Originally Posted by Image
Originally Posted by JohnHarris
Originally Posted by Image
In its time the Trad has been a very cheap sportscar ... here's a list of new car prices in the mid '70s (left hand figure, with approx modern adjusted value in the right column) .... at £2300 the 4/4 slots in where the yellow dots are ... seeing the company it keeps at that price point as a proper handmade sports car it looks pretty good value to me 🙂


[Linked Image]

K


But prices started to really move upwards by mid 80's the basic list price for a 4/4 started at £10k and the specification of my 1985 4/4 Sunday Time competition car which was highly spec'd was about £14k new.


Indeed John ... I chose the mid '70s as that's when my car was built ... it's got basic vinyl trim that does everything you need and with the simple and sturdy crossow even now has no need to fear modern traffic (ok, some dozy modern drivers loosely involved in the progress of massive SUVs can be scary 🙂) ... and for the price of a boring family saloon. There seems to have been a time when Morgans switched from being a 'working bloke's sports car' to a bespoke prestige vehicle with hand-stitched leather et al and a price to match ... with the rise of the hot-hatch it may be that the change of buyer demographic was the way to go (they are still here which is almost unique amongst their contemporaries) ... as above, for me personally it's the engagement and wonderful imperfection that makes every run out a little event ... a rapidly vanishing thing in a world where user input is being minimised in as many areas as possible.

K



K, I suspect there will be quite a few of a certain generation who were ticking off on your preferences as they read them..(-:

I suspect I have typed too often about being initially attracted to Morgan relative to the driver involvement required to keep it out of the hedgerows while providing a pseudo vintage driving experience.. I was at the time of acquisition mildly disappointed that my +8 had Strombergs as opposed to SU`s, that it had an electrically operated choke and electronic ignition as opposed to a good old set of points..... I was twenty years younger and still happy to roll around the garage floor spanners in hand back then and chuckled at the idea of those desirous of power steering, air con and the likes, thinking such kit to be about as useful as an ashtray on a m/cycle.... BUT

I`m 20 years older now and might just forget to put a choke in as soon as the engine is warm, having resolved many a points related ign fault, struggled to start on cold damp mornings, and these days can take all the warmth my old Mog`s heater can generate even on a warm day....Sigh.. I also find an auto box attracts somewhat less destain from me these days than the thought of one such in a "sports car" might have done some time back...! It seems the passage of time alters much.

Yup, I`m up for saving the planet in general, though wonder if some old Morgans might be a bit like cockroaches and still be able to enjoy motoring around when EV`s might be proven to be less than environmentally efficient after all...?

More than happy to be able to enjoy crunching a few gears on my old Morgan when it ever roars into life first time every time without fuss or bother, all be it in a relatively basic fashion, and on the fashion front, it has style that warms my heart greatly a style and presence that seems to create interest and generate smiles for others too.. What`s more to want..? (-: