German Engineer Who Designed And Built The First Practical Automobile The original Minor design was so narrow they had to chop it lengthways and widen it. Issigonis studied engineering at Battersea Polytechnic in London.
Remembering Designer of the Mini Cooper, Alec Issigonis 1925 . Getting a guy like Issigonis to design a V8 saloon and just chucking it in the bin. It didnt just raise the bar it kicked it into next week ! The cars quickly found their way to the scrapheap since the cost of repairing the automatic transmission typically was more than the car was worth. Copyright 2023. The relationship got to the point where Issigonis had the ideas, did the sketches and Daniels did the formal drawings. Rover used the freewheel extensively, on cars and Land Rovers, into the 1960s. Nearly $1900 was pretty stiff pricing for a car that size in the mid 60s, $150 more than a Bug. An engineering genius and godfather of of the Mini. Then of course there was severe corrosion in the face of road salt. Issigonis grandfather, Demosthenis Issigonis, had emigrated from Paros in Greece to Smyrna (as Izmir was then known) in the mid 19th century where his engineering company helped the British built the Smyrna-Aydn Railway, and through this acquired British citizenship. Found an ad for the US market 1100. Lords instruction was the one Issigonis had been waiting for, and he quickly developed the first Mini prototype. Roger, are you saying that Graham Day ended the consultancy and goodwill payments because he was offended by Issigoniss letter? Alec Issigoniss birth sign is Scorpio and he had a ruling planet of Pluto.
1959: The Mini Was Born. | MINI.com Issigonis also devised a compact suspension system made of rubber cones instead of springs to keep the wheel wells from intruding into the passenger compartment. [3] Whilst he is most famous for his creation of the Mini, he was most proud of his participation in the design of the Morris Minor. (I can remember seeing Austin Americas just a few years old being offered up for $50.) It certainly appeared by the Maxi development era that Issigonis wanted to "do his own thing" as cost cutting and development costs spiraled. Issigonis' first cousin once removed was Bernd Pischetsreider, responsible . His grandfather Demosthenis Issigonis . If so, that would seem vindictive on Days part. By 1941, Issigonis had started work on an advanced post war car, then codenamed Mosquito, which became the Morris Minor. This would have been in the early 70s when they were literally everywhere. The AROnline development story tells the tale of how this small car changed the way we looked at economy cars almost overnight.
Issigonis legacy - Education : Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis , CBE, FRS, RDI 19061118-1988102 .
Mini: a brief history - The Telegraph Alec's grandfather Demosthenis migrated to Smyrna from the Greek island of Paros in the 1830s. [14], He was granted the rank of Knight Bachelor in the 1969 Birthday Honours[15] and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II during an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace on 22 July of the same year. Yes, it ran like hell when operable as the owner treated it like an Army Jeep. Maybe it takes that sort of single-mindedness, bordering on obsession, to create something different, get it into production in spite of obstacles and naysayers, and make it a success. And a rally demon was born. Alec Issigonis It is much easier to drive without having an accident. The family had an engineering business making marine engines and pumps, and it was from observing his father at work that he determined to become an engineer. Upon meeting Alec, she is shy and ashamed . What a great, nicely balanced piece about the ever-controversial Sir Alec, and his equally controversial designs. MINI. Here in Australia they didnt seem particularly small, but they were certainly a lot more roomy than the competition. Chinese Zodiac: Alec Issigonis was born in the Year of the Rabbit. Alec Issigonis - Etsy Check out our alec issigonis selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. In November 1971, Issigonis officially retired from BLMC, with a major ceremony at Longbridge, for which BL marshalled an example of every car for which he had led the design, of which only the Minor was no longer in production. This undated sketch by Issigonis shows some of this. 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. Youre right about maintenance. As such he was of the generation who experienced the privations of two apocalyptic world wars. I saw about 3 Americas in the wild that I can remember, and 1 example of the earlier MG 1100 Sport Sedan.
Alec Issigonis - Wikipedia Bahasa Melayu, ensiklopedia bebas Alec is also well known as, British car designer best remembered for his work on the development of the iconic Mini. He was knighted in 1969 and was honored by the city of Oxford with a street named after him, Alec Issigonis Way. Fascinating lost papers from the man who created the Mini and the. .
Biography: Sir Alec Issigonis - The Designer of Britain's Favourite [4] William Morris (Lord Nuffield) didnt like it, naming it the poached egg and expressed no appreciation of it to Issigonis, until 1951 when 100,000 cars had been built. 104 Alec Issigonis Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images Images Images Creative Editorial Video Creative Editorial FILTERS CREATIVE EDITORIAL VIDEO 104 Alec Issigonis Premium High Res Photos Browse 104 alec issigonis stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. I saw that same car several times, so, at least in nice weather, it apparently was a daily driver. . By the mid 1950s, as Europe got back on its feet after the war, there had been many attempts to define the modern car, but none was proving to be dominantly successful. . Issigonis quickly arranged for Jack Daniels to move up from Cowley to Longbridge to rebuild their close rapport. Styled by Pininfarina, it was launched as the Morris 1100 in 1962, and a year later as the Austin 1100, and the clean, classical lines of the car served BMC well. Issigoniss mother, Hulda Prokopp, was descended from a Bavarian brewing family who had settled in Smyrna, and established a brewery. He became the engineering director of the British Motor Corporation in 1964, and was . Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis CBE FRS RDI (18 November 1906 - 2 October 1988) was a Greek automotive designer. When Morris and Austin merged to form the British Motor Corporation in 1952, Issigonis decided to leave the company. One tidbit I recall: when the Morris Minor design was almost finished the book showed the designer holding a brass model of the car it was decided to add a few inches of width at the centerline. John Sheppard spent 20 years working with [], Richard Aucock 40 years ago this month, Sir Alec Issigonis, creator of Britains best-selling motoring icons, retired The creator of the original Mini, the Morris Minor, the Austin Maxi and [], Motor magazine, August 1962 WHY IS THE ADO16? 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. Alec Issigonis is part of G.I. ALEC ISSIGONIS Automotive Designer (1906-1988) One of the most original car designers of the modern era, ALEC ISSIGONIS (1906-1988) is best known as the creator of the Mini, but also designed two more of the five best-selling cars in British motoring history - the Morris Minor and the Austin 1100. . The lower picture is is an early (1958) Issigonis drawing of his vision for the Mini. The Mini caused a sensation with its design and rather small size in the late 1950s thanks to its inventor, the Englishman Alec Issigonis. Sketch by the late Sir Alec Issigonis, of the original Morris Minor, circa 1946. I do not know how many I have owned Morrises, Austins and MGs. IAN NICHOLLS recalls the day the two millionth rolled off the production line [], A team of the worlds leading motoring writers, along with voters on the internet, have short-listed the legendary Mini for the ultimate motoring accolade the international Car of the [], THE GUARDIAN Lord Stokes writes about the late Sir Alec Issigonis: Alec Issigonis was a very charming and persuasive person, and a brilliant innovative engineer with a considerable capacity for [], Rover Group consultant Sir Alec Issigonis writes to chairman Graham Day. Bookmark this page and come back often for updates. Alec Issigonis, technical director of the British Motor Corporation and Charles Griffin, chief engineer, answer questions from our technical editor. As British subjects - his father having naturalised whilst studying engineering in London in 1897 - Issigonis and his parents were evacuated to Malta by the Royal Navy in September 1922 ahead of the Great Fire of Smyrna and the Turkish capture of Smyrna at the end of the Greco-Turkish War. He managed to obtain his Diploma, but was not admitted to advanced studies. Thank you very much for a wonderful biography. Generation. By 1969 Fiat had also followed with the 128, and by 1974 Peugeot, VW and Renault had transverse engine hatchbacks as well. Alec Issigonis is a famous Entrepreneur. To get to this point wasnt easy. [10], There is a road named "Alec Issigonis Way" in the Oxford Business Park on the former site of the Morris Motors factory in Cowley, Oxfordshire. He still worked to his consultancy agreement but did so almost exclusively from home, briefing and debriefing nominated BL engineers each morning. Issigonis was to use Moultons suspension ideas on all his future cars, with Moulton working in a consultancy capacity to BMC. I dont remember Dad as being what youd call a sporting driver, but he never considered the later Austin-based Oxfords. When I was in grade school in the mid-70s, the next door neighbor of my best friend had 6 Minis. 130 King Street West, Exchange Tower, Suite 1800, Toronto, Canada, M5X 1E3. Alec Issigonis and Dr Alex Moulton, the creator of Hydrolastic and Hydragas suspension, with a Morris 1100, circa 1962. The Renault 14 was transversely engined, from 1976. Click the answer to find similar crossword clues . [3] His paternal grandfather, Demosthenis, had migrated to Smyrna from the Greek island of Paros in the 1830s and Constantine was a successful and wealthy shipbuilding engineer. John Daly, Your email address will not be published. Morriss chief engineer, A V (Vic) Oak, recognised that Issigoniss greatest asset was his imagination but also noted that it needed to be guided firmly but carefully to bring out the best of it. Lord (later Lord Lambury, above) had big ambitions for BMC and initially tasked Issigonis with developing the basis for a range of modern family cars to replace the existing collection of BMC products.
Sir Alec Issigonis - Driven To Write I was eight when my dad bought one of those brand new cars at a reduced price from the NYC dealer $850 for an Austin 850 ($6,800 in 2016 money) The Atwell-Wilson Motor Museum is now home to the Issigonis Prototype 1970 Mini 9X 'Gearless', donated to the Museum by the Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon, Warwickshire. Autokonstrukteur, GBPortrt mit Zigarette- 1959. As his father studied in London, being an engineer, the family were British subjects and were thus evacuated to Malta by the Royal Navy in September 1922, ahead of the Great Fire of Smyrna at the end of the . Birth Name: Alec Issigonis Occupation: Entrepreneur Place Of Birth: Turkey Date Of Birth: November 18, 1906 Date Of Death: October 2, 1988 Cause Of Death: N/A Ethnicity: Unknown Nationality: Greek Alec Issigonis was born on the 18th of November, 1906. Having failed his mathematics exams three times, subsequently declaring it 'the most uncreative subject you can study',[3] Issigonis decided to enter the University of London External Programme to complete his university education. Your article sure did him justice; thank you, Roger.
Sir Alec Issigonis - Motoring Weekly The inability of these cars to withstand business case scrutiny crucial in the companys decline, and others must also stand up for that -Issigonis didnt claim to be a product planner in the sense Ford would recognise but saw all his cars as separate entities. In 1936, Issigonis moved again, to the Morris Motor Company, as a project engineer on an independent front suspension system for the Morris 10, where his experience at Rootes would start to bear fruit.
an alec issigonis family car launched in 1969 (6,4) Crossword Clue The Minor, Mini, ADO16 and Landcrab all had character, and were all friendly cars. It was still in production when BMW, led by Bernd Pischetsreider, bought Rover in 1994. Issigonis customer in this case was Maurice Wilks, later the man behind the Land Rover.
Beatles' Minis: Cars belonging to McCartney, Harrison and Ringo are on Unless it was at some very small, unique company; something like TVR comes to mind. [], BMC changed the world with the launch of the Mini in 1959. At the time of his retirement, 71, hatchbacks were not the thing they were 4 years later. This generation experienced much of their youth during the Great Depression and rapid technological innovation such as the radio and the telephone. 8050 Alec Issigonis Way, Oxford Business Park North, Oxford, United Kingdom, OX4 2HW. He was a race car driver during the 30s and 40s. 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. Sir Alec Issigonis is best remembered for the Austin Mini - a car that revolutionised the small car package and probably saved the British Motor Corporation at the same time. What a great. German Engineer Who Designed And Built The First Practical Automobile (Crossword ClueThe crossword clue German engineer who designed and built the first practical automobile. It has since proved to be the template for the small car for nearly 60 years it has still not been bettered and was followed as early as 1963 by the Autobianchi Primula, which had the first end on gearbox on its transverse engine, by the 1965 Peugeot 204 with a configuration closer to the ADO16 but larger, and 1967 by the Simca 1100, the first to combine an end on gearbox and a hatchback.
Sir Alec Issigonis - Small Cars, Big Ideas - Cars Less Traveled [citation needed] Issigonis often commented to friends and colleagues that the Austin 1800 (ADO17) was the design he was most proud of, even though it never was as commercially successful as his three preceding designs. [], In Part One of this fascinating series, which originally appeared in Vehicle Engineer,AROnline Contributor IanElliott applies his insider knowledge to spelling out the exact sequence of mergers that led to [], Photography: Martin Bell One of the design team who worked on the original Mini has revealed how the revolutionary small car came about. Great article there should be a movie about Issigonis! 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. By the time the chassis had been completed, Issigonis had somehow got hold of an Austin supplied works specification supercharged side-valve engine as well. LJK Setright, in his book The Designers describes Issigonis as working as a sculptor works, moving masses into different juxtapositions until his trained eye told him they were right. BMC had internally identified the need to move on from the concepts behind the Minor and A30, leaving behind the classic front engine, semi-elliptic spring concept but there was little clarity on which direction was perceived to be the way to go. Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis was born into the Greek community of Smyrnain Ottoman Turkey.
In 1961, with the Mini gaining popularity, Issigonis was promoted to Technical Director of BMC. I wonder if he was to blame for the Mini never having a hatchback, or a more softly suspended version? * Commander of the British Empire (1964), Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (1967), Royal Designer for Industry (1964). Joseph Lowrey, [], The Mini hit its big landmark in 1969, a seismic year in the history of BMC>Rover. Starting around 1930, he raced a supercharged "Ulster" Austin Seven, later fitting it with a front axle of his own design, leading to employment at Austin.
He excelled in mechanical drawing, but failed his mathematics exams three times. But his true interest was in the 9X and its power unit, and getting a version of it accepted by BL. But it was an exciting period, and youve captured his personality and lasting impact well. 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. So Sir Alec Issigonis had an impact on my life. [13], He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1967. Even as Britain entered the 1960s, product planning remained something of an alien concept to its native carmakers, the majority of whom viewed such matters as being the sort of recondite nonsense invented in the United States, and best left there.
It did get Hydrolastic eventually, then lose it again. [3] His paternal grandfather, Demosthenis, had migrated to Smyrna from the Greek island of Paros in the 1830s and Constantine was a successful and wealthy shipbuilding engineer. Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Death and commemorations 4 Some of his cars Great write about a very clever guy, but he was wrong an uncomfortable driver is an irritable driver who fatigues rather more quickly, The Landcrab while being comfortable to ride in as a passenger is not so nice to drive nor are the smaller cars from BMC, there are many surviving ADO16s here and NZ is still the Morris Minor capital of the world they will never become rare here and for that matter neither will real Minis but 1800s and Maxis are quite thin on the ground already yet were popular new they werent very durable though, and the last Princess Ive seen is a rusty example outside the British car museum at Te Awanga, Personally having driven all his ideas the Morris Minor was his best one that saw production, I got my first car licence in a Morry Thou. The Royal Navy Marines evacuated British Subjects, including the Issigonis family, from Smyrna before Turkey attacked. He was knighted in 1969 and was honored by the city of Oxford with a street named after him, Alec Issigonis Way. Get In Touch Call or Email. . It was at Alvis that Issigonis first worked with another of the influential characters of his career. The original plan called for a large family car by 1960, to be followed by a smaller car and then a city car. By the time the chassis had been completed (hard labourit was all done by hand, no power tools), Issigonis had moved to Morris Motors Limited, but Austin supplied a "works" specification supercharged side-valve engine. I remember being quite put off by the sound of the engine seemingly racing to maintain 45mph. He failed his degree course but gained a diploma in Mechanical Engineering, at the third attempt, in 1928. At the opening of the factory BMC was represented by Sir Alec Issigonis. Iconic. The son of a Greek merchant, Issigonis immigrated to London in 1922 during the war between Greece and Turkey. The loss of British sovereignty led not only to a political defeat but also to an oil crisis. Born Alexandros Arnoldos Konstantinos Issigonis on the 18th of November, 1906, Alexander Issigonis' family were part of the Greek community in the port city of Smrna. Certainly, it was not the right job for him, taking him too far away from the sketching and ideas, and into meetings about pay scale reviews and marketing policies. Maybe because theyd lost the Issigonis chassis manners? Alec Issigonis was born on the 18th of November, 1906. Shortly after in 1962, when gender roles were thought to be defined, one woman chose a life of speed. [16], In 2003 he was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in the United States. 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. Towards the end of WW2, he began work on the Mosquito project, which ended up being launched in 1948 as the Morris Minor. Indeed gay sex was illegal in the UK until 1968 and for many years after prejudice was rife. Updates? A deeply flawed genius at best. Beyond the Maxi, launched on 1969, Issigonis had left little visible influence on the new cars coming from British Leyland, and indeed, the company made definite moves that would have been unthinkable to him, such as the bold, deliberately contemporary styling of the Austin-Morris 18-22 (Princess range) or the Allegro, or the conservative engineering of the Morris Marina. Issigonis and Dowson then travelled into Austria to the mountain climb competition at the then new Grossglockner Hochalpen Pass.
History of MINI - Story, Heritage & Origins | MINI USA Due to time pressures, the interconnected suspension system that Issigonis had planned for the car was replaced by an equally novel, but cruder, rubber cone system designed by Alex Moulton. 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. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).