336 Rust verses termites.. lol
It started out looking E-type ish and ended up looking Viper ish, cool cars
Excellent presentation!
Thank you so much for your kind words!
The Marcos was my dream car of my childhood. At my age now, that's what it'll be, a dream. My father in law's brother died returning from a sortie over Norway in a Mosquito shortly before VE day.
FYI - the semi independent rear end set up you were talking about on the 1800GT is called "de Dion" (pronounced day dee-on). It was a great alternative to all wheel independent suspension car Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo has de Dion cars and even Ferrari tried it once on their F-1 cars.
Thank your for the pronunciation correction. Yes I did know Aston had it on some of their cars - I know another car I made a video on used it I just forget the name
Didn't the Rover 2000 (P6) also have one?
Corvette as well I think.
@@paulqueripel3493 Rover 3500 !!
Great historical take on MarCos. Didn't happen to show anything about the TSO GT, though. It was featured on Top Gear and actually seemed like a very good car.
I had a 1967 Marcos GT with the Ford Cortina GT sourced 1500 engine from 1973 to 1976. It was a really quick car for a normally aspirated single cam engine of its size and great roadholding too. Jem Marsh had a place in the west country at the time where he sold sold spares for the Marcos cars. I damaged one of the perspex headlamp covers and was able to get a replacement from him at a very reasonable price. One thing I remember about the wooden chassis is that it was sprayed with some kind of sealant on the underside and I noticed there was a split in that going right across the car under the mid section. It was a bit worrying when I first spotted it but never got any worse and I guess it was just down to flexing. I eventually sold it via the Exchange and Mart to a guy who coincidentally lived in the same town as my brother sixty miles away. My nephew said he often saw it around town until ten years later or so, which isn't bad going.
A Marcos has been one of my favorite marks since 1972. One day....
Get one while you still can!
Thank you for the deep dives... Love the videos...
Thank YOU for watching!
Excellent 👍 i enjoy all your vids, but this is an especially great breakdown of this fascinating brand!
I love the lines of the Marcos GT; for me the later models lacked the Frank Costin influence and looked more 'form over function' and less pure.
The plywood chassis was brilliant!
The Marcos, GT6 and early E-types all had those beautiful body lines that are so well cherished now more than 50 years later. (It was really just mainly the U.S safety regulations post Ralph Nader that stopped a lot of sport car production back then)
Is age getting the better of me, or are the carbs (5:12) SU HD8's and not Strombergs? Wonderful memories. Thank you.
That was excellent, good work
Thank you so much - I appreciate you tuning in!
I owned a Marcos with the Volvo B18B engine. The Laycock electric overdrive saved a lot of gas, The car gripped tenaciously, couldn't be rolled, and accelerated great. Genuine knock-off wire wheels added to the good looks. But the car was so low you were afraid you would drive under a semi truck! The ground clearance was 4 inches, the gas tank was immediately behind the driver, so very unsafe. The seats projected below the car, and your butt was seriously endangered if you were't careful to take curb cuts at an angle. The wooden frame meant that there was no central ground, so all the electrical stuff had to be double-wired. Lucas electrics did their worst on this car. For some unknown reason, mine kept chewing up speedometer cables, and the cramped cabin meant it took about an hour to replace one.
Crabby and cranky as it was, out of all the cars I've owned in a long life, the Marcos is the one I loved best.
My shop boss in the early 1970s was also a Marcos trader so I was lucky enough to get a few breath taking rides back in the day 🙏
Well this is an interesting piece of British automotive history. Nicely styled cars.
Interesting cars! Stuff like this makes me wish I were a Jay Leno, he probably has one.
Well, he featured one on his show, but it's not his own ua-cam.com/video/gJvF8o93WWk/v-deo.html
The Luton Gullwing looks very similar to the much later and larger Bristol Fighter 3:51 Marco made amazing cars that had many interesting and unique design features.
I like the look of the Marcos line of cars. The 1990s iterations look striking. I would like to have known about them then.
The wooden chassis was ditched for steel because it had no chance of passing the coming MIRA barrier test.
At the time, most low volume manufacturers didn't expect to pass the test and accepted the end.
Ironically, a couple of years later, the government issued exemptions for these low volume makes so long as numbers stayed below 500/Yr.
The Marcos GT looked good but wasn't easy to drive or park.
The car that shocked all was the TVR M Series. In 1972, not only did it pass the barrier test but redefined what a pass was.
Fantastic story. Someone ought to pick it up again. Boutique cars are in vogue. The price wouldn’t be a problem.
As a teenager in the late 60's I drooled to have one of these.
There is an orange one still on the road in perth western Australia...its gorgeous..
Beautiful cars, it’s a shame they’re gone for now.
Agreed - would love to see them make a comeback
For a while in the early 2000's, there was a reverse trike built from plans called the Vortex by Steven Pombo. Like the Marcos, it was built with a wooden monocoque chassis, but was powered by a broad selection of motorcycle engines. Traces of the Vortex have seemingly started to vanish from the internet, now that I've started looking for them. The people that built them (not many) laminated the chassis with fiberglass, and I believe one even lined the cockpit with kevlar to act as a "survival cell" like the high end race cars have.
❤❤❤❤❤❤very interesting video and car thanks
Without getting myself into a lawsuit, I would like to give praise to his "populating" the US with German Taxicabs back in the late 70's, early 80's. His "gift" of rare and exotic automobiles, seldom seen in the us, also "spured" the Collector market often seen at some of the more prestigious Car Auction Houses today!...As a close friend of the "Morgan Guru" and part time "Bow Maker", along with "Bob", I was tasked with repair/rebuilding a great number of these "early gems" and it truly was one of the more memorable times of my life. Just my little contribution to the "Marque"...👍🗽🇺🇸
WOW!!! I want to build one of these with the wood frame.. I think that would be so cool!!!!
Good video
30+ years ago I saw one of the early GT's on the road here in the USA. I saw it coming up to pass thinking it was a Jaguar but when it passed that rear end surprised me. It took years till I figured out what it was.
I always wanted one but knew I wouldn't fit, I'm 6'2". So, I got a 1971 Corvette instead.
I’m around same height as you and fit well in one, actually I have one . Funny because befor I got it I as about to get a c2 or a c3. Regret not going for it. You did a good choice .
Hmm. No mention of the Mini Marcos? Otherwise, excellent video, and the music was unobtrusive and pleasant.
I just wanted to cover the GT in this video - I figured the mini Marcos was cool enough for its own video! Glad you liked it!
The cars shown in this presentastion are beautiful examples.
Matchbox should make a Marcos diecast car, that would ve awesome to see and eventually get
Looks like a Marcos..
YEP Marcos..
I Saw one on the Road driving in front of me on motorway in late 90s,(it was new at that time as quite angular) PROPER RACE car! - it was me & 4 pals crammed in a car it was like something out of another world. We all saw it, ALL taking guesses, i said last, "THATS a Marcos!" - They had no clue LOL. As it turned off and we went to pass by we all saw "MARCOS" on the back! - Beautiful car!! Always wanted one since!
Ps. Every "Morgan" is ALSO (STILL) wooden Chassis to this day!
Beautiful cars unknown to me before
Glad you got something out of the video - I agree these are such underrated cars
Still quite a few on the road, look up the U.K. Marcos owners club.
FREAKING BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GOTTA HAVE ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Quite possible. Enquire through the Marcos Owners club.
Wow, never heard of this car before.
It NEEDS more attention!
I'm watching this amongst August
the model shown at 4.23 looks amazing
Hi there
If you have meant the green "Fastback" also known as the Breadvan by 4:23. The car is currently in restoration and should be on the road again this year
I remember a wooden sports car. I missed the mention of it. I believe it was called Manta Ray.
Jimmy Sine and Bobby Wave were a couple of bright sparks that invented, you guessed it! The electric pencil sharpener
Frank Costin wasn't the only one in his family to get involved with Motor Cars. His brother Mike is the "COS" in COSWORTH Engines
5:17 - these look very much like SU carbs. - Volvos generally used SU carbs
I loved the Mantis XP
Back in 1939 a British Gent named John Rhodes Cobb built a car took it to the salt flats of Bonneville & went 368 mph.. he wasnt messing around with wood my friend ,..LOL
I've heard the phrase in the 60s about a car crashing and nothing left but splinters. This must be the culprit, although the 500 had potential
The marcos gt was a must have gran turismo car.
Morgan Cars used to have lots of wood in them.
So the marcos has a plywood chassis?!
Something tells me itll probably last longer than the toyota chassis ive dealt with 😂...
Actually it was ASH.
@@philtucker1224 My Marcos had a 3/4 inch thick marine plywood chassis. This was even thicker than the plywood used on PT-109 (Kennedy's PT boat). The other advantage of plywood was that in the event of a crash, the plywood soaked up huge amounts of energy, thereby protecting the driver and / or passenger.
@@EricHatch-fm8dl nice. Good material that worked well on the WW2 MTBs as well…👌
During the mid to late 1960s there was a yellow one lived beside Bridport harbour, owner in a Flemish flat adjacent. The car registration number was PEN15. Owner was a vicar's daughter known as Fiona Richmond, her stock in trade was fiction, testing men. I am unable to say whether wooden or steel or which power unit. What i can say is that double pole electric wiring is good, every petrol tanker wagon has it for fire safety but so did Vintage Bentleys and wise motorcyclists because you don't want your headlamp return via the steering head ball races. I' m guessing that particular car was bought for its looks, not performance - just like a majority of clever quick machines.
Who ever designed the Dodge Viper must have loved the Marcos
INTERESTING FACT. I RACE A MARCOS FLY SLOT CAR. IT IS THE FASTEST ON TRACK OF MY SPORTS CARS.
I always thought a 215 Buick V8 in a Pontiac Fiero would have made an awesome car. The 215 engine weighed 55 lbs less than the stock 4 cylinder Pontiac Iron Duke.
The Brits used that Buick 215 in absolutely everything.
They certainly did ! There's a seemingly endless list of mainstream and alternative car manufacturers who used this engine. One little-known fact is that it was the basis for Australia's Repco engine that took Jack Brabham and Kiwi, Denny Hulme to victory in F1 in 1966 and 1967 respectively, in Jack's own Repco Brabhams. I think Jack's win in '66 was the first ever by a driver in a car of his own name !!
Thank you for the Ft Lbs.
No mention (& only 1 piccy) of the MiniMarcos?
Not in this video I am going to do a full separate video on the Mini Marcos as I think that warrants it - but i could have at least mentioned it
Hi. Everyone has a tale to tell. Here's mine . I'm 72 on the 12th January.(2025) As a 9year old in 1962 my parents did Bed & Breakfast in a village in Devon , Kingskerswell . One day a gentleman visiting Torquay (looking for sponsers) booked in for a week . His car was a Volvo Amazon . I was very inquisitive and when he said he was looking for sponsors for a new car for a company called Marcos l asked if he had any drawings of this car . He showed me a pre- production brochure of the sensational Marcos . Volvo was the power plant that would power the 1800 or 3litre Marcos .
The only Marcos that isn't an eyesore is the Mantis XP. :)
There was only one XP, nice looking car agreed but how can you call the Marcos GT an Eyesore!!
I have to ask.
Was the actual chassis wooden or was it a wooden framed body on a metal chassis like the Morgan?
The old ones were a monocoque wood body with a fiberglass body, the wood was extremely strong & performed very well.
Poor man's E-Type some say, but in my opinion a interesting car with great potential, it deserved to be more successful. Think people thought of them as more of a kit car.
0:35 “de Havilland” with an “e”
Minor tweaks...
Marcos is pronounced with a short plain O, as in cost. You get it right half the time.
Goldwing doors? FFS 😃
The Volvo 1800 engine @ 5:13 has a pair of SU carbs. They were originally fitted with Strombergs from the factory.
Nothing wrong with the way you pronounced Porsche, don't know why somebody moaned about that.
Other than that, quite good.
By god, that first car was frecking ugly as sin. Thank guggery they persevered and produced the GT series - one of the best looking cars to come out of the 60s.
If I could ever afford one I’d want one soooo bad
Say it right Amelda!
Maybe you could do a video on the equally idiosycratic and British Morgan Car Company.and their +4 and +8 sportscars.
He he, many sports and some F1 etc cars used Triumph Herald based front susp, but no one used Herald rear susp!
I used to own Luton coupé GT nr 2 😊
I think I see where the Dodge Viper got its styling...
Well, I’ve been pronouncing Marcos wrong for almost 50 years… 🤦♂️
On topgear they say it this way - I always said it the way you probably did to lol
Mark O's. Not Markaas
Lol, same
Used to be a multicolored Mantis that SCCA race at Memphis,Tn back in the day.
When I first heard of this car, in my ignorance, I had assumed it may be a Spaniard creation as Marcos is a given name in Spanish.
Porsche has been building cars AND ENGINES since AT LEAST 1948. BMW made aircraft engines in 1917, automobiles in 1928. It is difficult to make automobiles; more so, automobiles of distinction.
3:40 min mark: 'goldwing' doors??