I don't lay the car (+4 4 seater) up for the winter and continue to drive it whenever the chance arises. I haven't got a workshop or even a decent garage so anything I cannot do on the drive is done by others. Each year, over the winter, I have a bit of a servicing and updating purge to keep the car in order and this year's work has gone exceptionally well and without spending as much as I expected.
Like a number of members of Anglemog I use Graham King at Chelmsford for most of the work on the car. He does most things Morgan and has worked almost exclusively on the cars for many years, so I make a list of what I want done and get most things done at once. He collects the car, does the work and brings it back to me.
This year he came a couple of times extra to remove the dash for me to re-furbish and after that, to fit it back on the car. He then took the car for my list of jobs which included:
· Supply and fit a Panhard rod.
· Full annual service including supply of everything needed.
· Prepare car for MOT in March
· Clean and check underside after I had gone down 2 miles of track 'unsuitable for motors' on a CVCVC club run in January and scraped the bottom a lot.
· Refurbishment of underside paintwork and waxyoiling damaged as above.
· Partially repaint interior radio mounting box and heater box.
· Sort out erratic slow running.
· Touch up and restore numerous chips and marks on exterior paintwork.
· Fit new heater vent surrounds (supplied by me) - needed windscreen removal.
· Advise on lots of things that I am unsure of.
All of that, and other minor things, cost of all materials including the Panhard rod, three visits to our place (35 mile round trip each time) - total cost, all in, £895.
Now that ain't bad!
I also had a big bad patch of discolouration to find an answer to on the leather roll at the top of the dash, directly behind the steering wheel. I asked around to see what might have caused it and got explanations like the sun, wear, chemicals and various ideas. I even thought of having the whole part re-upholstered but wasn't sure that anybody would have the right shade of Connolly dark blue.
I Googled for 'car leather repairs Essex' and found, among the dross of firms wanting to mend my sofa, 'Kustom Interiors' near Wickford. The owner Jeff Wilks, a third-generation car trimmer himself, said he could fix it and 'bring it along tomorrow' - so I did. He recognised the leather as the same as in a Ferrari he had recently had in and said he had the right stuff (paint?) in the right colour and lustre. While I waited he had a fitter mask up the area and then did the job himself. He made it all look so easy and tackled a few more places, mainly the driver's seat and nearby, that were showing wear. Now it all looks like new and I am very pleased.
They are a brilliant small company that I would recommend to anyone. I was there with the car about an hour and a half, and at the end he charged me £50.
I think I have had really good value for money this year's maintenance and upgrades on the car. Howzat?
