Bond MKG Tourer project

[richard]

My project Tourer continues in my head until Spring . This last and rarest of all Minicars came into the world fairly unsung as a last effort to produce sales, it came as far as I know without brochure or write up etc. - as far as I know . Do you know any better? I would love to see ANY period info or photo's of an original unrestored car . With particular regard to trim / interior etc. Thanks

[Grant Kearney]

Hi Richard,
There is/was a simple single page flyer for the G Tourer produced in 1964.  I have a copy some where and recall that it had a line drawing rather than a photograph.  The press photograph of the prototype (Milton's) taken before the motorcycle show where it was launched is in the Bond book.  I have a very original 1966 G Tourer and there is little difference in trim.  The door panels are plain, the quarter windows are non opening and no stainless side trims but all these items could be had as 'extras'.  Mine has the side trims from new and Dave Miller's Tourer has double side trims.

[richard]

thanks grant , and a piece of trim  off the dash ? or on was it ? the plain door panels ? plain millboard or plain vinyl covered board ? thanks . with you on ally side trim i will keep mine from the estate , and drill the rear wings to match the front end

[DaveMiller]

The door panels are board covered with grey vinyl, but don't have the impressed "border" of stitching that was present in the saloons and estates, to "fancy up" the panel.  Chrome handles are the same.

Dash trim:  well, mine is lacking the plastic strips running across - whether because it's a tourer, or because they got left out in restoration, I don't know!

Seats, as far as I can see from old photos, were exactly the same.

[richard]

Thanks dave I just love the period stuff and apart from the prototype in nicks book , didn't know it was miltons , and 1 photo on the production line from a distance I haven't come across anything .

[Garybond]

Always seems to be the way the rarest always become the most common as how many are actually left compared with the minivan and truck

[richard]

well i did say that the G Tourer was the rarest of Minicars , which i think it was but stand to be corrected . Both the Minivan and Minitruck were of very limited production i think - but they are not Minicars . Are they ? debatable i suppose

[richard]

Bond production 1965 ?

[Grant Kearney]

Had a look at my G Tourer and it does have the white trim on the dash and plain grey vinyl door panels.  Also over-riders which were optional extras as well.  The Twin engine was also an extra as well at the time of the Tourer.

[steven mandell]

Flabergasting to see the range of designs penned by the hand of Laurie  Bond.
From the stillborne style of the ungainly proportioned microcars bearing his name, in the picture below, to the lines inspired by genius most evident in the rear view of the Equipe  GT.  A car every bit as well proportioned and styled overall as any Aston Martin produced contemporaneously.

[DaveMiller]

The range of design in "Bond" cars is indeed wide, and some models are particularly pleasing.

To be fair to whoever else was involved, though, we should mention that Lawrie Bond himself was really only responsible for the overall design of the Mark A (and most of the B).  Sharp's Commercials took over his design, significantly improved it for strength, and then went on to produce the later models with their own designers.