. This post and its visuals and videos explains this pivotal vector of the international industry with such clarity and depth. All Rights Reserved. It really showed up typical RWD cars of the time as being great space-wasters. And I myself have engineered a few things with the help of Jack Daniels . Having been a passenger in an early Austin Landcrab on several occasions I can confirm they are amazingly spacious inside, front and rear. The end of the agreement came in 1986, when Issigonis wrote directly to Graham Day, BLs then new Chairman. The boxy, inexpensive, fuel-efficient Mini used a transverse engine to power its front wheelsa radical design at the timeand thus could comfortably seat four passengers despite being only 10 feet (3 m) long. Great article there should be a movie about Issigonis! He showed that cars could be practical and pleasant to ride in and drive, and that size was not everything; he defined the template for the small petrol engined car for 50 years, maybe longer, and showed how modest cars could become wish list items, attracting customer such as Enzo Ferrari. On October 2, 1988, he passed . Probably the closest British comparison is the Jaguar Mk 1 which came out in 1955 and was produced at a rate of around 10-15,000 for thirteen years. I had a book about Issigonis, but its lost. This generation experienced much of their youth during the Great Depression and rapid technological innovation such as the radio and the telephone. If (and I have no evidence and make no suggestions) a young Issigonis had been outed in, say, the early 1950s, his career progression would likely have been ended even, without any prosecution. He despised such luxuries as radios and comfortable seats, once stating I would like people to sit on nails to be extremely uncomfortable all the time. and declaring that an uncomfortable driver is an alert driver. Nice to see that blue Morris Oxford just the same as our first car that I remember. Striving to ensure that as much space as possible was allocated to the passengers, Issigonis used Moultons compact rubber suspension and had Dunlop build 10 inch wheels and tyres just for the Mini purely for reasons of space efficiency. The Minor, Mini, ADO16 and Landcrab all had character, and were all friendly cars. Manual transmissions seemed to hold up ok,lasting at least as long as the engine. I saw this tiny car among the Buicks Oldsmobiles Mercurys and Chevrolet Impalas that were the usual fare. His name will always be associated with the Morris Minor and the Mini, but he was a complex man with a complex background, family, story and career. He title at Alvis was Engineer in charge of passenger car design. [8], With the creation of British Leyland in 1969, new chairman Lord Stokes quickly sidelined Issigonis and made him into what was termed "Special Developments Director", replacing him with Harry Webster as the new Technical Director (Small/Medium cars). 130 King Street West, Exchange Tower, Suite 1800, Toronto, Canada, M5X 1E3. Noch ein Mini! Nearly $1900 was pretty stiff pricing for a car that size in the mid 60s, $150 more than a Bug. This car basically took the Mini concept and enlarged it by 20%, adding some experience, and ambition, at the same time. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The image his cars achieved for BMC was arguably a factor in the survival of the company in the market place, and BMC used his personality extensively in advertising whichyou can imagine Issigonis publicly hating but privately loving. But, as ever, events intervened in this case the Suez Crisis of 1956, complete with petrol rationing. In 1961, with the Mini gaining popularity, Issigonis was promoted to Technical Director of BMC. Issigonis' first cousin once removed was Bernd Pischetsreider, responsible . Day terminated the consultancy agreement, without any more consultation. By 1969 Fiat had also followed with the 128, and by 1974 Peugeot, VW and Renault had transverse engine hatchbacks as well. He pressed the case, again, for the gearless 9X, complained about electronics in cars, designers using CAD systems and not slide rules, and changes in the model designations of the existing Mini. He was popular for being a Entrepreneur. : Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis , CBE, FRS, RDI 19061118-1988102 . The AROnline development story tells the tale of how this small car changed the way we looked at economy cars almost overnight. Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis was born in the Turkish town of Smyrna, today's Izmir, as the son of a Briton of Greek origin and a mother from Bavaria, on 18 November 1906. He lived and worked in England " A camel is a horse designed by a committee " " Pure Math is the enemy of every truly creative man" Sir Alec's grandfather Demosthenes was sort of a mechanical genius having . His inability to accept guidance (stubbornness may be a better term) also led to some misjudged products the Maxi comes to mind but perhaps the purity of hispredominantly engineering solution with poor execution in the areas Issigonis didnt or wouldnt appreciate (looks, practicality, ergonomics, product revisions, marketing) was also overlooked by too many within BMC. Alecs father, Constantine Issigonis, who was born in Smyrna in 1872, studied in England, and subsequently returned to Smyrna, keeping the engineering business going through the First World War and maintaining his British citizenship. A deeply flawed genius at best. Stokes was heard on his appointment to say: "We'll sharp sort this bloke Issigonis out!". Sir Alec was a combination of everything that was right AND wrong about the British car industry in his day. The problem was that I would never have initially chosen to drive one. BMCs Great Leap Forward was a bold move, unfortunately marred by the inability to check Issigonis tendencies that often put the buyer last instead of first. The greatest overall compatibility with Scorpio is Taurus and Cancer. Enter a Crossword Clue Sort by Length Its practicality and affordability made it immediately popular; by the time of Issigonis death more than five million had been sold. Sounds like his stubbornness had a lot in common with Henry Ford and his reluctance to move on from the Model T. Imagine trying to take him seriously when he declared an uncomfortable driver is an alert driver. It was 1961 when the humble little people-mover fell into the hands of British racing legend John Cooper. https://www.mini.com/ Issgonis preferred to work by sketching his ideas onto Arclight pads, each numbered in sequence and retained, and then having Daniels, looking after chassis elements, or another close confidant John Sheppard, looking after the body shell itself, work to turn these in physical reality. Well, he went down in history as the father of the Mini and was even raised to nobility for his services. His name? [4] His maternal ancestors originated in the Kingdom of Wrttemberg. Alec Issigonis was born in the Year of the Horse. Chrysler also took a licence to manufacture the device, which was an integral part of their pioneering overdrive in 1934. Humber was the upscale brand of the Rootes Group, but also the name of the main car building company in the Group. I remember seeing early Civics with trunks and the early VW Dasher had a trunk, in spite of its fastback bodywork. On a cheerier note, Id love to see that Alvin on the flesh. . Issigonis actually sketched the Minis original design with a pencil on a tablecloth. The irony being, of all the cars built in the world that follow his layout, none carry an Austin or Morris badge. Alec's grandfather Demosthenis migrated to Smyrna from the Greek island of Paros in the 1830s. During the Second World War, Britain was in control of the Suez Canal, which served as an important source of oil, but this changed during the so called Suez crisis in 1956. Although primarily a station car, my parents also took it on a vacation through New England. Looking at the Minor or the Mini, I can believe that. [7] This ground-breaking design, with its front wheel drive, transverse engine, sump gearbox, 10-inch wheels, and phenomenal space efficiency, was still being manufactured in 2000 and has been the inspiration for almost all small front-wheel drive cars produced since the early 1960s. Alec Issigonis Related Authors Vivienne Westwood Quotes Virgil Abloh Quotes Coco Chanel Quotes Carroll Shelby Quotes Youre right about maintenance. So in here in the U.S. the ADO16 went down in obscurity, while its far less sophisticated but more reliable competition built by the Axis powers took over the small car market. After these cars, and the formation of British Leyland in 1968, Issigonis was sidelined by a new influx of engineers led by Triumphs Harry Webster. However, at the end of 1956, following fuel rationing brought about by the Suez Crisis, Issigonis was ordered by Lord to bring the smaller car, XC/9003, to production as quickly as possible. Issigonis was born in Smyrna in 1906. But there were other 20th century cataclysms that he lived and worked through as a designer - including the Suez crisis of 1956. This isnt 1942. Sir Alec Issigonis. ), British automobile designer who created the best-selling, economical Mini and the perennially popular Morris Minor. American Brands: AMC, Jeep and All Others, Tractors, Lawn Mowers, Off-Road Equipment, Biography: Sir Alec Issigonis The Designer of Britains Favourite Cars, Britains Favourite Car Designer, I have labelled it the Most Significant Car of the 1940s, Vintage R&T Technical Analysis: AMCs New Pacer As Short As A Pinto; As Wide As A Chevelle, Vintage Car Life Comparison: 1961 VW Bus, Corvair Greenbrier, and Ford Econoline Wherein A 40 HP VW Bus Ties An 80 HP Greenbrier In The 1/4 Mile, Cohort Pic(k) of the Day: NSU Ro80 Just Your Typical Bay Area Car Show, The CC Graveyard: Part Three An Exotic Foreigner Hiding In The Bushes, Wordless Outtake: Ford, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot, Renault, MAN The Subcontractors Sixsome, BOAL: 1982 Honda GL500 Silverwing Chapter 5, The Baby Wing. It confronted the conservative image of BMC head on, even if the rest of BMC range didnt. He was involved in engine design as well, requesting unsuccessfully that BL build 4 and 6 cylinder engines for Mini variants. It is arguably doubtful that Lord, knowing Issigonis better, would have seen him as the ideal candidate for the overall technical leadership of BMC. Issigonis customer in this case was Maurice Wilks, later the man behind the Land Rover. Alec completed his education at an English boarding school, and in 1925, took a two month tour, by car, of Europe with his mother before returning to take a place at Battersea Polytechnic in south London, to study mechanical engineering. Im sure this was never part of Issigoniss plan, as he was anti-style, but only the 1100 benefited from external help. At the opening of the factory BMC was represented by Sir Alec Issigonis. He also had plans for a flat four cylinder engine, and at frequentlychallenged convention and Morris Motors conservatism. Unique. The change was not handled well though, with credible accounts of a literally tearful Issigonis wandering around Longbridge trying to find a new office after returning from abroad to find Webster occupying his office. He designed the Mini, launched by the British Motor Corporation in 1959, and voted the second most influential car of the 20th century in 1999. During 1956 Issigonis concentrated on the larger two cars, producing several prototypes for testing. His little cars were a success despite him. JUMP TO: Alec Issigoniss biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs. Been a fan of Alec Issigonis since I was 8 years old. Alec Issigonis Net Worth 2023, Age, Height, Relationships, Married, Dating, Family, Wiki Biography . Issigonis did observe and try to improve on what he saw, but always challenged himself to be original and better. In 1922 the family left Turkey for England, as all British people were banished from the country. Constantine was very proud of his British citizenship and Alec grew up in a traditional British type of household. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS (18 November 1906-2 October 1988) was a Greek-British designer of cars, now remembered chiefly for the groundbreaking and influential development of the Mini, launched by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) in 1959. His stubbornness, I would say, had more in common with Ford starting production of the T, when everyone was telling him to make expensive cars because they were more profitable. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS (November 18, 1906-October 2, 1988) was a Greek-British designer of cars, now remembered chiefly for the development of the Mini, launched by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) in 1959. In March 1957 Lord asked (more likely told, as Lord did not do asking) Issigonis to come up with something to compete with them. You probably know the part about Alec Issigonis being born in the Greek city of Smyrna in 1906, being evacuated to Malta in 1922 following the Turkish invasion, and how he moved to London in 1923 to study engineering.
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