Why an ARP4?
A life long admirer of the Morgan look, it's only in the past few months that I've ever sat in one - let alone driven one. Whilst entranced by the traditional leather clad + 4's with moto-lita steering wheels , map reading light and walnut dash, a few test drives made me realise that what I really wanted was power steering, a slightly more powerful engine, and a car that goes where it's pointed and stops when you want it to. In short I've been looking for the traditional styling with some modern refinements ...and heated seats goddam it! With this objective in mind I had two options:
1) go for the AR with engine, suspension and brakes ready sorted and then tickle the interior, or
2) opt for the standard + 4 with its sumptuous interior and then upgrade suspension and brakes etc.
Always a compromise, I went for the first - swayed by the various other 'improvements' or variations from the standard eg soundproofing, lights, sound system etc per the sales blurb. The AR also offers a tad more room in the cockpit so as to provide a little more distance from the steering wheel. (Forgotten quite why this should be so but nevertheless something I liked the sound of.) I now understand that one can gain even more room if the quick release steering wheel is replaced with a fixed one - we'll see how it goes. For me, with no previous Morgan experience at all, I have to say that the re-located handbrake was a deal clincher. I know I know...easy there boys.... pop a chill pill.
Finding a car
I came late to finding an available AR, even losing out on a cancelled build slot in my search - such was the apparent demand that an instant 'yes please' was still not quick enough to secure it. MMC though were very helpful and after initially saying that all had been sold they then checked their allocation lists to see whether any that had been allotted to dealers were still without a punter's name against them. There were 4. With two of these at Krazy Horse that's how I ended up there. At this juncture I would take the opportunity to echo the sentiments of 'PaulJ' who has previously sung the praises of a very personable and professional Stuart Eckersley at Krazy Horse. Stuart made the whole process the pleasure that it should of course be. This included ensuring that the car was returned to MMC with the direction that they have another pop at the bonnet scoop which featured a dent that looked like the car had been hit by a cricket ball. Astonishing that it had passed MMC quality control.
Spec'ing the car
Prosecco and cuba are spot on for me. Loved the combo as soon as I saw the photo's of the demo' car at Silverstone. Stunning combination though I seem unable to take a photo' that does it justice. I opted to copy the Silverstone car in toto and so have oatmeal carpets . As noted on a previous post I'm not impressed by the plastic indicator stalks and these have been changed to chrome. The plastic handle of the handbrake will have to go too. (Really think MMC should have sorted this out from the start. Lets the side down and encourages one to scrutinise the car even further to see if it really is of a quality that the price tag would seem to suggest it is.) The promotional photo's of the car feature a lovely wooden gear knob though I've yet to see any other AR with it fitted. Shame. My black one will be changed to chrome in due course. I also have the quick release steering wheel , LED lights and power steering. Think I'll pop a ribbon on it somewhere too. I do not have the paint protection film but 500 miles in I'm starting to wonder whether I should.
Not being a fan of the pared-back sporty interior, I asked MMC if they'd consider popping some contrasting piping on the seats; fitting heated seats (see previous whinges); changing the headrest logo from 'AR' to 'Morgan'; and replacing the carpet on the gearbox tunnel and sills with leather. They declined on all counts on the basis that AR's come with a very limited options list. I could have respected that stance were it not for the fact that it's now quite clear that some fortunate AR owners have indeed been able to go off piste and spec the cars to their own wishes - choosing paint, leather, wheels etc that are clearly not on the options list as provided by MMC. Tut tut to MMC. Decide on your policy boys and stick to it - to do otherwise is to risk disgruntled punters. If you're gonna vary it for one then vary it for all and certainly don't let your sales staff spout ridiculous stories in doomed attempts to try and justify it to those whose requests you have denied.
I was fortunate to visit Krazy Horse when they'd just taken delivery of two other AR's - from my detective work on these pages I think these would be Eddie's and PaulJ's. One of these was fitted with a spare wheel and quite liking the look, I ordered both wheel and rack for myself. In fact you have to order a wheel if you want a rack as it transpires that MMC do not make a rack that fits the car without the wheel being on it first. Seems one can't order a wheel cover for the AR as the depth of the wheel, as well as the mechanism for fitting the wheel to the boot, means that any cover would be pinched into the dish of the wheel. This means that any wheel cover would need a solid plate built into it as well as some spacers between the wheel and the cover itself. MMC say they won't be making one. Not possible apparently. (Something about our ability to get a man on the moon etc springs to mind...)
Personalisation of the car
An AR's interior is functional and distinctive with a fabulous dashboard sporting Spitfire-esque toggle switches, but lacks the sumptuous cosseted look and feel of the traditional full leather wrap. At the risk of being labelled a heretic I've now replaced the carpeting of sills and transmission tunnel with leather (easy boys.....) and the seats are now piped in ivory - thereby providing an uplifting contrast with the cuba (superb job by Dave at Williams). Shame MMC wouldn't do this for me. I had been pondering also on whether to replace the aluminium door panels with the traditional leather and pockets (steady....deep breath) but have held off. The seats are now heated. May as well get it exactly as I want. Been waiting 20+ years for this.
In addressing the distinct shortage of storage space I've had 4 pockets added to the transmission tunnel . There's an awful lot of space between the dashboard and the gearbox tunnel - I can see a glove box of some kind being added here at some stage. Let me go blow the dust off my toolbox... And yes....I know I know.. it's supposed to be a sporty car and sporty cars don't have these finer details and comforts but it's what this Morgan owner wants . (Anyone for a defibrillator?).
Performance
For those looking for some insight into the Cosworth engine you're going to be disappointed on this post. I know it has an engine - Stuart showed me - but that's probably the last time I'll see the bonnet up. No idea what that's all about. This said I might go for the Wolf bonnet stays though - nice 'n shiny.
I note that PaulJ (amongst other more knowledgeable AR owners ) has provided performance assessments that are far more technical and informative than anything I could provide so'll I'll save my blushes and leave it to those guys to fill in the gaps. All I can say is that the car seems to have plenty of poke even though I've yet to scream it beyond 5000 rpm.
Have to say that I love the roar and burble of the engine but I do now appreciate what other AR owners are saying re the liveability of such a roar on longer trips. I won't be changing it though. Then there's the sound system to consider. From what I can see, one plug's the phone or MP3 into the system via the socket inside the glove box - which you then close. You can't then adjust the volume or change tracks unless you open the glove box and reach in - could be tricky when driving. The music will have to be turned up pretty loud to counter the engine noise and I have a picture in my mind of the din coming from the car with me trying to converse with my passenger over the noise of the radio over the noise of the engine!
The Drive
There are two things I like topless in life and one of them's my car. Absolutely love the look and feel. Same with the car.
With no previous Morgan experience I've no basis on which to make a comparison or asses the quality of the ride and handling and so accept this as it comes. So far so good. I have no expectations whatsoever and the drive is really as I'd guessed it would be. Very enjoyable and quite manageable but a bit bumpy. Great fun actually. I know the suplex system is supposed to improve the front end but as yet I've no idea how that would be. Guess I'll have to test a suplex car.
I couldn't tell you if the drive's too hard or too soft; if it corners better or worse than any other Morgan; if it's too loud; or if the build quality is more or less than I should expect from a couple of chaps working in a very old shed with a bag of spanners. I love it for what it is - a dream come true....... absolutely love it.
Right ...now going to try & work out how to post some photo's - could be a while!
