Built to last: RACQ member’s relentless ingenuity

Cor Marcus is a mechanical marvel.

He lives to make things and is always up for a challenge.

Being almost 92 is quite incidental to the machines he is actively creating. His inventive mind is much too spritely to waste time sitting about.

The Redland innovator, designer, motor mechanic, former car and motorbike racing champion, nonagenarian driver, and RACQ member made his first motorbike when he was 12 years old.

Give him moving parts to tinker with and he’s right in his element.

“Everything starts with an idea – design it, build it, modify it if it’s not quite right,” he said, as if this is the most natural thing in the world.

From Meccano sets to a homemade motorbike

This interest in all things automotive started when he was a young child playing with his Meccano construction toy set, the perfect choice for inquisitive minds: “They taught me to make things.”

He “learned the hard way” by trial and error and worked diligently to gather the parts for that motorbike.

“I knew a man who had an engine and he told me I could have it if I harvested his potato crop,” Cor said.

“The frame was made from old pushbikes collected from the dump, and another man did the welding I needed in exchange for me sanding down his canoe.”

A family influence on mechanical mastery

His mother taught him to tune an engine.

“My father was a truck driver – he was handy and could get things to go, but he wasn’t a mechanic. It was my mother who had an ear for fine-tuning.”

Cor (short for Cornelis) came to Australia from Holland in 1953 as a young man, fresh from an apprenticeship in mechanics, welding and manufacturing. Before long, he was running his own workshop; the creativity, ingenuity and skill he applied to everything earned him the nickname ‘Mr Good Job’.

He taught his late wife Janet, his sons and a granddaughter to weld, and is happy to share his ideas. Janet, a teacher, helped build his racers and was extremely proud of his accomplishments.

Innovation on the track: Cars built to win

Always willing to try different materials, one of the first sportscars he built was a Macros racer with a laminated plywood chassis – strong, lightweight and fast.

Then there was the back-to-front racer he made from a 1948 Ford Custom V8, reversing the chassis to enhance handling at speed.

“I looked at all the problems other drivers were having with their cars before I built it,” he said.

“If a car is too long, it doesn’t handle very well. That car handled so well – the steering was very light and responsive, and the engine was right next to me.”

For the first race of the season, he asked to start last “because I didn’t know this car very well – and guess what, I won”.

Cor Marcus in his workshop.

Racing glory and the rise of ‘The Flying Dutchman’

After the fifth win from last position, the manager of the Imperial Speedway did something that had never been done in Australia before. He suggested Cor be handicapped by a lap.

“I said, ‘No, I can’t win,’ but he insisted he’d spoken to my wife and she thought I was competitive,” Cor said.

“Then he offered to pay me £100 and get all the media involved in the race. That was a lot of money – at the time, a tradesman’s wages were £18 a week, and the prize money for winning a race was £30.

“I still said, ‘Forget it, it’s too far, Frank,’ but then the fuel companies got behind us, offering oil and racing fuel in return for advertising on the car.”

So Cor took on the challenge, against all odds.

He waited out the first lap, then set off in hot pursuit, only to encounter a broken-down car stranded sideways across the track, certain to cause a pile-up. He stopped, gave it a push to safety, and started off again.

“Even with the handicap, and giving him a push, I won,” Cor said.

“Better still, they gave me the title ‘Best and Fairest’ of the 100 competitors on the circuit for preventing a hell of a smash.”

‘The Flying Dutchman’, as he’d become known, raced that stockcar many times, culminating in a win at the Golden Fleece Trophy for the 1963 Marathon 100 during the Brisbane Exhibition.

“That is the greatest race of all – 100 laps, driving for Queensland against all the best racers from Australia and New Zealand,” he recalled proudly.

An Australian champion in motorbike, sidecar and stockcar racing, and a twice Queensland champion, Cor and his self-made vehicles were such a distinctive presence at races throughout the country in the 1950s and 60s that it’s little wonder he is still remembered with great admiration by motorsport aficionados.

A shed full of creations: From trikes to electric vehicles

Four of his creations are housed at the Panorama Motorcycle and Memorabilia Museum near Boonah.

He also spent two years restoring a 1930s dentist’s chair for the Redlands Coast Museum. A few years ago, he designed a special pedal-powered trishaw to give less nimble seniors outdoor adventures along the bayside.

Cor has an impressive collection of vehicles and machines at home, constructed, adapted or maintained in his fully equipped workshop.

There is his pride and joy: a 12-year-old Can‑Am super trike that looks brand new, with spider paintwork that turns heads whenever he takes it out for a spin.

This three-wheeler is such a substantial vehicle that it requires a car licence to drive.

‘Marcus by Marcus’ is an electric bike he built from scratch as a handy ride. He converted another electric trike into a two-wheeler and has various mobility scooters waiting to be repurposed.

Not one to rest on his laurels, he is repurposing an old 4WD SUV bought for $1,000 into an electric vehicle by fitting an extra wheel at the back, on a swivel, to support the generator and batteries. It will, he is confident, pretty much steer itself.

Still Inventing at 92: A mind that never slows down

Having designed a nifty hybrid generator powered by a solar panel in the wake of last year’s storm blackout, he is now onto a new, improved model.

This version will still be compact enough to wheel into the house to run the fridge all day, as well as the toaster, kettle and microwave, but will have three solar panels, hinged to fold down when not in use, for greater output.

“When the power is low, you can start it by hand or electric start and have supply in two minutes,” he said.

“The only real expense is replacing the battery every two to three years. Nothing special – a heavy truck battery is a good fit.”

Cor is generous with his designs and ideas but has no interest in being a hired hand.

“People often ask if I will make something for them. I say to them, ‘No, I make nothing for you, but you are welcome to copy.’”

Story by Anna Cahill