Marcos Mantis

Marcos Mantis (1968 Model)

Marcos Mantis (1997 Model)

The original Marcos Mantis is a sports car produced by the British car company Marcos. It was formally introduced in 1968 though production appears to have got off to a slow start. In February 1971 Marcos announced that the car could now also be purchased in component form, at a domestic market price of £2,425 compared to the recommended retail price of the built version of £3,185.^[1] (At this time the V8 Rover 3500 came with a UK sticker price of £2,150 including sales taxes.) 32 examples were produced, with production ending in 1971.^[2]

The Mantis name has been used subsequently for models bearing little obvious similarity to the original model. Introduced in 1997, the Mantis GT version is a higher performance version of the Mantis. The name Mantis comes from the mantis insect and is to signify the performance of the Mantis' engine, a supercharged 4.6 litre V8 producing 506 bhp (377 kW) and 452 lb·ft (613 N·m) of torque allowing the Mantis to accelerate from 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds and reach a top speed of 179 mph (288 km/h). The car features power assisted rack and pinion steering as well as AP Vented disc brakes which have a diameter of 284 mm (front) and 240 mm (rear).

References

1. ^ "News and Views: Marcos Mantis". Autocar 134 (nbr 3909): page 32. date 25 February 1971. 
2. ^ Michael Sedgwick & Mark Gillies, A-Z of Cars 1945-1970, page 121