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The Sun
29-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Sun
Beloved car brand will RETURN to UK after two decades as it unveils new ‘forward-looking' model
A BRITISH sports car maker is set to make a comeback after not producing any vehicles for over 20 years. The small car manufacturer revealed that they have three new projects underway. Dating back to 1959, Marcos began producing sports cars designed for racing, such as the Xylon before it went into liquidation more than two decades ago. Owner and chairman of Marcos, Howard Nash, said: "Marcos is a much-loved British sports car brand. "It has a wonderful history but also an ethos of simplicity for raw, driver-focused handling. "It's an analogue experience you can't get from large car manufacturers and supercar brands, and one which I think enthusiasts hanker after today.' He added: 'We want to honour that original ethos while being forward-looking too, giving Marcos a new, younger audience, as well as bringing the brand back for those who grew up with it.' F1 champions, including Jackie Stewart, and Derek Bell who has won Le Mans multiple times, have been behind the wheel of these British motors. The new Marcos projects are reported to be under evaluation at the moment. The first one is teased to be a "faithful reimaging of a much-loved Marcos model," according the firm. The second is expected to be a completely new model, that may even be suitable for use on the track and road. It will, however, "honour the brand ethos of light weight, simplicity and seat-of-the-pants handling," the company states. Major sporting event returning to UK for first time in six years as fans vow to buy tickets 'as soon as they come out' The final project hopes to stay true to the cars' history on the road. This comes with the Marcos Car Company's rights to original body moulds in its vehicles, as well as their manufacturing tooling. Further details are likely to be revealed later. The three new projects will be the first cars the manufacturer has produced in more than 20 years 2
Auto Express
27-06-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Express
Is this famous British sports car brand making two comebacks?
TVR has been promising it will make a comeback for several years now, but while British sports car fans continue to hold their breath for that, another forgotten name from the history books has been resurrected. Marcos has returned and it's got big things already in the works. In case you're not familiar with Marcos, the company was founded in 1959 – a couple of years after Lotus was born. The founders were Jem Marsh and Frank Costin, who combined their surnames to form the brand's name. Its first creation was the Marcos Xylon: a very unconventional-looking two-seat sports car that earned the nickname 'Ugly Duckling'. It was designed to go racing, rather than win beauty pageants, with Formula One champion Jackie Stewart and five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell at the wheel. The car's name means 'wood' in Greek, because the chassis was actually made from timber, Marcos going further down the arboreal route than Morgan, which only uses wood for the body frame of its cars. Advertisement - Article continues below After that in 1963, the Marcos GT arrived with an elegant design reminiscent of the Jaguar E-Type and other now-iconic sports cars. While it initially got a Volvo four-cylinder engine, a 3.0-litre Ford V6 would eventually be fitted under the extremely long bonnet. Skip advert Advertisement - Article continues below Then in 1966 Marcos went after a wider audience by launching the Mini Macros. As the name suggests, this was meant to be a rival to the original Mini, but it wasn't nearly as cute – or a very pleasant sight at all, really. Baffingly though, the two-metre-long city car was entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans that year and was the only British car to cross the finish line. Marcos launched several other models after this, mostly sticking to the classic British sports car formula. The company was forced into liquidation and closed its doors in 1972 but was revived about a decade later. It then went bankrupt in 2000. The brand name would be revived by a new company in 2002, which managed to launch two models before also ceasing production in 2007. All of which brings us to the Marcos of today. Marcos and all the original assets of the brand were purchased in 2022 by businessman Howard Nash, and now the Marcus Motor Company has outlined three big projects. It's not hanging about either, as physical prototypes for the all-new cars are already in development. Advertisement - Article continues below '[Marcos] has a wonderful history but also an ethos of simplicity for raw, driver-focused handling,' said Nash, 'It's an analogue experience you can't get from large car manufacturers and supercar brands, and one which I think enthusiasts hanker after today. We want to honour that original ethos while being forward-looking too, giving Marcos a new, younger audience, as well as bringing the brand back for those who grew up with it.' Skip advert Advertisement - Article continues below Project #1, as it's being referred to, is a 'faithful reimagining of a much-loved Marcos model with a recognisable silhouette but a contemporary platform and drivetrain'. That's not much to go on, but we feel it's more likely to be a brawny rear-drive sports car than a reborn Mini Macros. Project #2 is a totally-new vehicle with potential for both road and track. Marcos says this particular car 'will owe nothing to legacy Marcos models but will honour the brand ethos of light weight, simplicity and seat-of-the-pants handling'. It sounds like fun, plus a rolling chassis has now been engineered, built and crash tested. Finally, Project #3 is for continuation cars. Because the Marcos Motor Company owns the original body moulds and tooling for almost every model in the Marcos back catalogue, it can deliver 'faithful contemporary versions.' The company will continue providing parts and maintenance to existing owners as well through its Heritage Spares arm. This is actually the second time we've heard about the resurrection of Marcos recently, because it was announced that the name would be returning about a month previously. That news, however, came from an entirely different company, owned by completely different people. Confused? So are we. Advertisement - Article continues below Skip advert Advertisement - Article continues below William Storey, CEO of 'Marcos Cars Limited', shared in May that his brand would be launching a 'new F1 inspired supercar' this November. Supposedly, the car will be designed and built in Britain, with him also boasting that 'Ferrari and Lamborghini are in our sights'. The name William Storey will be familiar to fans of Formula One because he's also the CEO and founder of energy drink company Rich Energy: the scandal-hit title sponsor of the Haas Formula One team for some of the 2019 campaign. In case you haven't heard this story before, after being disappointed by Haas's performance, Rich Energy abruptly ended the partnership less than half way through the 2019 season, announcing the news on its twitter page. Storey then compared the team's race car to a 'milk float' in an interview, however, as we understand it, he was removed as CEO of Rich Energy shortly after the debarcel. Haas also reportedly sought £35million in damages from the company. Back to the present, Storey has called the announcements made by the Marcus Motor Company and its owner Howard Nash 'misleading', posting on Linkedin that 'to be absolutely clear: Marcos Cars Limited is the legal owner of the Marcos brand. Advertisement - Article continues below Skip advert Advertisement - Article continues below 'Our new supercar is the only genuine new Marcos vehicle. We are focused on the future of British performance engineering not on rehashing the past.' Mark Carbery, board advisor to Marcus Motor Company, responded to Storey's allegations, saying: 'Marcos Motor Company Ltd owns the original assets of the Marcos brand, dating back to 1959. Body moulds, toolings, jigs, drawings and CAD, production rights, brand rights, trademarks, records of almost every vehicle ever made, the still-trading Marcos Heritage Spares operation, and legacy entities including Marcos Engineering and Marcos Sales. You name it. 'Just a point to clarify. Someone out there is making claims to the brand and its heritage, and of being CEO of an official Marcos enterprise. He's posted to that effect on LinkedIn and on the socials. His enterprise does not have the assets or the rights.' He continued, 'Unfortunately, however, the claims led some people to mistakenly associate him with Marcos Motor Company and our assets. He's not associated with us in any way.' With no less than two possible comebacks apparently on the cards, the Marcos saga will no doubt continue. Stay tuned to see how it develops. Want the latest car news in your inbox? Sign up to the free Auto Express email newsletter... 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Top Gear
30-05-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
Here are nine of the wackiest motor races you've never heard of
Advertisement No doubt you've heard of lawn mower racing, but are you aware of the jewel in the crown – the British Lawn Mower Racing Association 12 Hour? Yep, it's an endurance race for mowers. Heck, the first one in 1978 was won by Stirling Moss and five time Le Mans winner Derek Bell. Advertisement - Page continues below Imagine a banger race on a tarmac oval where all of the cars are FWD and have metal plates welded under their rear wheels. We assume that was the elevator pitch for Skid Plate Racing, and it's just as entertaining as it sounds. Who said motorsport has to be fast? These things top out at around 35mph. You might like Extreme Barbie Jeep racing Extreme Barbie Jeep Racing involves fully grown Americans racing downhill on dirt tracks while riding plastic Power Wheels cars designed for kids. Extra points for a unicorn liveried Jeep, we hope. Advertisement - Page continues below How do you make the US pastime of figure eight racing even more chaotic? Why, you chain two more cars to the back of yours, stick a second driver in the rearmost one and then pray you don't get T-boned crossing the track. You may recall Sabine Schmitz and Chris Harris having a go in S25 E1 of the TV show. The TukTuk Tournament traverses Sri Lanka in a three-wheeled rickshaw. Teams take on a magical fantasy quest to slay dragons and find fake gems, all with the goal of being crowned champion while raising money for charity in the process. It's weird and we love it. Another uniquely British event, the Nifty Fifty is a five hour, off road endurance race for 50cc mopeds. Teams fit knobbly tyres to otherwise standard mopeds, before four riders take on the climbs and jumps of a motocross dirt track. Hope you like the sounds of teeny four strokes. Of course it was those zany Dutch who decided motor racing would be more exciting if everyone was driving backwards. This was made possible by the DAF 66's Variomatic CVT transmission, which allowed it to hit its top speed of over 70mph in reverse. Cars do get a little erm... unstable, though. Advertisement - Page continues below The annual Pig-N-Ford races take place at the Tillamook county fair in Oregon. There's a Le Mans style start with drivers running to pick up live pigs from the other side of the track. Carrying said pigs, they then start their Model Ts with a hand crank and complete three laps, stopping each lap to swap pigs. Bonneville barstool class The 'World of Speed' happens every year at Bonneville. It's not just 500+mph streamliners stretching for a top speed – there's also a class specifically for actual barstools fitted with 12V electric motors. The current record is 55.935mph. Advertisement - Page continues below Top Gear's Top 9 Motorsport News See more on Top Gear's Top 9
