Coune MGB Berlinette

[MK2VR6]

Coune MGB Berlinette

In 1963 - one year before the prototype and two years before the official launch of the BGT, Jacques Coune built this "MGB Berlinette". This car was produced over three years, with a total production of no more than 56 cars.

Jacques Coune met Sir Alec Issigonis to discuss the potentiality of collaborating with The British Motor Corporation to explore the possibility of using the design concept of his MGB Berlinette Coupe, for production at Abingdon. The final decision was not to adopt the design in favor of MG's own GT Coupe introduced in 1965. Issigonis's recorded comments to Coune when advising him of his ruling was: "It looks too Italian!" A true statement as most of the craftsmen were from Turin.

Without the backing of BMC, and their mass production
advantages, Coune's manufacturing methods, although skillfully hand built, were not really a commercially viable proposition. The retail cost was £1,300 against £690 for the equivalent MGB. Ultimately therefore a total of only fifty six Berlinettes were produced, all of which were left hand drive models for the European Market.

Today, just about 12 MGB Berlinettes survived.

More here www.coachbuild.com/index.php?option=com_gallery2&Itemid=50&g2_itemId=25285

[luckygti]

Wow, what a lovely looking machine. Big love for the GT, had a rubber bumper myself, and really enjoyed having it (commuted to Germany and back quite a few times in it as well )

[dbizzle]

Jaw-droppingly beautiful, that.

[MrSpeedy]

I must admit to not being a huge MGB fan, but I really think BMC missed a trick there!!

[qwerty]

Yeah that really is what the MGB should have been!

[CIH]

personally I think the factory Coupe is tidier but shame so few have survived.0

[ChasR]

Quite a pretty looking thing eh?

Issigonis may have been a genius I admit but God didn't he get it wrong from time to time .

[skinnylew]

looks a bit fairlady/datsun esque at the front but very nice indeed.

[Paul H]

Surprised that so many are drooling over it.... Whilst a very interesting vehicle (and I do indeed like it), the styling has quite a few awkward features (which is surprising, as his Volvo Amazon cabrios were really nicely resolved). The top of the windscreen is much too high for the side windows, and the lines around the rear screen / boot interface don't flow well. The tail is also too high for those lights - TR4/5 units (as per AM DB6) would have worked far better. In many ways, it looks like it's trying to be a Ferrari 275GTB replica.....

[welder]

Erm, sorry, not keen on that.

[MK2VR6]

From memory, the guy was working on a limited budget and the screen was sourced from a renault 8. The idea for the taller screen was to raise the roofline so the car didn't look too squat and long. I agree it looks slightly clunky in some details, but for me the overall finished article has far more positives than negatives. I can't help but wonder if issigonis had given the all clear, his eye for detail could have tidied the edges further into a true beauty...

[robg2]

I guess that limited budget is the issue here. The rear window (BMC1100) doesn't look right either.
It's the curved front and rear glass that's been borrowed from other cars - those would have been expensive to tool. The side glass (which is obviously unique to the car and works much better) is flat - therefore much cheaper.

There's no doubt that Issigonis made the right choice here. Even though he was supposed to be no great fan of design (ie how pretty cars looked), he was obviously no fool as the stuff we recognise him for Mini, 1100, 1800 was all quite pleasing to the eye.
I also wonder whether a cash injection to make more appropriate windows and new front sidelights to close the gap up a bit would have produced a result good enough to favour over BMC's own MGB GT. The one we know and love was a pretty unbeatable shape I reckon, but Coune's Kamm tail and faired lights must have looked pretty cool back then.

Nice thread, and admirably retro!

[dbizzle]

Heh - I was looking at it on my little iPhone screen when I made my earlier comment. Having now seen it on my PC, that windscreen looks truly bizarre...

[akku]

Nice idea, comes apart a little in the execution, but damn, I'd love one over an MGBGT just for the quirk value!

[MK2VR6]

Dec 7, 2011 17:07:14 GMT akku said:

damn, I'd love one over an MGBGT just for the quirk value!

My sentiments exactly!