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The Marcos marque was founded in 1959 by Jem Marsh and the late Frank Costin, who took the first three letters of their surnames to devise a name for the new company. Their first cars drew on Costin's aviation experience and were remarkable in their use of wood laminates for the monocoque body/chassis unit. Lightweight and good streamlining gave outstanding performance from the relatively modest 1 litre and 1.5 litre Ford engines they used.
As with so many of the smaller British manufacturers spawned during this period, Marcos earned its market pedigree on the racetrack. Notable early customers include Jackie Stewart, who gained his first racing experience in a Marcos, Derek Bell, Jackie Oliver and Jonathan Palmer. This first car was known as 'The ugly duckling'. These first cars sold well on sheer capability alone.
When Frank Costin left the company in 1961 his creation was placed in the hands of Dennis and Peter Adams. Their first challenge was to simplify the construction technique. During 1963, and intended merely as a stopgap project, the Adams brothers produced designs for the Marcos 1800. Though still relying upon wood for the chassis this new model was clothed in an extraordinarily beautiful fibreglass shell. Indeed, this 'stopgap' turned out to be so good looking that it was acclaimed an immediate success following its launch at the Motor Show that October and remains the inspiration for the Company's top models to this day.
During 1966 the Mini Marcos was introduced; a fibreglass-bodied car utilising trusted Mini mechanicals, including the front wheel drive engine/transmission unit. It sold extremely well and, like other Marcos models, earned its spurs and reputation on the track, especially at Le Mans in 1966 when it was the only British car to complete the 24 hour race.
Throughout this time the Marcos GT remained hugely popular but m anufacture was still hindered by the labour intensive wooden chassis. In 1969 the Adams brothers were commissioned to design a steel chassis, which appeared in the form of a square section tubular spaceframe that cut 15 hours off the manufacturing times of every car. Power units were generally Ford (4 cylinder 1.5 litre and 1650cc, V4 and 3 litre V6) and Volvo (the original 180Occ and later the 3 litre straight six). All received excellent reviews from the press, where they compared very favourably with other specialist marques of the time, such as Lotus, Morgan, Gilburn and TVR.
In 1971, encouraged by a healthy order book, the decision was taken to move the manufacturing plant from Bradford-on -Avon in Wiltshire to a new factory in nearby Westbury. Production volumes were intended to become 6 to 10 cars per week, with a large proportion destined for the United States. Relocation to the new plant interrupted output considerably which, combined with problems involving the main US importer and a widespread collapse in the UK market, resulted in the closure of the original company in 1972.
Jem Marsh continued in business by establishing a spares and service facility for existing owners. In 1976 he reacquired the Marcos moulds and name, though it was not until 1981 that Marcos GT manufacturing was re-launched. Since then the car has been updated and revised several times; in 1984 as the Mantula Coupe fitted with a 3 3.5 litre Rover V8, and then in 1986 by the Mantula Spyder.
1993 proved to be a turning point for Marcos with the launch of the Mantara. Though visibly related, this latest Marcos was an all-new car that made use of the changes in UK type approval legislation to permit low-volume production and sales through selected dealers. The car was universally acclaimed, and following numerous road tests and reports, has continued to meet with compliments and widespread admiration. Powered by the latest derivative of the famous Rover V8 the Mantara offers outstanding performance sure-footed roadholding and unrivalled practicality.
However, the story does not end there. At the 1993 Motor Show Marcos unveiled the LM version of the Mantara. This car revived the company's racing fortunes by establishing an early reputation as a great race-winner. An extraordinarily successful first season in 5 litre Rover-based V8 format was followed in 1995 by the arrival of the LM600. Powered by a 6.1 litre Chevrolet small-block V8, this car not only brought Team Marcos the 1995 UK GT title, in the hands of Chris Hodgetts, but also enabled the factory to return to Le Mans for the first time in over 30 years.
In 1997 ever toughening emission laws, and the expense of the NCK Rover based unit forced Marcos to find another source for their engines, and the Mantis was born. Using the 4.6 litre Cobra Mustang engine. A much smoother unit than the Rover V8 and producing about the same power. Along with it came some styling changes to the front end, which basically updated the existing LM style and incorporated a large central power bulge to accommodate the new engine unit.
1998 saw the launch of the Mantaray, which for the first time in 35 years saw a complete re-style to the rear end. The Mantis also became available with a supercharger, pushing the BHP to an enormous 507. This turned out to be the last model Marcos would make, as in the closing stages of 2000 Marcos cars went into receivership.
May 2001 Marcos Heritage Spares announced that it had bought the assets of Marcos Sales Ltd. This was extremely good news for all Marcos owners as MHS now own all the original moulds, tools and jigs to manufacture or reproduce any part for any Marcos made from 1959 to date. The only part of Marcos they didn't acquire was the Mantaray II project and because of this the next big announcement came in 2002.
Marcos Engineering , trading from the old Marcos factory in Wiltshire, headed by Jem Marsh with an American backer announced the launch of the Marcasite TS250 powered with a Ford V6 and sharing a lot Mantaray styling.
July 2003 Marcos Engineering launch the TS500, dropping the Marcasite tag and adding a modified Rover V8, along with some more muscular bodywork.
Stop press! - new model with LS1 engine with a minimum of 350bhp! http://www.Marcos-eng.com