Cutting a MGB GT into a Logo | MARS Archive Ep. 001

The MARS Logo – From Rust Bucket to Wall Art

Jon, the founder of MARS, tells the story behind our logo—how a crusty old MGB GT went from a failed project to a permanent piece of MARS history.

The logo was designed not long after the group’s name was made official—a planetary shape as a nod to Mars, with the unmistakable side profile of an MGB GT as its mascot. That car? An unfinished project passed between two MARS members before eventually earning the nickname Burn Barrel (for reasons we won’t get into here). The original logo outline? Traced from a side-profile photo of this very car.

This 1972 MGB GT was, to put it lightly, toast. Rusted from the inside out with sketchy past repairs, there was just no saving it—not even as a track rat. So instead of sending the whole thing to the scrapyard, we stripped every usable part to keep other MGs on the road.

But we weren’t done yet. With a Sawzall, some cold fingers, and a metal hot glue gun (aka a welder), we gave Burn Barrel one last job: becoming a full-scale replica of the MARS logo. Now, it hangs as the ultimate MG owner’s wall art—a proper tribute to the car that started it all.

🔧 Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
00:27 - Naming the Group
01:14 - Michael's MGB GT
02:23 - The Storage Unit
03:39 - Getting it Running (Again)
04:52 - Strip down & Giveaway
05:25 - Return of the GT
05:44 - Wall Art Idea
06:10 - First Cut
07:33 - Trophy
07:45 - Building a Studio
08:00 - What is the "MARS Archive"
09:00 - Reason for Spanners
09:30 - Stories we look forward to
10:12 - Outro

🚗 Love stories like this? Subscribe for more episodes featuring real car enthusiasts, their projects, and the passion that drives them. Watch now! 🎥👉    • Spanners: Season 1  

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