GTM Coupe
Encyclopedia
The GTM Coupe is a Mini
based kit car
dating back to 1967. The car was first shown at the 1967 Racing Car Show and soon afterwards went into production by the Cox brothers from their garage in Hazel Grove, Stockport as the Cox GTM. In 1970 the rights to the design and manufacturing were bought by Howard Heerey and the Cox part of the name dropped. In 1978 ownership changed again to GTM Engineering. The Coupe was manufactured by GTM Cars
from 1983 to 1994.
The Coupé is a mid-engined 2-seater sports car designed to give outstanding performance, for its time and impeccable handling. The design composed of two Mini front subframes, with traditional Mini rubber cone suspension, linked by a sheet steel semi-monocoque chassis. The chassis' deep centre tunnel backbone is supplemented by two generous sills. The car is mid-engined: the rear subframe contained the engine as in a Mini
with the steering arms locked in position with adjustable rods and ball joints. This is held in place by a 1" square tubular space frame, all the way from the rear bulkhead. The front subframe carried the steering rack, fuel tank and radiator. Brakes and wheels remained as per the options available to the Mini, post April 1982 GTM coupes being designed to allow fitment of 13" wheel.
, coming from the Mini traveler.
The car was available in several groups of "part packs" that were designed to allow each stage of the build to be purchased separately as they were undertaken, spreading the costs over a period. In 1985 a complete kit cost £2380.
"Labour packs" were also available for customers that wished GTM to undertake specific stages in the construction.
Mini
The Mini is a small car that was made by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered a British icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout influenced a generation of car-makers...
based kit car
Kit car
A kit car, also known as a "component car", is an automobile that is available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then either assembles into a car themselves, or retains a third party to do part or all of the work on their behalf...
dating back to 1967. The car was first shown at the 1967 Racing Car Show and soon afterwards went into production by the Cox brothers from their garage in Hazel Grove, Stockport as the Cox GTM. In 1970 the rights to the design and manufacturing were bought by Howard Heerey and the Cox part of the name dropped. In 1978 ownership changed again to GTM Engineering. The Coupe was manufactured by GTM Cars
GTM Cars
GTM Cars is a component kit car manufacturer located in Kingswinford, UK.The company was founded in 1967 when Bernard Cox and his friend Jack Hosker created the Cox GTM a mid engined Ferrari Dino inspired sports car based on Mini parts. It was an instant hit and they built kits as fast as they...
from 1983 to 1994.
The Coupé is a mid-engined 2-seater sports car designed to give outstanding performance, for its time and impeccable handling. The design composed of two Mini front subframes, with traditional Mini rubber cone suspension, linked by a sheet steel semi-monocoque chassis. The chassis' deep centre tunnel backbone is supplemented by two generous sills. The car is mid-engined: the rear subframe contained the engine as in a Mini
Mini
The Mini is a small car that was made by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered a British icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout influenced a generation of car-makers...
with the steering arms locked in position with adjustable rods and ball joints. This is held in place by a 1" square tubular space frame, all the way from the rear bulkhead. The front subframe carried the steering rack, fuel tank and radiator. Brakes and wheels remained as per the options available to the Mini, post April 1982 GTM coupes being designed to allow fitment of 13" wheel.
Chassis
The chassis is fabricated from 18-20 swg steel, to incorporate the floor pan, boxed sills and the central tunnel box section. It forms a very robust structure. The fabrication is carried forwards in order to locate the front sub-frame, and a 1" square tubular space frame extends beyond the rear bulkhead to carry the rear sub-frame. Welding was carried out by MIG for consistent quality and to avoid distortion. The chassis was fully jigged during manufacturing to ensure a true and accurate assembly.Body
The body is moulded in high quality glass reinforced plastic. It is extremely tough, non rusting and , being unstressed, is not subject to gel-coat star crazing as found on many cars using GRP body shells. The windscreen is laminated glass and the rear screen perspex.Doors
The doors are double skinned glass fibre fitted with anti-burst locks, steel window frames, and steel strengthers to avoid door drop, often found on glass fibre cars. The sliding windows are toughened glassToughened glass
Toughened or tempered glass is a type of safety glass processed by controlled thermal or chemical treatments to increase its strength compared with normal glass. Tempering creates balanced internal stresses which cause the glass, when broken, to crumble into small granular chunks instead of...
, coming from the Mini traveler.
Bonnet
The bonnet is again moulded in high quality glass reinforced plastic. It is hinged at the front to give access to under bonnet space.Boot
Completely separate boot compartment situated behind the engine, offers 4 cu ft (0.113267388 m³). of luggage space with separate locking boot cover.The car was available in several groups of "part packs" that were designed to allow each stage of the build to be purchased separately as they were undertaken, spreading the costs over a period. In 1985 a complete kit cost £2380.
"Labour packs" were also available for customers that wished GTM to undertake specific stages in the construction.
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