alec issigonis family

The concept of the transverse engine and gearbox combined with FWD, which had previously been used only with two-cylinder two-stroke engines by DKW (since the 1920s), Lloyd and Saab, was adapted by Issigonis for the four cylinder A-block engine for the Mini. Alec Issigonis (Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis) was born in Smyrna in the Ottoman Empire (now Izmir, Turkey). . Issigonis would later state that pure mathematics (is) the enemy of every truly creative man. He began his engineering career at Morris Motors Ltd. in 1936 as a steering and suspension engineer. 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. His father died in 1922, at which point he and his mother moved to the U.K.. Enter the length or pattern for better results. Issigonis first concepts were rear wheel drive, with a conventional drive train, fully independent suspension set on a long wheelbase with short overhangs and very rudimentary styling. [13], He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1967. All Rights Reserved. However, his story proves: never give up your dreams even if life puts obstacles in your way. The childhood . He didnt say by 1974 in regard to VW and Renault. Sir Alec Issigonis hadn't even seen a car until he was 12 years old. If you see something that doesnt look right, contact us. I have liked them ever since. And Alec Issigonis? In 1952, the year BMC was formed, he moved to Alvis where he designed an advanced saloon, and experimented with interconnected independent suspension systems. This was the man who persisted in pursuing a gearless car using only a torque converter, who rubbished CAD in favour of slide rules, who did most of his designs in rough and passed them to his acolytes to make real. 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. Shunning all offers of silver service with the management. After studying engineering, he joined Morris Motors in 1936 as a suspension designer. The irony being, of all the cars built in the world that follow his layout, none carry an Austin or Morris badge. The Mini went on to become the best selling British car in history with a production run of 5.3million cars. Then of course there was severe corrosion in the face of road salt. [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. The relationship got to the point where Issigonis had the ideas, did the sketches and Daniels did the formal drawings. The closure of the Suez canal created . This page is updated often with fresh details about Alec Issigonis. 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. He was a complex man, with a complex background, family story and career. 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. This car was remarkably light, weighing 587lb, of which the engine contributed 252lb. 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) I witnessed blowing head gaskets, torn manifold studs and much more and found out that taking the engine out first was the quickest access for any of these repairs! They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Sticks in my mind I read a road test that put engine speed at 60 around 4,000rpm. On the right is Alec Issigonis and standing next to him is John Cooper. Alec Issigonis is a famous Entrepreneur. Issigonis usually won, even when entered in the 1100cc class if there was no 750cc category. His efforts were concentrated on two things continuing to promote the 1968 9X concept to BLMC, and working on the concept of a gearless version of the Mini, using a torque converter, that was not a technical success. . The floor is flat and low to the ground and windows all round make it seem very airy. Ive never been inside a Landcrab or a Maxi, but I understand that while they are very spacious, the ergonomics are pretty poor. 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. The Mini was launched in 1959, and became instantly popular. Alec Issigonis was born in the Year of the Horse. On a cheerier note, Id love to see that Alvin on the flesh. with 8 letters was last seen on the March 01, 2023.We found 20 possible solutions for this clue. A testament to brilliant design or to the modern industrys tendencies towards aversion of risk, I wont say surely some of both. The MG 1100 Sport Sedan a perfect choice when a two-seater MG is too small. Designer Alec Issigonis was born in the southern Anatolian city of Smyrna in 1906. Sir Alec Issigonis celebrates one of the many milestones of the Mini dynasty. At Alvis, Issigoniss main task was to lead the development of a more affordable, higher volume luxury car. I saw one, in 79 or 80, sold here as the MG Sports Sedan. Chinese Zodiac: Alec Issigonis was born in the Year of the Rabbit. By 1969 Fiat had also followed with the 128, and by 1974 Peugeot, VW and Renault had transverse engine hatchbacks as well. To clarify, the Renault 4, 5 (first generation, Le Car), 6 and 16 all had longitudinally mounted engines. He failed his degree course but gained a diploma in Mechanical Engineering, at the third attempt, in 1928. Upon meeting Alec, she is shy and ashamed . [], The Mini is 63 years old this week. Alec Issigonis (Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis) was born in Smyrna in the Ottoman Empire (now Izmir, Turkey). 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. 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. Prior to his death, Alec and his mother travelled overland to London. It was, though, used on the postwar MG Y Type saloons. [11], Issigonis was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1964 Birthday Honours. Alec Issigonis was born in 1900s. The Axis Powers? Manual transmissions seemed to hold up ok,lasting at least as long as the engine. 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. 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. 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. Absolutely brilliant article about an engineering genius. Alec's mother, Hulda Prokopp, could trace her origins back to Wrttemberg (now part of Germany). Many did not even make it through the warranty period without the transmission self-destructing. Issigonis' creation was remarkable, but it really only became a Mini when he got a little help from his friend, motorsport pioneer John Cooper. I love the comment made by Red Foreman on That 70s Show when asked about the Toyota Corolla he had recently purchased due to the gas crisis: Bob: Red, a Toyota? 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. Constantine was very proud of his British citizenship and Alec grew up in a traditional British type of household. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis CBE FRS RDI (18 November 1906 - 2 October 1988) was a Greek automotive designer. I am well acquainted with the brilliant/stubborn/arrogant type of engineer, I have occasionally served as a Daniels, and my own brilliant/stubborn/arrogant Grandfather could have probably used one too. He immigrated to Britain in 1922, studied engineering and in 1948 masterminded the Morris Minor, the first British car to sell more than a million. Apparently Walter Chrysler could also be difficult to work with. If it was front engined, was it to be rear wheel or front wheel drive? He was popular for being a Entrepreneur. Ive often wondered how its 35 horses managed the Berkshires . Issigonis name will always be associated with the Morris Minor, built for over 20 years, and with the Mini, a car he designed very quickly in the late 1950s and which was built for over 40 years, throughout the tumultuous history of BMC and BLMC, ending only after the BMW led break up of the Rover Group in 2000. 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. the outer planets, Uranus and Neptune were not yet discovered, since the telescope had not yet been invented. As a young man, Constantine was sent to England to study, and he later married Hulda Prokopp, the daughter of a wealthy German brewer in Smyrna. I saw that same car several times, so, at least in nice weather, it apparently was a daily driver. An engineering genius and godfather of of the Mini. Most events he entered were sprints and hillclimbs, but he also competed in some circuit races. Alec Issigonis, technical director of the British Motor Corporation and Charles Griffin, chief engineer, answer questions from our technical editor. 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. I wonder if he was to blame for the Mini never having a hatchback, or a more softly suspended version? Issigonis's own automotive career as a designer and engineer in England first took shape during the early 1930s when he began working for the vehicle manufacturer . The strengths of this sign are being resourceful, brave, passionate, a true friend, while weaknesses can be distrusting, jealous, secretive and violent. 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. 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. He was retired from British Leyland in 1971, memorably being given a Meccano kit for his leaving present. [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. Yes, it ran like hell when operable as the owner treated it like an Army Jeep. Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis ( 18. listopadu 1906 Smyrna - 2. jna 1988 Birmingham) byl ecko - britsk automobilov konstruktr narozen na zem dnenho Turecka. The key point to the genesis of the Minor is that Issigonis owned the whole design, including the exterior style, the interior,which had some of the starkness and simple functionality familiar from Issigoniss later designs. All Rights Reserved. Austin 1800 (ADO18 Landcrab): Best In Class Or Just Plain Ugly? 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. He was impossible to work with, had Henry Fords arrogance and nearly bankrupted the company like Ford, by refusing to listen to anyone. Look what happened to Alan Turing. Your article sure did him justice; thank you, Roger. The Austin/Morris Mini was Moultons hydrolastic suspension as installed on the BMC ADO16 by Issigonis. Alvis had a strong military business building armoured cars and personnel carriers, and this part of the business is still going strong as part of BAE Systems. In 1928 his first job was in the design office of Gillett, an engineering firm in London. There he developed the Morris Minor, which remained in production from 1948 to 1971. He continued to be responsible for his original XC projects. In 1936, he moved to Morris Motors Limited at Cowley working on an independent front suspension system for the Morris 10. Was it to be water or air cooled? Austin Maxi: Big On The Inside But Not On The Outside, What a great write up Roger. His love/hate relationship with the companys products stayed with []. This led to a job at Austin, but in 1936, he moved to Morris at Cowley, where he worked on the Morris 10. Alec Issigoniss mothers name is unknown at this time and his fathers name is under review. I wanted to know the genesis. Issigonis became a fellow of the Royal Society in 1967 and was knighted in 1969. Your email address will not be published. Well, he went down in history as the father of the Mini and was even raised to nobility for his services. JUMP TO: Alec Issigoniss biography, facts, family, personal life, zodiac, videos and related celebs. 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. XC/9001 became ADO17 and was launched, also with the Hydrolastic suspension system, as the Austin 1800 in October 1964.The same principle was carried over for his next production car the Austin Maxi, However, by then he had become more aware of the cost considerations of vehicle manufacture and in service warranty costs which were crippling BMC. Birth Name: Alec Issigonis Occupation: Entrepreneur Place Of Birth: Turkey Date Of Birth: November 18, 1906 Date Of Death: October 2, 1988 Cause Of Death: N/A Ethnicity: Unknown Nationality: Greek Alec Issigonis was born on the 18th of November, 1906. 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. This post and its visuals and videos explains this pivotal vector of the international industry with such clarity and depth. During the war, Morris Motors undertook military work, notably the development of the Morris lightweight reconnaissance vehicle for the War Department. The Crossword Solver found 30 answers to "an alec issigonis family car launched in 1969 (6,4)", 10 letters crossword clue. The Renault 14 was transversely engined, from 1976. He then moved on to Alvis, where he worked on the development of a luxury saloon, but the project had to be discontinued for cost reasons. 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. Generation. Alexander Issigonis was born into the Greek community of Smyrna (now Izmir) in Ottoman Turkey. He was flattered to be copied, though. [citation needed], Issigonis was nicknamed "the Greek god" by his contemporaries. The 1100 and later 1300 outsold the Mini by a considerable margin and remained Britains best-selling car right through the 1960s. 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. 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His mother was Bavarian, the daughter of a brewer. Issigonis officially retired from the motor industry in 1971, although he continued working until shortly before his death in 1988 at his house in Edgbaston, Birmingham. ), British automobile designer who created the best-selling, economical Mini and the perennially popular Morris Minor. When Alvis cancelled the project, Issigonis was invited by BMC Chairman Sir Leonard Lord to return to BMC at Longbridge, as Chief Body and Chassis engineer, and reporting to BMC Technical Director Sydney Smith. A truly great man and an honour for me. During 1956 Issigonis concentrated on the larger two cars, producing several prototypes for testing. Alec Issigonis Way Oxford Business Park Oxford OX4 2HN United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0) 1865 783 000 Oxford Biomedica Solutions 1 Patriots Park Bedford MA 01730 United States Telephone: +1 781 428 4536 Email :solutions.partnering@oxb.com Oxford Biomedica (Ireland) Ltd Office 502 Balheary Demense Balheary Road Swords Co. Dublin Ireland Sir Alecs design which we built won the design centre award. He left Morris in 1952 for Alvis just as BMC was created from Austin and Morris (as well as Riley, Wolseley and MG).. Alec Issigonis was born in Turkey. He took advantage of other peoples suspension designs, Moultons rubber cones and the isolastic, as they freed up more space. His retirement gift from the company was the largest available Meccano set, complete with a steam engine. But there were other 20th century cataclysms that he lived and worked through as a designer - including the Suez crisis of 1956. Generation also known as The Greatest Generation. Indeed gay sex was illegal in the UK until 1968 and for many years after prejudice was rife. Therefore some functionality is missing. The Landcrab and Maxi were so butt ugly that no self respecting petrolhead would be seen it one. By 1945, a full scale static prototype close to the familiar production form was completed. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Perhaps it was a trait that ran in the family. 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. Issigonis who designed the Mini auto Crossword Clue The Crossword Solver found 30 answers to "Issigonis who designed the Mini auto", 4 letters crossword clue. . Issigonis' first cousin once removed was Bernd Pischetsreider, responsible . I fist saw a Mini on my way to middle school in 1965. 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 . Day terminated the consultancy agreement, without any more consultation. While much derided for its lack of style, I do love the huge smile he put on the front of the original 1800 Landcrab. At the time of his retirement, 71, hatchbacks were not the thing they were 4 years later. 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. But it was an exciting period, and youve captured his personality and lasting impact well. 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. A GLIMPSE INTO THE LIFE OF THE MINI FOUNDER. I thought I knew everything about Issigonis already, but there were some fascinating insights here. For his accomplishments, Queen Elizabeth knighted Issigonis in 1969. 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. Red: Yeah, its mine. Starting around 1930, he raced a supercharged "Ulster" Austin Seven, later fitting it with a front axle of his own design, leading to employment at Austin. Alecs education details are not available at this time. Twitter; By 1941, Issigonis had started work on an advanced post war car, then codenamed Mosquito, which became the Morris Minor. Heynes later became Technical Director at Jaguar and was a personal friend of Issigonis for many years. The Crossword Solver finds answers to classic crosswords and cryptic crossword puzzles. Issigoniss first project was to design an independent suspension for Rootes highest volume car, the Hillman Minx. Moulton was a scion of the family behind the Avon tyres company and a respected suspension system engineer in his own right who had worked extensively on the concept of rubber as a suspension medium, before working on the hydrolastic and later still the hydragas systems. The war prevented this design from going into production but it was later used on the MG Y-type. His father Constantine Issigonis was a successful shipbuilding engineer, whose own father was from Paros. On the surface it didnt appear very desirable to Me, or to prospective new-car buyers. 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. Issigonis studied engineering at Battersea Polytechnic in London. Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis (Greek: , )CBE FRS RDI (18 November 1906 2 October 1988) was a British-Greek automotive designer. Nearly $1900 was pretty stiff pricing for a car that size in the mid 60s, $150 more than a Bug. body design expertise was by Italian firm Pininfarina. Dear Mr Day I have not met you but I feel I must write to explain a few points. That name was now engraved in my mind and as I got older I was drawn to LBCs (Little British Cars.) If only it had had more power and better gearing. Issigonis was a remarkable engineer and obviously made his mark. Bookmark this page and come back often for updates. Im sure the Renault 4, 5, 6, and 16 had longitudinal engines. His grandfather Demosthenis Issigonis . Notify me of follow-up comments by email. From 1925-1928 he studied engineering at Battersea Polytechnic in London.

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