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.
GT
1960 - 1963
production of 29 the prototype had the Ford 1 litre
engine,Triumph front suspension, modifications were made as more
cars were produced.
1800
1964 - 1966 Production of 99--
1800cc Volvo engine, still made from wood but with a new fiberglass
body, which became a modern classic.
1500
& 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.
Mini
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.
3
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.
Mantis
1970 - 1971 Production of 32 The first
and only 4 seater had a tubular chassis and a Triumph TR 6 engine
and front suspension
.
