Marcos

 

Marcos gets it's name from the combination of the alliance of Jem Marsh and Frank Costin, which began in the late 1950's. The Marcos is a wood bodied, race-bred English car which enjoyed it's acclaim in the 1960's  and early 1970's.  The idea was to create a high-performance, low weight,  two seater, closed car, suitable for the installation of a BMC or Ford one litre engine which  were readily available at that time.  It wasn't long before this car dominated the the one-lite  sportscar class on the race circuit.  In 1968, the wood body was abandoned when Marcos wanted to break into the American market. The wood body did not meet U S Federal laws. Unfortunatley for Marcos,  they did not meet the new emmisions standards either, and the US kept them from being sold.


Marcos GT 1960-1963GT 1960 - 1963 production of 29 the prototype had the  Ford 1 litre engine,Triumph front suspension,  modifications were made as more cars were  produced. 

 

 


Marcos 1800 1964-19661800 1964 - 1966 Production of 99-- 1800cc Volvo engine,  still made from wood but with a new fiberglass body, which became a modern classic.

 

 


 Marcos 1600 1967-1968Marcos 1500 1966-19671500 & 1600 1966 - 1967 Production of 82 and  1967 -1968 Production of 192 Both of  these had a Ford engine and lacked some of the performance of the V Volvo engined 1800, but still performed respectably.  The Ford engine was used to keep the cost down, and most were sold  in GB in kit form.

 

 


 Marcos Mini Marcos 1965-1974Mini Marcos 1965 - 1974 Production of 700 (Approx.)   A lively performer even with the standard engine, it was light and low.  The only British car  to finish the 1966 24 hour race at  Le Mans.  It was also commercially successful.

 

 

 


Marcos 3 Liter3 Litre / 2 1/2 Liter / 3 Litre Volvo1969 - 1971 /1971 / 1970/71 Production of 80 / 11 / 250 -The wood was now replaced with a steel, square tube chassis.  The 3 litre, 2 1/2 litre and 3 litre Volvo were all basically the same except for the engines. The 2 1/2 used a Triumph TR6 engine and the 3 liter Volvo had the Volvo 164.

 


2 Litre 1970 - 1971 Production of 40 (Approx.)  This model was considered the "baby"  of the Marcos family.  It had a V4 Ford engine and the usual Marcos  options.
Marcos Mantis 1970-1971Mantis 1970 - 1971 Production of 32 The first and only 4 seater had a tubular chassis and a Triumph TR  6 engine and front suspension

 

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