Goodwood Road & Racing review Plus 6

Very fair review

Having just driven the new plus six over the last two days I would say firstly you need to keep it in paddleshift mode and it desperately needs a sports exhaust and side pipes to be characterful enough for £80k . I drove soon after this a 3.7 roadster with sports exhaust and side pipes and manual gearbox and would much prefer the 3.7 . The suspension on the 3.7 can be made much better with 5LL suspension and suplex front springs . But Morgan have to make 'more modern ' cars due to regulations unfortunately !

Thanks for sharing, Steve. How did you experience the performance and agility of the Plus Six? Acceleration and weight balance in corners?

A great review. Steve didn't the 3.7 l have the MMC five link fitted? I found it rather flat but very well planted after my Roadster's lively leaf springs.

Heinz , the performance is as others have noted very considerable in all 8 yes 8 gears ! And the suspension , cornering, agility is such that you can lean it into corners without worry. I still prefer more character in a morgan though !

You may well be correct , I will ask when I get back to kh later next week when the new brake cables from the factory come for my morgan. I really like the 3.7 without the white rounders on and with some duplex springs on the front. The manual gearbox and the exhausts are wonderful , and love the dark green colour .

If you ask me nicely I will swap my Roadster for the Green Goddess! You know it makes sense.

A 3.7 roadster with sports exhaust is the way to go for anyone with a 3 litre roadster ! Paddleshifts are boring compared to a nice manual gearbox which the 3.7 has , and it has character in spades and is cheap compared to a mk2 plus 8 . Mind you there are 2011-2015 plus 8's on pistonheads for £74k which is pretty decent too !

Yes that one has been on there a while. I find the 3.7 a bit too powerful & the footwell to cramped for my size 11 feet.

The N plus 8 is a tad more powerful than the 3.7 but it makes a nice noise and wears out the back tyres quite quickly - I need to get some new Yoko advans or whatever the stickiest ones are !

The Mich Pilot Sport Cup 2 are brilliant (from what I can remember in this odd world right now) but I am not certain they will be worth the extra over the Advans

It depends on the needs but on my Elise with 840 Kg and 240 HP the Advans are the best tyres I know. They are as good in dry conditions as the A048. They are much quieter and also much better to drive in the wet. Maybe the Michelin are even better with slightly heavier cars, I don't know.

As per Alistairs recommendation but I have the Pilot Super Sports, transformed my car from the original Continental tyres it had from the factory.

Getting back to the Plus Six I haven't test drove one yet. I was due to drive one the week before lockdown. I think the exhaust should be easily enough modified, flappy paddles too with a little work and I can live with the gear lever (just) But again someone out there should be able to make a better looking gear knob for it in time. I have sat in them and found the seats ok not as good as the Plus 8 for support but the Plus Six seats do look better IMHO and I'm sure its more a matter of getting used to the position etc.

I thought the last Roadsters had the 5 link suspension fitted as standard? I could not get on with footwell space either.

They did. But there are plenty of early 3.7s on leaf springs.

I think I will arrange a test drive when this is over.

Although I’m just not sure that I could get over missing the V8 having a chat with the world via the sidepipes- no matter what the dynamic driving advantages might be? When you are tootling along, and decide not to, the V8 sound agreeing “ not to”- just makes me smile!!

And smiles will be very high on my “ To Do” list when this current blight recedes.

Sports exhaust is apparently £1500 option , paddleshift is already on as is fully auto which is an alternative selection on the gear lever .
Yes looking underneath there is no sign of leafsprings on the 3.7 I am temporarily driving so it does have 5LL rear suspension , not sure whats up front but it needs suplex springs to stop bouncing up and down over any road surface which gets annoying but is characterful in a Mog. (not used to this if one has N plus 8 )

Decent adjustable front shocks will calm the Roadster's bouncing front end Steve, but the ultimate is SSL dual rate rear coilovers and their RS kit at the front. This adds a much needed degree of comfort on bumpy roads as well as improved handling.

I don't know total 3.7 production numbers, but the factory 5 link was added so late that there's perhaps less than 50 out there

That lovely silver one on the left is Nr001

I heard the car going up the hill at Goodwood which they said was fitted with the factory sports exhaust, being honest I could hardly hear it. Maybe different driving, so I'll wait and see (hear). I know Morgan Park DE are developing something abit more raucous. The flappy paddles should be able to be changed to something nicer, basically a lever and switch mechanism, which I know can be retro fitted. I have them in my Alfa they are really nice design (huge) and of metal construction (I presume aluminium) however in the winter they are very cold, compensated with a heated steering wheel it is all very nice but in an open top car, even in nice ish weather could metal paddles become too cold? Anyway the majority of the niggle items can be sorted in time or like the Plus 8's ones you just get used to them and enjoy it for what it is.

I think I'd be more worried about them becoming too hot on a sunny day!

Good point Graham

Could that actually mean that MMC designed them in the correct material to save our fingers from burns and frost bite. That is very forward thinking

I wonder how stable that hood is 160mph - I imagine Graham's hat would be more secure

Academic point of course because we would all have the top down.

I do not understand why the Auto Aero gear lever cannot be fitted. It matches the handbrake, has all the required functions of the Plus 6.
I hope one of the after market specialists will look at this possibility.
Morgan Park, where are you?

Peter

Electronic incompatibility? Or simply comes with the gearbox, as in a cost implication. I'm sure someone will find out why at somepoint.

I was always told it was too expensive to re engineer. I think it look hideous as does the cheap metal dash & the wheel with that indent in the centre crying out for Morgan wings.

Thats just what the wife said , a bit cheap and nasty for £80 plus K ?

Prefer the lovely motolita steering wheel and lovely dash of the 3.7 !

Angela has good taste then in my opinion.

John , if you get any info regarding the unveiling of the KH plus four and invites to drive it could you let me know ?

Not sure you'll like the Plus Four, same tacky dash and steering wheel

Plus Six wood dash looks good though....



Plus Six at Williams

Thats more like it , very different from the basic KH dash which shouldn't be basic as its an £80k car /Mog !

Agreed Steve and it needs a proper glove box.

I don't think it's fair to call it tacky, It is just a little out of place compared to the style of the rest of the car.

I think it looks really good, in some ways better than my Plus 8, not overly sure about the digital display in the centre but will come in very useful, as I presume speedo reading is/can be shown there. Then add all the different combinations of wood or painted it makes for a good looking dash. Steering wheel is subjective, I like it but it's the same as my Plus 8 one. Personally I prefer a painted dash than a wood one, always look a little B&Q in my eye. But I agree l, hardly nasty and cheap but we all like different things.

Yes it can.


Morgan Plus Six Display by Jonathan Jenkins, on Flickr

It's needed too, the difference between 30mph & a speeding ticket is almost impossible to judge on the speedo sweep

Glove box , it looks like a birds nest ! Its a joke. Why can't they put a lockable lid on it or better still put an air bag in for the poor passenger ?

I made my own passenger air bag Steve...haven't lost any body yet !!!!

Kev , your Mog looks a real classic , love the steering wheel and the wood dash ! I have to drive the 3.7 roadster back to KH any day now to get my Mog back and its a real joy to drive with motolita steering wheel and a nice tight manual gearbox and side pipes crackling away !

Steve, I sense the parting will be difficult.

Have to agree, quite tempted by the look of a Blumels wheel

Forgot to mention on the new plus six that for some bizzare reason there is no lockable fuel cap and the fuel cap is not anything like the normal one we are used to . The only thing that stops it dropping out when you open it is a piece of thick wire ! I can't imagine why they've gone away from the excellent race type lockable one we all love !

Hadn't noticed that - well spotted!

Another item to add to the shopping list then....

They have, and it is on the N/S, not the off side.
MMC used the new style in the past.

I'm sure the ones at Prescott launch had lockable, the key was inserted under a lift up tab

similar to this...
https://www.carbuilder.com/uk/94mm-locking-aero-fuel-cap-assembly-satin-aluminium

at least one of the last Roadsters had this version too

This is what was fitted to the +6 I test drove at KH last year. As Jon says it looks very similar as the CBS item

Still looks the same as KH current matt car too.

Looking on the bright side at least it doesn't appear to have to be endlessly polished ... More time for the exhausts

Long term, that finish will become a nightmare to keep right, unless you're Drew Pritchard, when imperfections are king.

Black wheels are the same...…...they never look clean for long, just like black shiny cars.

I may not appear to be lazy, but I prefer easy wipe finishes. So gloss paint every time, and stainless wires every time, although the new CX alloys do look good.

I did toy with the idea of having a Matt bodied car with gloss wings and a shiny bonnet. Trying to replicate a leather body clad car. Then thought about how much time it would take to clean the car let alone having to use different shampoos and worrying about splashing the paintwork with the incorrect shampoos. I agree Dave easy clean, shiny paint. But I do like black wheels.

When searching for the perfect trad Morgan stainless wire wheels were a definite.
If I bought a new plus four it would definitely have alloys, o, and it would be automatic, because it's not a trad, is it?

Tarka the Plus 8 has alloy wheels and is automatic.
It looks like a Trad, which I love.
It isn't a Trad, which I love.
It is a Morgan, which I love.

I think the way to achieve the fabric body look would be to buy the car with the required gloss finish, then have the body wrapped with a leathercloth look matt vinyl wrap.
It could look wonderful, and would be cheap to do and easy to look after.
While you are at it you could have the bonnet wrapped in a polished aluminium look as well.
Dark blue would work really well....
Hmm.

Exactly, it's why I would choose a different options list for my (fantasy) CX car, I also wouldn't have considered a car the colour of Tarka until I seen it, now I would, it's stunning.

Might not look as good on a plus four though.

They seem to have made a few bronze new plus fours which look interesting !

All Morgans are 'traditional' - i.e. part of a long established tradition. I was very glad to move from my Roadster to the 8 - all the good points amplified and all the bad ones eradicated.

Wires wouldn't work beyond a certain engine torque... you'd have a driveway full of coat hangers.

It doesn't look like the fuel filler is lockable, according to the Owner's Manual:



Plus Six Fuel Filler by Jonathan Jenkins, on Flickr



NB - Manuals are here:

https://www.morgan-motor.com/handbooks/

I was just going to say - have you bought one Jon?

Not yet....

Love the use of the word “yet”

Thanks for that diagram , just as the plus six I drove at KH , no lock just a flip up twist pull out with wire attached so you don't lose /or drop it !

Not sure I'd like to dangle a fuel cap onto my shiny paintwork, always remove the wire, I suppose. Just have to carry an old rag to stuff in the hole for when I drive away and leave it sitting on top of the pump

CBS do a lockable version. I wonder if that would fit.

The cap when out just sits on the Ali surround so not on paintwork.