Microcars

Wot, no interest? !!!!! !!!!!3 !!!!C:) !!!!!3 !!!!!

Tell us about Microcars. What's the scoop, blob?

Right-o. The birth and development of the internal combustion engine brought revolutionary change to every mode of transport, the two most distinct of which are the carriage and the bicycle. The carriage became the automobile or motor car, while the bicycle became the motorcycle. Traditionally, motorcycles have been more frugal, less expensive (initially) and, consequently, more accessible. However, they are also less safe, less comfortable, and god-awful at carrying anything more than one or two people and maybe a pair of saddle-bags. There have always been those who have wanted the economy of a motorcycle combined with some of the safety and comfort of an automobile. However, there have really been only two "golden ages" when these people have made a big enough market for the manufacture of these compromises to be generally feasible. The first was in England and France, during and immediately after the Great War (First World War) which was the age of the "cycle-car", while the second was in Germany and Italy, about ten years after World War II, which was the age of the "bubble car" The WWI-era cycle-cars were, for the most part, flimsy contraptions that were not much better than the motorcycle/sidecar combinations that they competed with. Among the best of these was the GN of England, with an 1100cc V-Twin motorcycle engine and chain-driven rear wheels. The post-WWII bubble cars were generally much more solid designs, often with displaced aviation engineers developing them. The most famous of these were the Messerschmitt KR200 and the Isetta, designed and originally manufactured by Iso in Italy, but manufactured under licence by BMW in Germany, Romi in France, and other manufacturers in the United Kingdom and Brazil. The end of both eras came with the introduction of cheap small cars. In the mid- to late- '20s the Austin Seven, Morris Minor and Leyland Trojan effectively killed off the cycle-car, with the exception of the Morgan 3-wheeler which was closer in solidity of structure to the cars listed here than to the other cycle-cars. The bubble cars of the '50s, having competed against the more expensive but more useful Volkswagen Beetle, were fast becoming novelty items even before BMC brought out the Morris Mini Minor and its Austin Seven, Wolseley Hornet and Riley Elf variants. Once Europeans in general and Germans in particular became more prosperous, and could afford small "real" automobiles, it was bye-bye bubble cars! The energy crises of the 1970s and early '80s caused some to return to the microcar concept, and both energy conservation and environmental movements are influencing a re-thinking of personal transport. However, the market for single-seat transport modules like the Corbin Sparrow or Corbin Merlin might be limited by the fact that each of these models costs more than a Hyundai Accent... If a small, light, two-seat capsule (like the Messerschmitt KR200) were available at about the price of a mid-size motorcycle, I would definitely consider it.

I think you are leading somewhere! What is that somewhere? I'm talking about the car of the century. The Mini http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/955500.stm After 41 years of continuous production and more than five million cars built, the classic Mini has come to the end of the road. Production of the compact car finished on Wednesday at the MG Rover Group factory in Longbridge, Birmingham. Sixties supermodel Twiggy is a fan There have been nearly 140 different models of the car since it was first introduced in 1959, as an economy vehicle in the wake of the Suez oil crisis. BMW will produce a new version of the Mini at the Cowley works in Oxford. Many of those involved in the production of the Mini across six decades attended the end of production ceremony at Longbridge on Wednesday. Sixties icon Lulu drove the final car off the production line. See http://www.miniusa.com You'll want one, blob. But you'll have to get on a waiting list. Most complete MINI review: http://www.cars.com/carsapp/national/?srv=parser&act=display&tf=/features/mvp/mini/cooper/cooper_overview.tmpl

There are hundreds of old Minis in Jamaica and probably one or two of the new ones by now as well. I was NOT talking about the Mini. I was more talking about this: http://www.messerschmitt.co.uk/images/kr200/down.jpg http://www.messerschmitt.co.uk/images/kr200/gto.jpg or this: http://www.isetta-owners-club-gb.com/bertie.jpg http://www.isetta-owners-club-gb.com/bircher1.jpg http://www.isetta-owners-club-gb.com/57-4.jpg I mean REALLY small stuff, things that are licenced as motorcycles.

BTW, isn't the Car Of The Century the Model T? I can see where the original Mini would have tied with the original Volkswagen Beetle, but I don't see either being more significant than the T.

What's the price tag on the above units? That' model isn't Twiggy though.

Except for the Corbins, none of the above are in production now. They're from the '50s and '60s. I'd have to check out the marque clubs for their prices then and now. The clubs apparently exist 'coz no-one can find parts without them.