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| wheelbase = 〔 | designer = Dennis and Peter Adams〔''Happy 50th Marcos'', p. 57.〕 | successor = Marcos Mantula }} The Marcos GT is the name used by the British firm of Marcos Engineering Ltd for all of their cars until the introduction of the Mantis in 1970. Most commonly, the name is used to describe the very low coupé designed by brothers Dennis and Peter Adams. The car was first introduced as the Marcos 1800 in 1964, with a wooden chassis and a Volvo P1800 engine, although later models had a steel chassis and commonly Ford engines although others were also available. The majority of these sports cars were sold in kit form. The car was out of production from 1972 until 1981, when small scale kit production recommenced. The original GT continued to be built until 1989 or 1990, being developed into its altered Mantula form. This was further developed into more powerful and aggressively-styled designs, culminating in the 1994 LM600 (which competed in the 1995 Le Mans 24-hour race). As was the intent with most Marcos products, the GT series saw much competition use. The original 1800 and other 1960s and 1970s Marcos are still competitive in both FIA and HSCC (UK) historic racing series. ==Marcos 1800 GT== In 1964 the glassfibre-bodied Marcos 1800 GT was introduced, using the cast-iron four-cylinder Volvo 1778 cc B18 unit with overdrive gearbox and De Dion rear axle.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url = http://www.technik.swissmarcosclub.ch/_downloads/1965_-_Marcos_1800_Durchsichtdarstellung_1.pdf )〕 It was a sensation when first shown at the 1964 Racing Car Show.〔Heseltine, p. 89.〕 This was to be the design that would become familiar to sports car enthusiasts for more than 30 years, even though the original plywood chassis would later be replaced by a steel chassis and the futuristic scalloped dashboard also vanished after a few years. The plywood chassis was glued together from 386 separate pieces and was not only light and strong, but also required a minimum up front investment to construct. The extremely low Marcos required a nearly supine driving position and fixed seats, mounted lower than the floor of the car. In return, the entire pedal set could be moved fore and aft with a knob on the dashboard. If this proved not to be enough Marcos also offered optional booster pillows.〔 This setup, with the fixed seats, remained until the end of Marcos production in late 2007. The original Marcos 1800 had a two-spoke steering wheel and a novel dash with a prominent center console, a rather expensive design which did not survive onto the Ford-engined cars. The entire nose portion, of a long and tapered design, was hinged at the front and was held down by latches behind the front wheelwells. The Volvo engine has , enough for a top speed and a 0-60 mph time of 8.2 seconds.〔Lawrence, p. 205.〕 Some sources claim SAE. Successful in competition, the rather expensive 1800 sold very slowly, and after the first 33 cars the de Dion rear suspension was replaced by a live Ford axle. The price was dropped from ₤1500 to ₤1340, but it was not enough to make the car profitable.〔 Cars were stockpiling in 1966, and after 106 (or 99) had been built, the 1800 was replaced by the Ford-engined 1500.〔〔Heseltine, p. 90.〕 Normally fitted with a four-speed manual transmission a five-speed one was also available, allowing for a higher top speed.〔 According to some sources, a few of the last cars built had the 2 litre Volvo B20 engine fitted, as did some of the racing cars. The 1800 is the only Marcos that is eligible for historic racing and as such is considerably more valuable today than later models. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Marcos GT」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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