The first Marcos car, built from 1959-1960, was the Xylon, named after the Greek for wood because of designer and engineer Frank Costin’s use of timber for the structure.
It was built primarily for racing and espoused Costin’s pursuit of function over aesthetics, resulting in the sit-up-and-beg cockpit, designed to accommodate his co-founder Jem Marsh’s 6’4” frame, and gained the Xylon the monicker The Ugly Duckling.
But Costin was an aerodynamicist and the Xylon was quick, dominating its category and attracting serious racing drivers including Jackie Stewart, Derek Bell and Jackie Oliver. The Luton Gullwing followed in 1961 and broadened the Marcos offering into cars for road as well as track. It was based on the Xylon, but it was the first Marcos worked on by designers Dennis and Peter Adams, who gave it a more cohesive and very pleasing look.
The final Xylon derivatives were the Spyder and Fastback of 1963 – the latter similar in style to Ferrari’s 250 GT SWB ‘Breadvan’ – which were an even more contemporary take on the Gullwing and gave a taste of future Marcos models.
“The Marcos is the fastest 3-litre car we have tested… acceleration from 30 to 100mph betters that of an E-Type.”
Motor Magazine on the GT, April 1969
The following year saw a step change, when the Adams brothers produced their first solus design. Still using a wooden structure but this time with a 100% fibreglass body, in the 1800 GT they created a shape which was critically acclaimed, giving Marcos real credibility as a road car manufacturer.
The GT’s form became the signature Marcos, a blend of Italian style and British individuality. It was also the inspiration for most future models.
The wooden-chassis car was produced with relatively low-powered engines until 1969, when it was first fitted with a 3.0 V6 unit. With that under the bonnet the car was hailed by the press, and suddenly celebrities including Rod Stewart could be found behind the wheel.
The Mini Marcos, introduced in 1965, had more in common with the Xylon than with the GT. It wasn’t designed by the Adams brothers but it did inherit Costin’s purist approach to function and efficiency, again with a monocoque chassis. So it flew on a circuit, winning its first race and competing successfully at the 1966 Le Mans 24 Hours.
Produced later as the Mk IV, V, and VI, the car developed an international fanbase. To satisfy demand it was produced under licence in South Africa and Japan, where customers would buy a donor Mini solely to be cannibalised. It’s the biggest-selling Marcos ever, with over 1300 made, and retains huge affection today.
The late 1960s saw two attempts at a step change. The Mantis XP, a futuristic Adams brothers design, was intended to launch a dedicated Le Mans programme. It competed at the Spa 1000km but only one was made, best remembered as a tribute to the design skills of the Adams brothers.
The other project was more successful: to make Marcos more commercially viable, in 1969 Dennis and Peter Adams were asked to lower production costs. The answer was to replace the wooden chassis with steel. The heavier structure did little to blunt the GT’s performance and nothing to detract from its appeal, and the period from 1969 to 1972 was a golden one, with around 370 3.0-litre cars sold, including the USA.
Encouraged by the success of the GT, Marcos made its only four-seater, the Mantis, in 1970. Its edgy Adams design lost something between drawing board and production, but all 32 cars made were sold. Its downfall was the collapse of the American market, which also meant that Marcos closed in 1972.
Jem Marsh re-started the company with production of the tried-and-tested GT in component form in 1981. It was updated and renamed Mantula in 1984, fitted with the Rover 3.5-litre V8 and then the 3.9-litre version. There was also a Mantula Spyder, the first convertible Marcos since the Xylon-based Spyder over 20 years earlier, and a lower-cost version, the Martina.
“Celebrities including Rod Stewart and Roger Moore could be found behind the wheel.”
In 1991 Marcos returned to full factory production with the Mantara. The familiar GT shape was modified and suspension uprated, with 2.0-litre Rover engines as well as the most powerful evolutions of its V8. This inspired a return to the track, resulting in the LM400 and 500 road cars, and then the LM500 and 600 race cars – the latter using a Chevrolet V8.
The Mantara/LM road car series sold well enough to warrant a successor, and 1997 saw the launch of the Mantis, sporting a 4.6-litre Mustang engine. Modified by Marcos to produce over 50% more power for a top-spec version, the Mantis GT was Britain’s first ever 500bhp sports car.
The same year witnessed further evolution of the signature Marcos styling in 1997’s Mantaray, based on the Mantara but available only as a convertible. It was the last factory car to come out of the Jem Marsh-owned business.
In 2002 a new company with Jem Marsh as vice-chairman, Marcos Engineering (now a sister firm to Marcos Motor Company) announced a Mantaray successor. The result was the Marcos Marcasite TS250 and TS500 models with familiar Ford and Rover engines. These were superseded by the Marcos TSO range, which were restyled and featured a 5.7-litre Chevrolet V8. Production stopped in 2007.
