Fantastic Plastic 2014 - the variety of colored curves

Name: Marcos GT 1600 1967
Brand: Marcos

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Created on May 18, 2014

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Bruno von Rotz

152

Bruno von Rotz

152

Pretty colorful - plastic cars are usually also colorful creatures - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Attractive parking lot in the arena of the Swiss Museum of Transport Lucerne - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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Large parking lot for a large number of plastic cars - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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Plastic cars meet peacefully regardless of their provenance and car - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Plastic cars in the arena of the Swiss Museum of Transport Lucerne - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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Plastic sports car under the wings of a passenger plane at the Swiss Museum of Transport in Lucerne - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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AC Cobra at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Alpine A 110 SI at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Alpine-Renault A 110 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Alpine A 110 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Alpine A 310 GT at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Alpine A 310 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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BMW M1 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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American plastic cars among themselves, united under the Alinghi yacht - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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Chevrolet Corvette C1 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Chevrolet Corvette C2 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Chevrolet Corvette C3 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Chevrolet Corvette C4 ZR1 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Chevrolet Corvette C4 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Dodge Viper at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Ginetta G33 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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JWF Milano GT at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Kohlmus Scirocco at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Lotus Elan S2 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Lotus Europa S2 807 Hemi at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Lotus Europa S2 Hemi at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Lotus Europa S2 Wankel at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Lotus Europe Special at the Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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Lotus Europe Special at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Lotus Europa S2 (1968) - at the Fantastic Plastic 2014 meeting

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Madison at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marco's sports car in a row - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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Marcos 1600 GT at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos 3 Litre at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos GT 1600 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos GT 1800 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos GT at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos Mantara at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos Mantula at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marcos Mantis at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Marco's rear views - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Matra Djet VS at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Matra Murena 2.2 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Microplas Toledo at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Microplas Toleco at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Mini Marcos at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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MP Lafer at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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The front car may look older, but it is younger - MP Lafer 1973 and Chevrolet Corvette C1 from 1960 - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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MVS Venturi 260 LM at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Peerless GT 2 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Plastic car spectrum - Peerless, Marcos and Ferrari 250 GTO replica - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Raptor at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Reliant Scimitar SE4 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Reliant Scimitar at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Renault Avantime at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Renault R5 Turbo at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Think at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Thurner RSR at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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The engine is at the rear of the Thurner RSR, and to the left of the Matra in front of the rear axle - Kunststoffauto-Treffen Fantastic Plastic 2014

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TVR Taimar at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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From the same era and yet look completely different - Marcos GT and TVR Tuscan - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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TVR Tuscan V6 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Wiesmann MF3 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

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Many nostalgic vehicles were also made from plastic, such as this car, which is modeled on a 1950s Ferrari - Fantastic Plastic 2014 plastic car meeting

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On 17 May 2014, the "Fantastic Plastic" meeting, organized by the Lucerne Museum of Transport and zwischengas.com, took place for the second time. The number of participants almost doubled compared to the previous year and the range of brands and vehicle types represented was even greater. From almost racing sports cars to modern electric vehicles, almost everything with a plastic body was represented.

Plastic cars meet peacefully regardless of their provenance and car - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

The public at the Swiss Museum of Transport, where the vehicles made a two-hour stopover in the afternoon, were particularly struck by the variety of shapes and colors in the face of today's monotony.

The spectrum of concepts was also interesting, with front, mid and rear-engined vehicles, four, six and eight-cylinder engines of water- and air-cooled design, convertibles, coupés and even limousines in the field of around 70 vehicles.

In addition to the concours in the Swiss Museum of Transport, where the public could vote for the "King of Cool", the daily program of Fantastic Plastic included a regularity test in the form of two acceleration runs. However, many participants felt that just finding the venue in Rain was a special test.

50 years of Marcos GT

The guest of honor at the Fantastic Plastic 2014 meeting was the Marcos brand, represented by the Swiss Marcos Club. 2014 also marks the 50th anniversary of the Marcos GT, a design that provided momentum practically until the end of the brand in 2007.

Marcos 1600 GT at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

It goes without saying that the majority of the vehicles gathered in Lucerne/Rain were GTs with a wide variety of engines - Ford, BMW, Rover - but the spectrum also included two Mini Marcos, a Mantis and newer Matula and Mantara vehicles.

Two exotics meet - Kohlmus and Thurner

Thurner RSR at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

At the end of the 1960s, Dieter Kohlmus and Rudolf Thurner jointly developed a sports car based on the shortened chassis of the NSU 1200 C with a plastic body. However, the two were probably not in complete agreement, in any case they split up and each continued to work separately. The result was the Thurner RS, which differed from the joint prototype in that it had a modified front end, and the Kohlnus Scirocco, which had a modified rear end. The two cars were built and marketed separately.

Kohlmus Scirocco at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

Several dozen Kohlnus sports cars are said to have been built between 1969 and 1973; Thurner even sold over 120 examples by 1974, three of which were widebody versions. One of these rare widebody versions of the Thurner and a Kohlnus Scirocco met in Lucerne, a truly rare encounter.

L'Equipe Bleu

The vehicles from Jean Rédélé were traditionally fitted with plastic bodies. The Alpine A110 and A310 were and still are popular to this day, so there was also a nice selection of these early French plastic sports cars.

Alpine-Renault A 110 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

They were complemented by the Renault R5 Turbo, whose bodywork is at least partly made of plastic, and a Renault Avantime, whose body is made of plastic, like the earlier Renault Espace family van.

MVS Venturi 260 LM at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

The French delegation was complemented by an MVS Venturi 260 LM, also in blue.

Corvette range

America was one of the pioneers of the plastic car. Countless small-series sports cars were created. However, the USA also produces the most widely manufactured plastic sports car, the Corvette. The American sports car icon has been built with a plastic body since 1954. With the C1, C2, C3 and C4 models, the entire former range was present in Lucerne/Rain and obviously delighted the public so much that the Chevrolet Corvette C2 was awarded the title "King of Cool" by Peter Thürig.

Chevrolet Corvette C2 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

While the American specials and exotics were absent, GM's rival Chrysler also made an appearance with two Dodge/Chrysler Viper vehicles.

Lotus and TVR

After the Americans, the British were the first to use plastic cars on a large scale. The smaller sports car brands in particular recognized the advantages of GRP bodies, which could be produced at low cost without major infrastructure outlay. Lotus and TVR, along with Ginetta and Marcos, are among the best-known examples; both brands were represented with several vehicle types.

Lotus Elan S2 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

The Lotus Elan is one of the most successful plastic sports cars ever, with the Europa Colin Chapman made the leap to the mid-engined road sports car, which the Lotus brand is still pursuing today with the Elise and Evora models. They could all be viewed up close in Lucerne/Rain, as could the TVR models Tuscan, Taimar and 350i.

From the same era and yet look completely different - Marcos GT and TVR Tuscan - Plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

Plastic exotics

German mass-production manufacturers also ventured into plastics. BMW, for example, used plastic body parts for the M1 and later the Z1. On the whole, however, it was small-series manufacturers such as Matra, Reliant and Wiesmann who preferred to use inexpensive GRP, especially for the production of sports cars. In Lucerne/Rain, a Matra Djet, a Matra Murena, a JWF Milano GT, a Wiesmann MF3 and two Reliant Scimitar SE4s and Ginetta G33s could be observed.

Reliant Scimitar SE4 at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

Plastic is and was also popular with manufacturers of nostalgic vehicles and replicas. Examples of this on May 17, 2014 were the MP Lafer in the style of the MG TD, the Madison in the style of the 1930s sports cars and replicas of AC Cobra and Ferrari models.

Microplas Toledo at the plastic car meeting Fantastic Plastic 2014

Another special feature and probably the oldest car in Lucerne/Rain was the Microplas Toledo. Microplas built bodies that could be mounted on a wide variety of chassis. In this way, many attractive sports car specials were created in the fifties and sixties on the back of chassis that were no longer needed elsewhere. In the case of the Toledo, the substructure came from Triumph and obviously the sixty-year-old material did not prevent driver Simon Lang from completing both runs in the regularity test together with Christof Gärtner (Madison) and Beat Trachsler (Lotus Europa) within a hundredth of a second.

But at the end of the day, it wasn't just the winners and prize-winners who were beaming; the day had made everyone happy with beautiful weather and hardly anyone came home without getting to know at least one new vehicle that was previously unknown to them.