Alec Issigonis

Book excerpt: Alec Issigonis, the brilliant British designer of the Morris Minor and the Mini, is one of the commanding figures in the history of automobile design and engineering. His ingenious and effective designs had a deep, lasting influence on the evolution of the motor car and on the wider history of industrial design, and he deserves to be ranked with the other giants of the field like Ferdinand Porsche in Germany and Dante Giacosa in Italy. But, until now, Issigonis's career as an engineer and designer, and his strong, single-minded character, have never been the subject of a full-length biography. Jonathan Wood's meticulously researched, penetrating study of this flawed genius of automobile design offers a rounded portrait of his life and work, and places him squarely in the context of his times. Vivid recollections of Issigonis's contemporaries, combined with a critical reassessment of his output, create a balanced view of a remarkable, controversial man. The author also offers a behind-the-scenes impression of the personal and corporate struggles within the declining British car industry, a complex process in which Issigonis played a famous role.