100 Years of Car Production in Oxford

This weekend I took a little day trip to Oxford just for the hell of it. Unknown to me they were having a little car meet celebrating 100 years of car manufacturing in Oxford. Right now, as far as I know, the Mini is the only car made in Oxford.

There were a few curious things there...


The first was a 1928 Morris Cowley. I normally don't go to car shows with pre 1950s cars and I probably just haven't noticed this detail before in any of the car museums Ive been in before but I thought it was pretty neat. To eliminate the need to open the window to honk the horn before electric horns were available this one went though the windshield frame.

I always get a kick out of these mechanical water temperature gauges, they look like less complicated pocket watches in a glass case.

This 1926 MG had a pair of very cool ship style air vents on the cowl! I'm not sure if they are original but they certainly looked like something that at the very least would be available in the after market in the 1920s. the inside being painted the same color as the car was a nice touch.

Lastly this odd looking "stop light" mounted on a  1933 Morris Cowley. You can read the whole explanation in the two pages written at the time but basically they were used to signal the car turning, stopping, and even a pre signal warning indicating that a signal was going to be made. I can not imagine these would have been very visible from far away with the light technology of the day and small size!

Cadillac Series 61 1950

Dont really need to say anything for this one...well, maybe just WOW!

Marcos Mantis XP 1968

When the Marcos Mantis XP debuted in the 1968 Spa 24 Hours race in Belgium it must have been like the Batmobile showing up. With the more normal and curvy looking Fords, Porsches and Ferraris of the late 60s this very angular racer represented the hopes of a very small British manufacturer who was fighting for a place in the performance car market.  The Mantis XP DNFd the Spa race due to electrical problems, and has been mothballed ever since then until its recent resurrection by a careful restoration in California.  The 1968 Marcos Mantis XP is literally a one-of-a-kind, not only as far as how many were made, but also in terms of its looks which even nowadays is unique...let alone in 1968!

Some would say the late 1960s represented a high water mark in the automotive world. This was the era of the Ford GT40, Ferrari Dino, Lamborghini Miura, and many other cars whos curves still fascinate today, not to mention all the extremely futuristic prototypes of the era. The Marcos Mantis XP simply brought its futuristic design to the world championship racing circuit.  It was powered by a mid-mounted BRM-Repco V8 Formula 1 engine, whose cylinders rose into the clear-covered engine compartment in the rear of the vehicle.  This engine gave it a pace which was enough to compete with the world’s top race cars until the electrical problems which sidelined it at the Spa 1000km.

thankfully even though Marcos is no longer in business, the Marcos Mantis XP is seeing new life on the vintage exhibition circuit giving everyone a look at what the future might have looked like circa 1968.

Lancia HIT concept by Pininfarina 1988

Many times I come across or recall cars that I cant find much information on and usually tend not to post those as I would like this blog to be as much for information as for just looking at nice pictures. Since there are many cars that I havent posted due to this I am going to start doing so so as to have them even if it is for aesthetics sake.

So, this is the Lancia HIT designed by Pininfarina in 1988. It is based on a Lancia Delta. The HIT was shown to the public at the 1988 Turin Motorshow. The name 'HIT' was formed from 'High Italian Technology, an indication that this car was a technology demonstrator. the technology that it demonstrated was not so much the drive train which used the mechanicals of the Delta HF Integrale, but the chassis which was created using carbon fiber. The composite materials gave an overall weight of just 980 kg. when a stock Delta HF weighed in at 1215 kg.

Considering what an awesome car the Delta HF was, this would have been amazing with 235 Kg. less!