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. His iconoclasm ensured that, despite the constraints of working in an industry where the size and complexity of the process meant that even the most forceful of designers was only one member of a large team, Issigonis cars bore his own stamp from the 1948 Morris Minor to the 1969 Maxi. 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. . 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. 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. Diz lenda que ele considerava a rigidez . Given his disrupted education, unusual background and the tough economic times that were the late 1920s, finding a job was not easy, but in 1928, and by now a British citizen in his own right, Issigonis took his first job in the motor industry, for Edward Gillett in London, through a networking contact he had made at Battersea. At the age of 30 he worked for the Morris Engineering Department and celebrated his first success with the construction of the Morris Minor. Demosthenis's son (Alec's father) Constantine Issigonis (Greek: ), was born, with British nationality, in Smyrna in 1872. The typical American indifference to regular maintenance did not play well with this setup. In 1956, the focus was shifted towards a new economy car and from here, the Mini was born in 1959. . . . I wanted to know the genesis. One thing that I learnt the hard way well not the hard way, the easy way when youre designing a new car for production, never, never copy the opposition, declared Issigonis, when asked to summarise his approach to car design. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. 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. 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. It was designed to follow on from the Mini and 1100 as the next generation . Proslavil se zejmna nvrhem vozu Mini, kter uvedla na trh British Motor Corporation v . Excellent article. He was reluctant to consider features such as large boots or hatchbacks, or engine access, as important. 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. Alec Issigonis was born in 1900s. Alec Issigoniss mothers name is unknown at this time and his fathers name is under review. Stokes was heard on his appointment to say: "We'll sharp sort this bloke Issigonis out!". After studying engineering, he joined Morris Motors in 1936 as a suspension designer. 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. This car was remarkably light, weighing less than 600lb. During 1967, Sir Alec Issigonis approached his BMH* superiors, asking to be temporarily relieved of day to day duties so that he could devote himself to a new vehicle project, one intended to directly replace the Mini. 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. I fist saw a Mini on my way to middle school in 1965. Alec Issigonis was born on the 18th of November, 1906. 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. Lord Alfred Robens , Chairman of the National Coal Board, wearing cap and gown as he is installed as the new Chancellor of the University of . By October 1957, Issigonis had shown Lord a working prototype and the decision had been made to manufacture the car, using the existing BMC A series engine. In 1952, just as the British Motor Corporation (BMC) was formed by the merger of Morris and Austin, he moved to Alvis Cars where he designed an advanced saloon with all-aluminium V-8 engine, and experimented with interconnected independent suspension systems. 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. Enter the length or pattern for better results. Alec Issigonis: straight from a family thrilled by technology. His father, a successful and wealthy shipbuilding engineer, was of Greek origin but held a British passport. By 1964, BMC had built over one million front wheel drive vehicles, including over 800,000 Minis and over 200,000 ADO16s, and over a third were exported. [], The most comprehensive story youll ever read about the aborted 9X programme the ill-fated Mini replacement, engineered by the man who created the original. Was it to be front or rear engined? I have heard some slander about his idea of putting the gearbox in the engine sump, but otherwise, he changed transportation for the masses on a scale not seen since Henry Ford. The Mini caused a sensation with its design and rather small size in the late 1950s thanks to its inventor, the Englishman Alec Issigonis. It was, though, used on the postwar MG Y Type saloons. If it was front engined, was it to be rear wheel or front wheel drive? Unfortunately the ADO16 did not do well in the U.S. as the Austin America, which was imported here in an attempt to eat some of VWs lunch in the late 1960s. body design expertise was by Italian firm Pininfarina. In 1952, the year BMC was formed, he moved to Alvis where he designed an advanced saloon, and experimented with interconnected independent suspension systems. All Rights Reserved. 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. Friendly was ideal for owner-buyers, a large part of the British car buying public, but never appealed to thrusting young execs and salesmen, which is why BLMC was so desperate for the Marina to crack the fleet market. 18 November 1906 2 October 1988", Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society, " Alec Issigonis | Automotive Hall of Fame", Alec Issigonis Automotive Designer (19061988), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alec_Issigonis&oldid=1135124708, This page was last edited on 22 January 2023, at 19:54. meantime, John preferred his psychedelic Rolls .. Roger, hats off for this excellent treatment of an engineering legend. His father, a successful and wealthy shipbuilding engineer, was of Greek origin but held a British passport. Brilliant cars! He failed his degree course but gained a diploma in Mechanical Engineering, at the third attempt, in 1928. 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. Probably 30 of these made over the past dozen years, not quite Mini production numbers.. Another excellent piece Roger, and thank you for bringing it to us. [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). 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. This greatly modified machine was replaced with a radical special completed in 1939, constructed of plywood laminated in aluminium sheeting. 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. Alec Issigonis, or more formally Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis CBE FRS RDI* (1906 1988), is best known as the creator of the Mini, but he also designed two other cars that have featured on CC and that are amongst the best-selling cars in British motoring history the Morris Minor and the Austin-Morris 1100 (ADO16). My sister had an MG 1100 which blew me away in 1970. To achieve this feat, Issigonis utilized a front wheel drive layout with a transverse-mounted engine, the first modern application of this concept. Sort By: Better Essays. The Mini went on to become the best selling British car in history with a production run of 5.3million cars. 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. After briefly working elsewhere in the early 1950s, Issigonis returned to what had become the British Motor Corp., where in 1959, in response to the Suez energy crisis (1956) and the popularity of Germanys Volkswagen Beetle, he introduced the Mini. View gallery - 6 images. Indeed gay sex was illegal in the UK until 1968 and for many years after prejudice was rife. The above photo is a publicity shot with the first produced Mini, at his retirement in 1972. However, there was more to his life than just one car. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Iconic. While much derided for its lack of style, I do love the huge smile he put on the front of the original 1800 Landcrab. Therefore some functionality is missing. Not something one would anticipate until it is experienced. Sketch by the late Sir Alec Issigonis, of the original Morris Minor, circa 1946. 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. George Harriman, Leonard Lord and Alec Issogonis. Issigonis would work on the 9X programme, which included a replacement Mini and a new and innovative gearless transmission system. Looking at the Minor or the Mini, I can believe that. [3][6] His father died shortly after and Issigonis and his mother moved to the United Kingdom in 1923. There was a good reason for BMC selecting him for this task, for Issigonis was born in Izmir. By the mid 1970s, Issigonis was beginning suffer from Menieres disease, and the consequent loss of full control of his balance let him to retreat from prominence. Moulton also designed folding, rubber suspended small-wheeled bicycles. Morris Minor 1000s , Dropheads, Travelers , Panel Van, and Pick up trucks. 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 Maxi, by comparison, was a bland lump.). By 1969 Fiat had also followed with the 128, and by 1974 Peugeot, VW and Renault had transverse engine hatchbacks as well. 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. During the war, Morris Motors undertook military work, notably the development of the Morris lightweight reconnaissance vehicle for the War Department. I wouldnt say Day was offended but took it as evidence that Issigoniss time has passed and that the value Rover were getting from the consultancy was minimal, and it was effectively indulging Issigonis, something Turnbull and Donald Stokes could afford t0 do (and knew looked rational) in 1970. 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 []. Alec's mother, Hulda Prokopp, could trace her origins back to Wrttemberg (now part of Germany). Most events he entered were sprints and hillclimbs, but he also competed in some circuit races. Issigonis's mother, Hulda Prokopp, was descended from a Bavarian brewing family who had settled in Smyrna, and established a brewery. 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. Alec Issigoniss birth sign is Scorpio and he had a ruling planet of Pluto. It did not have everything Issigonis wanted, as he originally planned this car to have a V4 engine rather than the BMC A series. 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. As such he was of the generation who experienced the privations of two apocalyptic world wars. It really showed up typical RWD cars of the time as being great space-wasters. Issigonis was born in Smyrna in 1906. Tragically, Constantine Issigonis contracted a serious illness, and died in Malta in June 1923. 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. 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. [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. The war prevented this design from going into production but it was later used on the MG Y-type. Alec Issigonis (Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis) was born in Smyrna in the Ottoman Empire (now Izmir, Turkey). In 1936, he moved to Morris Motors Limited at Cowley working on an independent front suspension system for the Morris 10. He was also responsible for the development of the Mini Moke, initially intended for military use, though it subsequently became another popular icon of British automotive engineering that, like the Mini, attained cult status. Alec Issigonis Related Authors Vivienne Westwood Quotes Virgil Abloh Quotes Coco Chanel Quotes Carroll Shelby Quotes And a rally demon was born. . In 1942, Morris gave Issigonis overall responsibility for an all-new model; the Morris Minor. The 1100 benefited from someone elses external design. Encouraged by the success of the Morris Minor, Issigonis continued his design work at Morris (including work on a replacement for the Minor with a transverse 4 cylinderengine with an endon gearbox) until the merger with the Austin in 1952 to form BMC. Issgoniss retirement, with George Turnbull, then Managing Director of Austin-Morris. Issigonis designed a unitary construction saloon and the V8 engine, and utilised Moultons latest interconnected rubber suspension. 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. What a great, nicely balanced piece about the ever-controversial Sir Alec, and his equally controversial designs. The first car to repeat the concept of the Mini was the ADO16, which is often considered to be Issigoniss finest hour. Kereta rekaannya, BMC Mini dilancarkan dalam tahun 1959. During 1956 Issigonis concentrated on the larger two cars, producing several prototypes for testing. The loss of British sovereignty led not only to a political defeat but also to an oil crisis. Youre right about maintenance. 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. 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. Issigonis' first cousin once removed was Bernd Pischetsreider, responsible . 2939 Words; 12 Pages; 6 Works Cited; Essay on The Pure Voice in Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles This guilt convinces Tess that she must now travel to the D'Urbervilles' home and claim kin with them. 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). Vic Oak and Reginald Hanks, Morriss Managing Director did though, arranging a 50% salary increase for Issigonis in April 1948, to 1500 per year. Issigonis was a remarkable engineer and obviously made his mark. So Sir Alec Issigonis had an impact on my life. You could, however, discern Issigoniss influence on some of BMCs light commercials, especially the underfloor engined JU and walk through EA vans of the late 1960s.
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