alec issigonis family

Alec Issigonis - Etsy Check out our alec issigonis selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. When we stopped sending children up chimneys we reemployed them to work or minis. 1925 . Issigoniss mother, Hulda Prokopp, was descended from a Bavarian brewing family who had settled in Smyrna, and established a brewery. In the face of all this mayhem, Mrs. Issigonis decided to migrate with Alex to Britain, a land neither knew. FamousBirthdays.com - use subject to the practices disclosed in our privacy policy. Autokonstrukteur, GBPortrt mit Zigarette- 1959. I wonder if he was to blame for the Mini never having a hatchback, or a more softly suspended version? 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 retirement gift from the company was the largest available Meccano set, complete with a steam engine. Alec is . After studying engineering, he joined Morris Motors in 1936 as a suspension designer. They paid him to design a tractor safety cab after their own designers had 3 attempts and we built 3 failures. I saw that same car several times, so, at least in nice weather, it apparently was a daily driver. The gearbox in sump was a dead end in terms of automotive design. I remember the Austin America when new, not an impressive car to me in any way . I got to drive his Red mini when I went for fish and chips on a Friday. 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. Alec Issigonis. BMC and Issigonis were awarded the Dewar Trophy by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) for the innovative design and production of the Mini. 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. He also took his lunch with the workers in the local pub and travelled to this in our Bedford crew bus with wooden bench seats. Issigonis was dismissive of market research, The public dont know what they want; its my job to tell them and even mathematics, derided as the enemy of every truly creative man. The Morris Minor was an immediate success, selling over 11 million units, and was the first characterization of Issigoniss philosophy of maximizing interior space while shrinking all other components. Issigonis's mother, Hulda Prokopp, was descended from a Bavarian brewing family who had settled in Smyrna, and established a brewery. A truly great man and an honour for me. This would have been in the early 70s when they were literally everywhere. This greatly modified machine was replaced with a radical special completed in 1939, constructed of plywood laminated in aluminium sheeting. Upon meeting Alec, she is shy and ashamed . Arguably, Issigonis and BL were in danger of being left behind. Alec Issigonis was a Greek-British automobile engineer and designer, best known for designing the Mini, a compact car that became a cultural icon in Britain and other countries. 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. Meanwhile, back at the office, Issigonis had devised an independent coil spring system for the first unitary construction Morris, the 1938 Ten, but which did not go into production as Morris, conservative as ever, chose a more conventional and cheaper beam axle solution. When he officially retired from BLMC in November 1971, Issigonis was retained by BLMC on an exclusive consultancy agreement, signed off by and reporting to the Chairman, Donald Stokes. 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. . Was it to be front or rear engined? 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. the outer planets, Uranus and Neptune were not yet discovered, since the telescope had not yet been invented. 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 Landcrab and Maxi were so butt ugly that no self respecting petrolhead would be seen it one. I saw about 3 Americas in the wild that I can remember, and 1 example of the earlier MG 1100 Sport Sedan. Meanwhile from 1930, he raced a supercharged Ulster Austin Seven, and fitted it with an independent front suspension of his own design. Alec Issigonis The public don't know what they want; it's my job to tell them. When I was in grade school in the mid-70s, the next door neighbor of my best friend had 6 Minis. It really showed up typical RWD cars of the time as being great space-wasters. 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. Chrysler also took a licence to manufacture the device, which was an integral part of their pioneering overdrive in 1934. At Alvis, Issigoniss main task was to lead the development of a more affordable, higher volume luxury car. Etsy Search for items or shops Close search Skip to Content Sign in 0 Cart Cyber Sales Event Jewelry & Accessories Clothing & Shoes Alec completed his education at an English boarding school, and in 1925, took a two month tour, by car, of Europe with his mother before returning to take a place at Battersea Polytechnic in south London, to study mechanical engineering. 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. British car designer best remembered for his work on the development of the iconic Mini. [citation needed] He considered it to be a vehicle that combined many of the luxuries and conveniences of a good motor car with a price suitable for the working classes in contrast to the Mini which was a spartan mode of conveyance with everything cut to the bone. In 1942, the first scale model was produced and the following year work began on a hand-formed steel prototype. He often had to be discreetly talked through financial documents when he was in the board meetings. Another Mini! [12], In 1964 Issigonis was appointed a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI). At the time of his retirement, 71, hatchbacks were not the thing they were 4 years later. It was more like a Lancia or a rear drive Citroen than a Rover or a Sunbeam-Talbot. Rover used the freewheel extensively, on cars and Land Rovers, into the 1960s. *27/02/01 The new Mini which will go on sale in the UK summer 2001, was , being unveiled for the first time. The Mini, and the other Issigonis BMC front wheel drive cars, benefited from Issigonis continuing collaboration with Alex Moulton and his suspension system developments. Constantine studied in England. [13], He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1967. Get In Touch Call or Email. This was to be an advanced saloon with all aluminium V-8 engine, and the original plan was for Alvis to produce 5,000 cars a year, or ten times Alviss current production rate, to compete with Riley (not then a badge engineered BMC product), Rover, Sunbeam-Talbot and Jaguar. However, there was more to his life than just one car. Alec Issigonis, technical director of the British Motor Corporation and Charles Griffin, chief engineer, answer questions from our technical editor. As a person whos worked as a CAD drafter for 24 years, I wonder what his objection to CAD was. Issigonis died in England in 1988 at the age of 81, having lived long enough to see his beloved Mini sell in excess of five million units. [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). Issigonis' creation was remarkable, but it really only became a Mini when he got a little help from his friend, motorsport pioneer John Cooper. He excelled in mechanical drawing, but failed his mathematics exams three times. Issigonis became a fellow of the Royal Society in 1967 and was knighted in 1969. Click the answer to find similar crossword clues . Constantine was very proud of his British citizenship and Alec grew up in a traditional British type of household. [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. Issigonis was born on 18 November 1906 in the Ottoman port city of Smyrna, the only child of Constantine Issigonis and Hulda Prokopp. This generation experienced much of their youth during the Great Depression and rapid technological innovation such as the radio and the telephone. 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. It really showed up typical RWD cars of the time as being great space-wasters. When is Alec Issigoniss birthday? It is arguably doubtful that Lord, knowing Issigonis better, would have seen him as the ideal candidate for the overall technical leadership of BMC. There was no radio fitted as he thought it would distract the driver. Later, he was working on an independent suspension for the larger Humber Hawk, with another rising star in the industry, Bill Heynes. [], BMC changed the world with the launch of the Mini in 1959. An advanced 4-speed fully automatic transmission was offered in these that lived in the sump and shared the engine oil, just like the manual gearbox. https://www.mini.com/ Sounds like his stubbornness had a lot in common with Henry Ford and his reluctance to move on from the Model T. Imagine trying to take him seriously when he declared an uncomfortable driver is an alert driver. The relationship got to the point where Issigonis had the ideas, did the sketches and Daniels did the formal drawings. He would instead research work on his Mini replacement the 9X with its compact transverse engine. Thanks for this terrific bio on one of the all-time greats in the field. I saw one, in 79 or 80, sold here as the MG Sports Sedan. 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. 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. Prior to his death, Alec and his mother travelled overland to London. 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. The Mini was designed by. I fist saw a Mini on my way to middle school in 1965. The initials "G.I." I was amazed at the amount of space in that car you could even hide things in the cubbyhole under the rear seat. It was at Alvis that Issigonis first worked with another of the influential characters of his career. Issigonis planned two versions, known as the TA/350 with a 3.5 litre V8 and TA/175 with a 1750cc, V4 engine. That's exactly what he did. The mini leaked like a sieve because of the way hed designed the sills and had to be redesigned. 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. And the result was the creation of more than just an economical car. Alec Issigonis, the brilliant British designer of the Morris Minor and the Mini, is one of the commanding figures in the history of automobile design and engineering. 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. 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. 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. If it was front engined, was it to be rear wheel or front wheel drive? Manual transmissions seemed to hold up ok,lasting at least as long as the engine. Issigonis' first cousin once removed was Bernd Pischetsreider, responsible . 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. Giving the Mini, ADO16 and ADO17 were all designed well before hatchbacks were popular, the beancounters no doubt would be up in arms at the thought of spending more money on tooling for an already old design. The war years were spent. . Heynes later became Technical Director at Jaguar and was a personal friend of Issigonis for many years. He was reluctant to consider features such as large boots or hatchbacks, or engine access, as important. O interesse pelo automvel veio aos 12 anos, quando ele viu um pela primeira vez. 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. 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. JUMP TO: Alec Issigoniss biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs. The Mini was launched in 1959, and became instantly popular. 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. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. More importantly, the end of the agreement also marked the end of goodwill payments from the Company that covered his nursing care, and he was forced to move from his home to a smaller flat. Another Mini!). 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. We now call them Real Minis, to distinguish them from the post 2001 imitations. 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. He was also referred to as the Greek God, perhaps more openly. Where was the gearbox to be fitted on a front wheel drive car? And a rally demon was born. His father died in 1922, at which point he and his mother moved to the U.K.. Morris Minor 1000s , Dropheads, Travelers , Panel Van, and Pick up trucks. I saw this tiny car among the Buicks Oldsmobiles Mercurys and Chevrolet Impalas that were the usual fare. During this time he started to build a special sprint racer with a friend. 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 Issigonis is part of G.I. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. 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. [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. Issigonis returned to BMC to design a range of family vehicles. Therefore, when Alec's father, Constantine Issigonis, was born in Smyrna in 1872, he was also a British national. Austin Healey Sprites , 3000s Austin Americas, MG Midget, MGAs MGBs Mg 1100s I had many of each model. BMC was producing over 11,000 Issigonis-designed front-wheel-drive models a week, with demand still exceeding production, which was continually increased. The Renault 14 was transversely engined, from 1976. That Alvis is one of those missed opportunities that ultimately doomed the company. He was retired from British Leyland in 1971, memorably being given a Meccano kit for his leaving present. But there were other 20th century cataclysms that he lived and worked through as a designer - including the Suez crisis of 1956. The Boudjah - Smyrna born Alec Issigonis was an engineering genius and even after his death there is a fan base for his cars. . Sir Alec Issigonis was one of the automotive industrys great independent thinkers. Issigonis never married; most accounts suggest that he was probably gay but he was obviously unable to express himself without huge risk to his professional status and even the risk of prosecution. And Alec Issigonis? 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! [4] Sir Alec Constantine Issigonis, born in Smyrna, Ottoman Empire on November 18, 1906, is famous for designing the beloved Mini Cooper motor car. Issigonis studied engineering at Battersea Polytechnic in London. The MG 1100 Sport Sedan a perfect choice when a two-seater MG is too small. 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. And his father, a Greek by origin and British by nationality, had inherited a marine engine construction company, an activity that fascinated little Alec. Issigonis was born in Smyrna in 1906. A GLIMPSE INTO THE LIFE OF THE MINI FOUNDER. Generation. I dont remember Dad as being what youd call a sporting driver, but he never considered the later Austin-based Oxfords. 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. No wonder Issigonis felt flattered I feel very, very proud that so many people have copied me.. The last sighting was of a 71 America, in 81, and looking very well cared for. Bookmark this page and come back often for updates. To clarify, the Renault 4, 5 (first generation, Le Car), 6 and 16 all had longitudinally mounted engines. The Mini went on to become the best selling British car in history with a production run of 5.3million cars. Austin 1800 (ADO18 Landcrab): Best In Class Or Just Plain Ugly? Issigonis spent his early years as an engineer with Morris Motors working on steering and suspension. Apparently Walter Chrysler could also be difficult to work with. Generation also known as The Greatest Generation. In many ways, this car was a clear, but simpler, derivative of the work Issigonis had been doing at Alvis, and Issigonis recruited some former colleagues from Alvis to BMC to develop V6 and V4 engines for the projected BMC cars, possibly using the aborted work at Alvis as a basis. It was designed to follow on from the Mini and 1100 as the next generation . The family is almost penniless. I was amazed at the amount of space in that car you could even hide things in the cubbyhole under the rear seat. Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis was born in the Turkish town of Smyrna, today's Izmir, as the son of a Briton of Greek origin and a mother from Bavaria, on 18 November 1906. On October 2, 1988, he passed . Most events entered were sprints, but he also raced at circuits. 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. Red: Yeah, its mine. I remember seeing early Civics with trunks and the early VW Dasher had a trunk, in spite of its fastback bodywork. As such he was of the generation who experienced the privations of two apocalyptic world wars. Twitter; BMCs Great Leap Forward was a bold move, unfortunately marred by the inability to check Issigonis tendencies that often put the buyer last instead of first. 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. The irony being, of all the cars built in the world that follow his layout, none carry an Austin or Morris badge. Alecs education details are not available at this time. Well, he went down in history as the father of the Mini and was even raised to nobility for his services. Hulda Issigonis then returned to Malta, leaving sixteen year old Alec alone in London, returning only after Constantine had died. Issigonis would work on the 9X programme, which included a replacement Mini and a new and innovative gearless transmission system. 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. Updates? 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. That name was now engraved in my mind and as I got older I was drawn to LBCs (Little British Cars.) (The Maxi, by comparison, was a bland lump.). 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) 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 Minor, Mini, ADO16 and Landcrab all had character, and were all friendly cars. Thanks for a wonderfully researched article! Having been a passenger in an early Austin Landcrab on several occasions I can confirm they are amazingly spacious inside, front and rear. He inherited his great interest in technology and machines from his father who, shortly after the turn . . It had one option an AM radio, hung below the dash. 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. I remember being quite put off by the sound of the engine seemingly racing to maintain 45mph. 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. The Royal Navy Marines evacuated British Subjects, including the Issigonis family, from Smyrna before Turkey attacked. 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. Just re-watched the documentary about Issigonis, which has a great deal on the lightweight special It was 1999 channel 4 a full evenings programmes devoted to the 40th anniversary of the Mini. Issigonis had also been involved in the larger Oxford, Isis and Wolseley ranges. Sixty years ago today . 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. Ive never been inside a Landcrab or a Maxi, but I understand that while they are very spacious, the ergonomics are pretty poor. The Crossword Solver finds answers to classic crosswords and cryptic crossword puzzles. The end of the agreement came in 1986, when Issigonis wrote directly to Graham Day, BLs then new Chairman. Aos 16 mudou-se para Inglaterra onde iria cursar engenharia. Unfortunately I didnt turn out quite as brilliant, but I like to think I missed out some of the stubbornness/arrogance as well. In August 1959 the car was launched as the Morris Mini Minor and the Austin Seven, which soon became known as the Austin Mini. [16], In 2003 he was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in the United States. 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. Alec's grandfather Demosthenis migrated to Smyrna from the Greek island of Paros in the 1830s. His father Constantine Issigonis was a successful shipbuilding engineer, whose own father was from Paros. The Austin/Morris Mini was 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.

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