Do you love to put together IKEA furniture? Ever wanted to be able to say you personally installed every nut and bolt in a car? Here’s your chance! It appears that this 1970 Marcos has been taken completely, and I mean completely, apart. It’s available due to the seller downsizing their shop in Los Angeles, California, but it’s only available until September 1. Check out the auction here on eBay if you are interested!
Here’s what one looks like completed (this car was featured on Barn Finds in January of 2012–bet most of you didn’t know we had been around that long!). They are very, very low cars and tend to have a “kit car” feel as some were sold in component form. The 1970 model was the first Marcos GT to feature a steel frame; prior to that they were wood bonded with the fiberglass! I should note that the blue car above was listed on eBay for $29,000 back then, so perhaps the $6,800 buy it now figure the seller wants for this project car isn’t completely out of line.
That being said, seeing the frame like this and the motley collection of parts (note that the seller says they are all carefully packed in boxes now) it scares me a little. You know some things have gone missing, and having not been there when the car was disassembled there’s going to be a large “by guess and by golly” factor when you try to figure out how to put it back together. Also, finding the front and rear glass over here might be difficult. If you want them shipped from the UK, these folks can help with front glass and rear plastic windows.
The car left the factory powered by a Volvo B30 inline six engine as evidenced by the skinny valve cover. While this means 130 to 160 horsepower, and I’d be fine with that, later versions of the GT were fitted with everything up to a large V8. With a weight of right around 2,000 pounds, though, in stock configuration, I think I’d leave the Volvo engine in place, especially since the seller is including an overdrive transmission as well as the standard one. What would you do? Have you ever put a car back together starting with boxes of parts?
run away. fast. that’s too much work and you never know if all the parts are there. it’s a marcos so if you are missing anything replacing it will not be as simple as on a mustang or camaro.
just no.
Apart from the Vovo motor it’s just generic British parts. Can’t imagine there’s any unobtainium missing. In 2008 I bought an 12,000 mile 1953 Bentley that had been apart 40 years. I just bought a 1965 Griffith that’s been apart since 1969.
Great car. I’m sorry if it’s mine it’s mine. Lightweight turbo 4cyl, modern trans, modern wheels and tires. The original stuff can be cleaned and put on a stand.
Paint it red and sell it on eBay!
I’d love to own a Marcos, but $6800 for a guess-where-it-goes kit needing rare glass, is a bit over the top.
It’s challenging enough to put a car back together correctly that you have taken totally apart yourself, let alone one that’s been taken apart by someone else and the pieces scattered around a garage and then put into boxes for sale with the separated body and chassis.
I would hold out for a car that’s together. I don’t think these are so expensive that a whole one wouldn’t be worth paying for.
There was some nut case in the Toronto area who took a relatively new 944 apart to re-what ever it. This guy took it apart in detail like taking the wiper motor apart short of taking the wire off the magnets. The person who was given the car in boxes couldn’t get $1100.00 for it. I told him to sell it off in parts. The plastic tubs and containers were worth hundreds.
These are neat cars, and at some point in my life I would be tempted to put this jig saw puzzle back together, but that’s been several years ago. I have a couple small plastic bins with my current driving restoration 1991 Lotus Elan M100, mostly trim/screws from interior/windows and convert top well, biggest challenge is paint, replacing the power window motors/cables/regulators, and window felts & door seals, I can’t imagine putting this back together.
But does it come with a little Allen wrench?Just
Not as hard as some have made it out to be, pretty simple cars really. And there is nothing you can’t buy, even the glass is not a big deal. Marcos Heritage Spares has everthing you need for reasonable prices and fast shipping. I ordered new windshield + rear glass for mine on a Monday had it show up at my door the following Monday. How do I know all this, cause I own the blue one in the picture.
Thanks for chiming in!!! :-)
I bought a beetle project in boxes and managed to assemble, currently have a porsche 912 n boxes which the original owner started to restore. Discovering how much work and cost there is in putting transmission back together when you want to do it right and replace bearings etc while apart. Love the jig saw element and these cars are reasonanly straight forward – just wish some assemblies had been left together.