I appreciate the research the depth and the smooth writing style to present it all in a gripping way. He was reluctant to consider features such as large boots or hatchbacks, or engine access, as important. My appreciation of Issigonis designs really came when Auntie Merle traded her Austin A30 (horrible car) for a Morris 1100. Issigonis designed the most enduring small cars of the twentieth century, the Morris Minor (1948) and the Mini (1959) - a testament to his insistence that 'styled' cars dated quickly. Corrections? Get In Touch Call or Email. Alec Issigonis was a hugely . The initials "G.I." He was knighted in 1969 and was honored by the city of Oxford with a street named after him, Alec Issigonis Way. Issigonis had no input to the Marina (other than it using substantial elements from the Morris Minor of course) or the Allegro, as BMC had passed a thin very development programme to Leyland in 1968, largely due to financial pressures. [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. At the end of 1955, Issigonis moved to BMC to head up the development of the corporations new family of cars. 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. By 1939, Issigonis had replaced his modified Austin Seven with a more radical car of his own design, constructed of plywood laminated in aluminium sheeting, in what we would now call a composite construction. Diz lenda que ele considerava a rigidez . Noch ein Mini! Cooper took the prototype out for a spin and realised this fuel-saving people's car cornered like no other. Issigonis legacy. Unless it was at some very small, unique company; something like TVR comes to mind. But, as ever, events intervened in this case the Suez Crisis of 1956, complete with petrol rationing. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). 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. John Daly, Your email address will not be published. The relationship got to the point where Issigonis had the ideas, did the sketches and Daniels did the formal drawings. Dr.Ing. In 1922 the family left Turkey for England, as all British people were banished from the country. Issigonis showed little interest in things mechanical until he was well into his teens, not riding in a car until he was 14 years old, and was seemingly more interested in art, under the strong influence of his mother. Independence is one of their greatest strengths, but sometimes they're overly frank with others. And Alec Issigonis? By October 1959, the Mini was on sale and when the press first got their hands on BMCs new car, they were not shy to praise it; the Minis unique personality, exceptional space efficiency, lively performance and tenacious front-wheel-drive handling meant that it was a sure fire hit with the critics. Issigonis did observe and try to improve on what he saw, but always challenged himself to be original and better. Alec Issigonis An expert is someone who tells you why you can't do something. [13], He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1967. BLMC says, Archive : Lord Stokes writes to Alec Issigonis, Archive : How Harry Webster is going to shape your car, Archive : The Thoughts of Chairman Stokes, Archive : Issigonis The Giant Who Thought Small, Archive : Creative role for Issigonis in BMC board switch, Archive : Mr Issigonis looks to the future, Archive : Interview Motor meets Alec Issigonis, The cars : Alfa Romeo Alfasud development story, Opinion : Celebrating 40 years of the Austin Maestro, Essay : Austin Maestro styling the real killer, Concepts and prototypes : LM10 and LM11 facelifts, Archive : Coventry Council Debates Rover Crisis, News : PSA confirms continued van production in Luton. Another Mini!). People of this zodiac sign like truth, being right, longtime friends, teasing, and dislike dishonesty, revealing secrets, passive people. 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. . I have labelled it the Most Significant Car of the 1940s; it is probably the most recognised British car, apart from the Mini, and the most fondly remembered car by many British families and motorists. A deeply flawed genius at best. Issigonis went into the motor industry as an engineer and designer working for Humber and competed successfully in motor racing during the 1930s and 1940s. Where was the gearbox to be fitted on a front wheel drive car? . 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. He was knighted in 1969 and was honored by the city of Oxford with a street named after him, Alec Issigonis Way. Alternate titles: Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis. I hardly ever drove a Mini or an 1100, but many miles of driving a Landcrab made me understand why it was so very good, in spite of some engineering shortcuts. On 15 October 2006 a rally was held at the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon, England, to celebrate the centenary of Issigonis's birth. 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. 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. By placing an A series four cylinder engine transversely with the gearbox underneath in the sump and sharing the oil, and moving the wheels to the corners, he saved so much space that it was possible to accommodate a four seat car within a length of 10 feet. When I was in grade school in the mid-70s, the next door neighbor of my best friend had 6 Minis. It was the highlight of my career and came early as I was just 18 years old and just an apprentice engineer for a tractor company. Alec Issigonis's mother was German, and it was on her side of the family that he was a first cousin once removed to automobile engineer and executive manager Bernd Pischetsrieder. Austin Maxi: Big On The Inside But Not On The Outside, What a great write up Roger. . Nearly $1900 was pretty stiff pricing for a car that size in the mid 60s, $150 more than a Bug. Issigonis returned to BMC to design a range of family vehicles. . 8050 Alec Issigonis Way, Oxford Business Park North, Oxford, United Kingdom, OX4 2HW. Morris Minor 1000s , Dropheads, Travelers , Panel Van, and Pick up trucks. His father Constantine Issigonis was a successful shipbuilding engineer, whose own father was from Paros. That is how many of us know about these cars or about many 1960s British cars, in general. Road & Tracks test of the Austin America included the line, Superb four-speed fully automatic transmission makes more difference than youd believe possible. But they also noted that with just a few thousand miles on their test car, there was some issue (I forget what) with the trunk lock, and the outside of the engine was covered with oily black grime. Designer Alec Issigonis was born in the southern Anatolian city of Smyrna in 1906. Contents Early life and education Career Legacy Honours Some of his cars Enter the length or pattern for better results. This was the man who persisted in pursuing a gearless car using only a torque converter, who rubbished CAD in favour of slide rules, who did most of his designs in rough and passed them to his acolytes to make real. The Royal Navy Marines evacuated British Subjects, including the Issigonis family, from Smyrna before Turkey attacked. The war prevented this design from going into production but it was later used on the MG Y-type. The family is almost penniless. His mother was Bavarian, the daughter of a brewer. Smrna was then the second city of the Ottoman Empire and had a local population of around one million, of which more than half were Greek. To clarify, the Renault 4, 5 (first generation, Le Car), 6 and 16 all had longitudinally mounted engines. SOL 258H is the oldest surviving gearless car and was the preferred transport of Sir Alex Issigonis. Apparently Walter Chrysler could also be difficult to work with. as an American familiar only with U.S. cars. Family Life His father died in 1922, at which point he and his mother moved to the U.K.. Associated With He and Frank Stephenson are both famous car designers. Issigoniss mother, Hulda Prokopp, was descended from a Bavarian brewing family who had settled in Smyrna, and established a brewery. He also worked with Alvis Cars, one of the more obscure carmakers. [1][2], Issigonis was born on 18 November 1906 in the Ottoman port city of Smyrna, the only child of Constantine Issigonis and Hulda Prokopp. Please check back soon for updates. The lower picture is is an early (1958) Issigonis drawing of his vision for the Mini. Manual transmissions seemed to hold up ok,lasting at least as long as the engine. Later, he was working on an independent suspension for the larger Humber Hawk, with another rising star in the industry, Bill Heynes. 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. Alec Issigonis - Etsy Check out our alec issigonis selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. meantime, John preferred his psychedelic Rolls .. Roger, hats off for this excellent treatment of an engineering legend. Humber were more interested in the sales engineer than his product, and Issigonis moved to Humber in 1933. He managed to obtain his Diploma, but was not admitted to advanced studies. However, as we all know, it was no profit-maker for BMC and, during its hyper-successful first decade on the market, its maker cruelly and criminally failed to develop the concept into something that the customers truly wanted a hatchback. Issigonis had a reputation, deserved by all accounts, for arrogance and irascibility, an inability to suffer fools at all, and restricted his contact to as a small as a group as he could. Issigonis had also been involved in the larger Oxford, Isis and Wolseley ranges. [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. In 1942, the first scale model was produced and the following year work began on a hand-formed steel prototype. Well, he went down in history as the father of the Mini and was even raised to nobility for his services. It was also a specialist low volume producer of expensive, exclusive sports saloons cars not now associated with Issigonis and was at the same crossroads that so many smaller, upscale producers had been. He lived with his mother to whom he was devoted, until her death in 1972, latterly in Edgbaston in Birmingham, in a large bungalow, divided into two wings. Alec Issigonis and Dr Alex Moulton, the creator of Hydrolastic and Hydragas suspension, with a Morris 1100, circa 1962. Sir Alecs design which we built won the design centre award. Issigonis was excused service in the armed forces and remained at Cowley working on military vehicles of various types, including a very basic compact load carrier often described as a motorised wheelbarrow intended for use in jungle conditions together with an amphibious version designed for use by the Royal Navy. BL were in thrall of the myth theyd created, but the buying public had much more sense. Kereta rekaannya, BMC Mini dilancarkan dalam tahun 1959. Day terminated the consultancy agreement, without any more consultation. . 1925 . 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. Whos the richest Entrepreneur in the world? Issigonis's own automotive career as a designer and engineer in England first took shape during the early 1930s when he began working for the vehicle manufacturer . For many years he was known informally as Arragonis, and was either sufficiently confident in himself or sufficiently lacking in understanding to use that name himself on occasions. He title at Alvis was Engineer in charge of passenger car design. In 1928 his first job was in the design office of Gillett, an engineering firm in London. I saw this tiny car among the Buicks Oldsmobiles Mercurys and Chevrolet Impalas that were the usual fare. The war years were spent. [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. Towards the end of WW2, he began work on the Mosquito project, which ended up being launched in 1948 as the Morris Minor. *27/02/01 The new Mini which will go on sale in the UK summer 2001, was , being unveiled for the first time. View 6 Images. There he developed the Morris Minor, which remained in production from 1948 to 1971. Shortly after in 1962, when gender roles were thought to be defined, one woman chose a life of speed. But there were other 20th century cataclysms that he lived and worked through as a designer - including the Suez crisis of 1956. The 1100 benefited from someone elses external design. Issigonis usually won, even when entered in the 1100cc class if there was no 750cc category. Alec Issigonis. Sort By: Better Essays. Alec's grandfather Demosthenis migrated to Smyrna from the Greek island of Paros in the 1830s. Issigonis was an engineer, first and foremost, but I have used the terms design/designer in this piece, in the way that was contemporaneous to Issigonis and as he would have understood it, although we would now use use engineering. He was appointed to this post by Lords successor, Sir George Harriman, who was even more in awe of him than Lord was, but also was even more unable to control and guide Issigonis. The Crossword Solver finds answers to classic crosswords and cryptic crossword puzzles. [], 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. A truly great man and an honour for me. A very enjoyable read on a man whose name I knew in conjunction with so many brilliant designs, but who I previously knew little about. Generation. Back the early 2,000 B.C. Alviss options for body shell production were being reduced, at the same as the estimated costs of the body manufacture doubled. On the right is Alec Issigonis and standing next to him is John Cooper. (first posted 10/24/2016) Alec Issigonis, along with Sir Henry Royce and perhaps Colin Chapman, has the greatest name recognition in the UK for any British car designer or engineer. Oxford Office. I saw about 3 Americas in the wild that I can remember, and 1 example of the earlier MG 1100 Sport Sedan. 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. Fascinating lost papers from the man who created the Mini and the. Daniels effectively resumed his position as Issigoniss right hand man for the next ten years or more, guiding the interpretation of Issigoniss requests to the workshops, draughtsmen, production engineers and accountants. Issigonis spent his early years as an engineer with Morris Motors working on steering and suspension. All Rights Reserved. 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. The Crossword Solver finds answers to classic crosswords and cryptic crossword puzzles. In August 1971, Issigonis drove the 2 millionth ADO16 off the line, as the same time as a Mini Clubman, which was the 5 millionth front wheel drive BMC car, came off the line in the next building. Enter the length or pattern for better results. But at the age of 50, he began designing one of the most iconic vehicles ever produced: the classic Mini. Found an ad for the US market 1100. In 1957, Issigonis received the project that would make him famous. The Renault 14 was transversely engined, from 1976. Astrologers and astronomers could only work with planets visible to the eye. Alec Issigonis Way Oxford Business Park Oxford OX4 2HN United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0) 1865 783 000 Oxford Biomedica Solutions 1 Patriots Park Bedford MA 01730 United States Telephone: +1 781 428 4536 Email :solutions.partnering@oxb.com Oxford Biomedica (Ireland) Ltd Office 502 Balheary Demense Balheary Road Swords Co. Dublin Ireland November 18, 1906 Car designer Alec Issigonis, the man who gave the world the Mini, was born in Turkey on this day to a Greek father and Bavarian mother. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The key point to the genesis of the Minor is that Issigonis owned the whole design, including the exterior style, the interior,which had some of the starkness and simple functionality familiar from Issigoniss later designs. Another Mini! JUMP TO: Alec Issigoniss biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs. Required fields are marked *. His father, however, did not survive the crossing. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis CBE FRS RDI (18 November 1906 - 2 October 1988) was a Greek automotive designer. " Sir Alec Issigonis. XC/9002 became ADO16 and was launched as the Morris 1100 with the Hydrolastic interconnected suspension system in August 1962. There was a long drive way that ran along the school cafeteria that parents used to drop off students in the morning. Heynes later became Technical Director at Jaguar and was a personal friend of Issigonis for many years. I dont have any great memories of the Mini to share, though you saw them everywhere. Autokonstrukteur, GBPortrt mit Zigarette- 1959. As a Morris Minor owner I appreciated it . Alec Issigonis is part of G.I. 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 . A truly fascinating man he was. Upon meeting Alec, she is shy and ashamed . I dont remember Dad as being what youd call a sporting driver, but he never considered the later Austin-based Oxfords. Intriguingly, it seems that the car was possibly designed to be suitable for a front wheel drive layout, with a flat floor and compact Moulton rubber cone suspension, leaving a large and spacious engine bay. Alec is also well known as, British car designer best remembered for his work on the development of the iconic Mini. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. I was amazed at the amount of space in that car you could even hide things in the cubbyhole under the rear seat. I remember the Austin America when new, not an impressive car to me in any way . Ive never been inside a Landcrab or a Maxi, but I understand that while they are very spacious, the ergonomics are pretty poor. 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. Joseph Lowrey, [], The Mini hit its big landmark in 1969, a seismic year in the history of BMC>Rover. A testament to brilliant design or to the modern industrys tendencies towards aversion of risk, I wont say surely some of both. 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. Issigonis had the dream of becoming an automobile engineer at an early age. Alec Issigonis. Building 9400 Oxford Business Park North Alec Issigonis Way Oxford OX4 2HN The first front wheel drive car from BL after Issigoniss retirement was the Austin Allegro, still with the gearbox in the sump and without the obvious hatchback. In response to the Suez Oil Crisis, British Motor Company asked Issigonis to head the development of a small, fuel-efficient car that would become the Morris Mini. 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. Great summary of a giant of industrial design. Issigonis was born in Smyrna in 1906. MINI. I am well acquainted with the brilliant/stubborn/arrogant type of engineer, I have occasionally served as a Daniels, and my own brilliant/stubborn/arrogant Grandfather could have probably used one too. The innovation he created by switching the orientation of the engine, changing the traditional transmission to a transaxle and sending power to the front wheels was a magnificent idea! Issigonis was knighted in 1968, 1955 Morris Minor: Britains Favorite Car Bar None, And Rightly So, Austin Seven (Mini): The Future Started Here. Moulton also designed folding, rubber suspended small-wheeled bicycles. Unfortunately I didnt turn out quite as brilliant, but I like to think I missed out some of the stubbornness/arrogance as well. It did not have everything Issigonis wanted, as he originally planned this car to have a V4 engine rather than the BMC A series. On a cheerier note, Id love to see that Alvin on the flesh. It interested me as I had the honour of working with sir Alec for around 3 months. As a young man, Constantine was sent to England to study, and he later married Hulda Prokopp, the daughter of a wealthy German brewer in Smyrna. Born in Smyrna, Ottoman Empire (now zmir, Turkey) on November 18, 1906, Issigonis immigrated to England with his family in 1922 and later studied engineering at . Issigonis would later state that pure mathematics (is) the enemy of every truly creative man. He began his engineering career at Morris Motors Ltd. in 1936 as a steering and suspension engineer. . Indeed gay sex was illegal in the UK until 1968 and for many years after prejudice was rife. Alec Issigonis Popularity Most Popular Born in 1906 First Name Alec #31 #1 Entrepreneur Born in Turkey #2 Alec Issigonis Is A Member Of Born In 1906 Entrepreneurs First Name Alec Scorpios It was apparent to Morriss senior managers that Issigonis was cut from a different cloth compared to his contemporaries. He then moved on to Alvis, where he worked on the development of a luxury saloon, but the project had to be discontinued for cost reasons. Kereta ini menjadi kereta popular di Britain dan banyak negara di dunia, di samping berjaya menjuarai Rali Monte Carlo sebanyak 3 kali. The problem was that I would never have initially chosen to drive one. An image from the 1964 Racing Car Show in the aftermath of the Mini's first Monte Carlo Rally win. What a great. I wonder if he was to blame for the Mini never having a hatchback, or a more softly suspended version? Zodiac Sign: Alec Issigonis was a Scorpio. He worked on various projects for Morris through the war and towards its end started work on an advanced post war car codenamed Mosquito that became the Morris Minor, which was produced from 1948 until 1971. I got to drive his Red mini when I went for fish and chips on a Friday. George Harriman, Leonard Lord and Alec Issogonis. Great article there should be a movie about Issigonis! Most events entered were sprints, but he also raced at circuits. Subsequently my main triumph of design is a carbon block conveyor that fit into an oddly shaped spot while using less pieces of steel than its predecessor. BMC . Nkter data mohou pochzet z datov poloky. Alec Issigonis nasceu na Turquia Filho de um grego naturalizado britnico casado com uma turca. No wonder Issigonis felt flattered I feel very, very proud that so many people have copied me.. We now call them Real Minis, to distinguish them from the post 2001 imitations. How about an uncomfortable driver is a distracted driver? This led to a job at Austin, but in 1936, he moved to Morris at Cowley, where he worked on the Morris 10. In 1969, in recognition of his engineering genius, Queen Elizabeth granted him Knighthood. I hope he knew that he changed the Automobile World for the better. Alec Issigonis, technical director of the British Motor Corporation and Charles Griffin, chief engineer, answer questions from our technical editor.
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