Praying Mantis doesn’t bite

Mike Andrews has had Marcos Mantis M70s for more than 40 years, so he’s used to the reaction these unusual-looking cars generate. ‘I’ve been taking mine to Le Mans every year since 1982,’ he says. ‘The question I often hear when I drive into the campsite is, “What the **** is that?”’ The answer is that it’s a rare four-seater GT, powered by a TR6 engine and built for just a couple of years before Marcos went bust in 1971, by which point 32 had been produced. Mike must have acquired a reputation as a Mantis expert, because someone passed his details to a family in need of a new home for their longstored example, as he explains. ‘I was very surprised to get an email from Anthony Smith, to ask if I knew of anyone interested in an M70. His father had recently passed away and his mother wanted the garage cleared, so I contacted a good friend to see if he was keen. He was used to the unusual styling as he saw my car every year at Le Mans, so we arranged to meet at the Smiths’ garage in Skegness – a long way from where I live in Kent, but further for my friend, who lives in Holland.’ The car is unique, being the only one fitted with chrome wire knock-off wheels and a fulllength Webasto sunroof. ‘It’s been off the road since 2003, but we established the engine wasn’t seized,’ says Mike. ‘My Dutch friend loaded the car on his trailer and returned home, where hopefully it will be a fairly straightfordward rebuild.’ Anthony Smith then mentioned a Mini Marcos they also needed to clear, so the following week Mike returned with his son, Marcos, to pick it up. ‘My son has always wanted his own Mini Marcos,’ says Mike. ‘He blames me for naming him after the marque!’