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To clarify, the Renault 4, 5 (first generation, Le Car), 6 and 16 all had longitudinally mounted engines. Its practicality and affordability made it immediately popular; by the time of Issigonis death more than five million had been sold. In 1969, in recognition of his engineering genius, Queen Elizabeth granted him Knighthood. [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. A testament to brilliant design or to the modern industrys tendencies towards aversion of risk, I wont say surely some of both. Thank you very much for a wonderful biography. Please check back soon for updates. Issigonis worked as a draughtsman and design engineer, and also in a sales and project engineer role, succeeding in securing Rover as a customer use the freewheel device on the new for 1933 Rover Ten (P1 series, above). At the time of his retirement, 71, hatchbacks were not the thing they were 4 years later. Alec Issigonis was born in Smyrna (now Izmir) in Turkey on 18 November 1906 to a British-naturalized father of Greek origin and a Bavarian-born mother. Salary, Married, Wedding, Spouse, Family Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS, RDI (18 November 1906 - 2 October 1988) was a Greek-British designer of cars, now remembered chiefly for the groundbreaking and influential . And his father, a Greek by origin and British by nationality, had inherited a marine engine construction company, an activity that fascinated little Alec. The Royal Navy Marines evacuated British Subjects, including the Issigonis family, from Smyrna before Turkey attacked. I dont have any great memories of the Mini to share, though you saw them everywhere. The family is almost penniless. O interesse pelo automvel veio aos 12 anos, quando ele viu um pela primeira vez. He was knighted in 1969 and was honored by the city of Oxford with a street named after him, Alec Issigonis Way. Perhaps it was a trait that ran in the family. 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. I remember being quite put off by the sound of the engine seemingly racing to maintain 45mph. " Sir Alec Issigonis. Issigoniss first project was to design an independent suspension for Rootes highest volume car, the Hillman Minx. Austin Healey Sprites , 3000s Austin Americas, MG Midget, MGAs MGBs Mg 1100s I had many of each model. [5]:277. British car designer best remembered for his work on the development of the iconic Mini. Your email address will not be published. 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. Lord was looking for modernity, but he was also looking for commonality of engines, good quality design and cars good enough to be amongst the best in their class and internationally competitive. Issigonis usually won, even when entered in the 1100cc class if there was no 750cc category. He was retired from British Leyland in 1971, memorably being given a Meccano kit for his leaving present. 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. German Engineer Who Designed And Built The First Practical Automobile (Crossword ClueThe crossword clue German engineer who designed and built the first practical automobile. [], 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. This post and its visuals and videos explains this pivotal vector of the international industry with such clarity and depth. I thought I knew everything about Issigonis already, but there were some fascinating insights here. 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. By 1969 Fiat had also followed with the 128, and by 1974 Peugeot, VW and Renault had transverse engine hatchbacks as well. It was, though, used on the postwar MG Y Type saloons. Prior to his death, Alec and his mother travelled overland to London. [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. The son of a Greek merchant, Issigonis immigrated to London in 1922 during the war between Greece and Turkey. Alec Issigonis was born in the Year of the Horse. George Harriman, Leonard Lord and Alec Issogonis. By 1941, Issigonis had started work on an advanced post war car, then codenamed Mosquito, which became the Morris Minor. [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. It was created in response to a crisis and was a genius piece of packaging which will forever be Sir Alec Issigonis legacy to the automotive world. A reliable car with excellent steering and cornering qualities, it was the first all-British car to pass the one million mark in sales; surviving models are still cherished by owners and collectors. 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. His fingerprints are all over other cars, too, the Austin 1800 Land Crab and the Austin Maxi for example, but not always as successfully, as we shall see. info@oxbotica.com +44 (0)1865 433 998. It was as modern and progressive in 1948 as the ADO16 Morris 1100 was in 1962, and let down only by the relatively weak and old side valve engine. JUMP TO: Alec Issigoniss biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs. The strengths of this sign are being resourceful, brave, passionate, a true friend, while weaknesses can be distrusting, jealous, secretive and violent. [], BMC changed the world with the launch of the Mini in 1959. 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. In the face of all this mayhem, Mrs. Issigonis decided to migrate with Alex to Britain, a land neither knew. In a front-wheel-drive car, with more understeer and/or a bit more resistance at the wheel, this effect might be enhanced ? Unique. Day terminated the consultancy agreement, without any more consultation. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis (Greek: , )CBE FRS RDI (18 November 1906 2 October 1988) was a British-Greek automotive designer. In 1968, he was appointed as Director of Advanced Research of the newly formed British Leyland, and Harry Webster from Triumph became BLMCs Engineering Director. Omissions? Issigonis made a grandfather clock from it, which kept good time. Ultimately, Alvis had to cancel the project, after the first prototype had been built but before the company had committed to the expenditure of production tooling. Zodiac Sign: Alec Issigonis was a Scorpio. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS, RDI (Alec Issigonis) was born on 18 November 1906 in Smyrna in Greece (now Izmir, Turkey) and would become world-renowned for designing the Mini and Morris Minor for BMC. The Mini quickly became cult and had enthusiastic fans worldwide. When is Alec Issigoniss birthday? I tell you the last time I was that close to a Japanese machine, it was shooting at me.. Issigonis designed a unitary construction saloon and the V8 engine, and utilised Moultons latest interconnected rubber suspension. Matchbox featured an MG 1100 in its 1-75 line-up for many years. Found an ad for the US market 1100. 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. He was a race car driver during the 30s and 40s. Contents Early life and education Career Legacy Honours Some of his cars Sixty years ago today . 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. 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. Issigonis was born on 18 November 1906 in the Ottoman port city of Smyrna, the only child of Constantine Issigonis and Hulda Prokopp. Proslavil se zejmna nvrhem vozu Mini, kter uvedla na trh British Motor Corporation v . Issigonis had the dream of becoming an automobile engineer at an early age. Young Alec grew up in a very affluent environment, with influences from Germany and Greece (he grew up speaking German and Greek), rather than Turkey and Britain. In 1922 the family left Turkey for England, as all British people were banished from the country. I have liked them ever since. At the peak if his career he was by far the most well-known personality in the British motor industry, one of the most well-known names in the European motor industry, and was the first and perhaps the only car British designer who could claim celebrity status. Not something one would anticipate until it is experienced. I wanted to know the genesis. Morris 1100. The suspension was trailing arms at the front, attached to a steel cross-member, and a swing axle rear, all with rubber springs made of catapult elastic. Oak placed another engineer, Jack Daniels, alongside him to keep his feet on the ground. It was designed to follow on from the Mini and 1100 as the next generation . It interested me as I had the honour of working with sir Alec for around 3 months. At this time, he was working for Maurice Olley. It was 1961 when the humble little people-mover fell into the hands of British racing legend John Cooper. When I was in grade school in the mid-70s, the next door neighbor of my best friend had 6 Minis. File nella categoria "Alec Issigonis" Questa categoria contiene 5 file, indicati di seguito, su un totale di 5. This car was remarkably light, weighing 587lb, of which the engine contributed 252lb. the outer planets, Uranus and Neptune were not yet discovered, since the telescope had not yet been invented. Many did not even make it through the warranty period without the transmission self-destructing. MINI, official partner of Team GB and ParalympicsGB, has unveiled its new London 2012 special, Keith Adams Well, Christmas and Boxing Day are out of the way and the, The replacement for the Austin-Healey 3000 never took off, thanks in part to a poor, British Motor Holdings the joining of BMC and Jaguar, The cars : Mini (ADO15) development story Part One, Concepts and prototypes : BMC 9X (1968-87), Blog : Why the Italians beat us to a supermini by a decade, History : The Road to Perdition Part One, Interview : Alec Issigonis on the BMC 1100, Archive : Mini Shortlisted For Car Of The Century, Archive : Mini still sold at a loss. Alecs education details are not available at this time. Post FROM OUR MIDLAND CORRESPONDENT BIRMINGHAM, Nov. 13 The name of the man who will head the British Motor Corporations new amalgamated design unit when []. The first application of Sir Alec Issigonis' engineering breakthrough - All Photos by Randy Stern, except otherwise noted Remember Sir Alec Issigonis? Your article sure did him justice; thank you, Roger. But the story begins even further back, with a man named Demosthenis, Alec's grandfather, who emigrated from Greece to Asia-Minor in the 1830s and worked for the Smyrna-Aydn Railway. Whos the richest Entrepreneur in the world. The XC (experimental car) code names assigned for the new cars were XC/9001, for a large comfortable car, XC/9002, for a medium-sized family car, and XC/9003, for a small town car. He attended Londons Battersea Polytechnic before entering the University of London External Programme. Lords instruction was the one Issigonis had been waiting for, and he quickly developed the first Mini prototype. The end of the agreement came in 1986, when Issigonis wrote directly to Graham Day, BLs then new Chairman. Style wise, the car has been identified as having a visual similarity to Lancia Aureliathe 1950-58 Lancia Aurelia saloon, with some Morris Oxford overtones and a traditional Alvis style grille added. On 15 October 2006 a rally was held at the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon, England, to celebrate the centenary of Issigonis's birth. 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. My appreciation of Issigonis designs really came when Auntie Merle traded her Austin A30 (horrible car) for a Morris 1100. That name was now engraved in my mind and as I got older I was drawn to LBCs (Little British Cars.) THE CREATOR OF AN ICONIC CAR: ALEC ISSIGONIS. Noch ein Mini! I was amazed at the amount of space in that car you could even hide things in the cubbyhole under the rear seat. He inherited his great interest in technology and machines from his father who, shortly after the turn . I was mesmerized and I saw my schoolmate being dropped off by his older brother who was on his way to high school. Alexandros Arnold Constantine Issigonis, more commonly known as Alec Issigionis, was born in Smyrna, Asia Minor, on November 18, 1906. At some point in the mid-60s they ran an After the New Wears Off feature by an MG 1100 owner in Los Angeles. 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. The gearbox in sump was a dead end in terms of automotive design. Alec Issigonis Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS, RDI (Alec Issigonis) was born on 18 November 1906 in Smyrna in Greece (now Izmir, Turkey) and would become world-renowned for designing the Mini and Morris Minor for BMC. Once more details are available, we will update this section. . The MG 1100 Sport Sedan a perfect choice when a two-seater MG is too small. Not sure how true it is, but I read somewhere that he even designed the ashtrays for the Minor. He was reluctant to consider features such as large boots or hatchbacks, or engine access, as important. The irony being, of all the cars built in the world that follow his layout, none carry an Austin or Morris badge. 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. . Alec Issigonis (Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis) was born in Smyrna in the Ottoman Empire (now Izmir, Turkey). [11], Issigonis was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1964 Birthday Honours. The challenge of designing the Mini was engineering a car that would seat four passengers and their luggage in a package not to exceed ten feet in length. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. 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. The Renault 14 was transversely engined, from 1976. Stooping just under six feet in height, he looms large at any [], By GEOFFREY CHARLES, Motoring Correspondent A high-level reshuffle of BMC directors areas of responsibility was announced yesterday as part of a streamlining process before completion of the BMH-Leyland merger. 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. The Mini was designed by. Towards the end of WW2, he began work on the Mosquito project, which ended up being launched in 1948 as the Morris Minor. Excellent article. In conjunction with Issigonis work, Lord contracted Pininfarina to lead the styling of BMCs new cars, starting with the conventionally engineered Austin A40 Farina in 1958. Click the answer to find similar crossword clues . At the end of 1955, Issigonis was recruited back into BMC - this time into the Austin plant at Longbridge - by its chairman Sir Leonard Lord, to design a new model family of three cars. 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. He left Morris in 1952 for Alvis just as BMC was created from Austin and Morris (as well as Riley, Wolseley and MG).. When Morris and Austin merged to form the British Motor Corporation in 1952, Issigonis decided to leave the company. The Mini caused a sensation with its design and rather small size in the late 1950s thanks to its inventor, the Englishman Alec Issigonis. 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? 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 Unless it was at some very small, unique company; something like TVR comes to mind. His little cars were a success despite him. . Happy birthday to the Mini! The above photo is a publicity shot with the first produced Mini, at his retirement in 1972. There was no radio fitted as he thought it would distract the driver. 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. Later, he was working on an independent suspension for the larger Humber Hawk, with another rising star in the industry, Bill Heynes. He didnt say by 1974 in regard to VW and Renault. He excelled in mechanical drawing, but failed his mathematics exams three times. 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. MINI. That Alvis is one of those missed opportunities that ultimately doomed the company. At the opening of the factory BMC was represented by Sir Alec Issigonis. Getting a guy like Issigonis to design a V8 saloon and just chucking it in the bin. This led to a job at Austin, but in 1936, he moved to Morris at Cowley, where he worked on the Morris 10. in there was a 1 hr "The Mini Man " -Sir Alec Issigonis 1906 - 1988 by great friend and car fanatic Peter Ustinov. But fearful that his freedom would be curbed in such a large company, Issigonis resigned from BMC and went to work for the much smaller Alvis company. . Roger, are you saying that Graham Day ended the consultancy and goodwill payments because he was offended by Issigoniss letter? The AROnline development story tells the tale of how this small car changed the way we looked at economy cars almost overnight. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis, CBE, FRS terkenal kerana menjadi pencipta kereta Mini yang menjadi ikon tahun 1960-an. Engine access on the Mini was very awkward, and this was only improved on the ADO16 because Jack Daniels was able to keep Issigonis away from the detail work, which was largely done at Cowley in Oxford rather than Longbridge. If it was front engined, was it to be rear wheel or front wheel drive? . 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! It was more like a Lancia or a rear drive Citroen than a Rover or a Sunbeam-Talbot. Heynes later became Technical Director at Jaguar and was a personal friend of Issigonis for many years. Issigonis was born on 18 November 1906 in the Ottoman port city of Smyrna, the only child of Constantine Issigonis and Hulda Prokopp. As a matter of interest, go to this site: and click on the Letter From Dr. Alex Moulton link. The gearbox sharing the sump oil worked ok, but the transmission absolutely pulverised the lubricating qualities out of the oil, and it really required changing every 3000 miles if you wanted the thing to last. Alec Issigonis, technical director of the British Motor Corporation and Charles Griffin, chief engineer, answer questions from our technical editor. 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. Did they aim to build in greater volume, to compete with emerging brands such as Jaguar, or did they retreat further upmarket or even entirely into other activities? Issigonis was to use Moultons suspension ideas on all his future cars, with Moulton working in a consultancy capacity to BMC. 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. The suspension was also of advanced design, with trailing arm front suspension attached to a steel cross-member, and swing axle rear, all with rubber springs made of catapult elastic. 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. I caught up to my mate and I said thats a really cool car, what is it? Thats my BrothersMini Cooper. But it was an exciting period, and youve captured his personality and lasting impact well. When we stopped sending children up chimneys we reemployed them to work or minis. Building 9400 Oxford Business Park North Alec Issigonis Way Oxford OX4 2HN It did get Hydrolastic eventually, then lose it again. Sketch by the late Sir Alec Issigonis, of the original Morris Minor, circa 1946. The Mini, and the other Issigonis BMC front wheel drive cars, benefited from Issigonis continuing collaboration with Alex Moulton and his suspension system developments.