Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Did I make the right decision??

Has anyone ever had a car that didn't honestly have some niggles ? They all play up at some stage if you keep them for 3-10 years . Look at whats on rescue trucks and its often Golfs , Mercs , Audis etc , have seen Mercs broken down on the rounderbout at Donnington airport !

When we were in Bamburgh a couple of weeks back, it was with a certain degree of schadenfreude that we watched a newish S-class Mercedes being winched onto the back of a recovery truck.

I often bang on about how perfect my Honda CRV has been over the last 3 years and 34,000 miles, it has been completely faultless and I was struggling to find something to moan about.

Then we bought a Fiat 500 TwinAir, which has also been completely faultless, and it exposed a hitherto unrecognised issue with the Honda. The Fiat AirCon works in half-degree increments, whereas on the Honda it only works in whole degrees. Shocking. I must write a strongly-worded complaint to the guys in Swindon forthwith. Fancy being outdone by a Fiat!

My Q5 does the job, so does my wife's Passat and also a 15 year old Golf runs without problems between service intervalls. There is a Landrover in the garage and und even that car is reliable. Problems per mile with a M3W ... never ever had anything similar owned before (and I did own a Triumph Spitfire in the 70's) The 4/4 is much better than the M3W but far away from perfection. Even the Spitfire had a better hood!

One has to love Morgan cars but to compare them with others in terms of quality or reliability is megalomaniac.

Hmm. I know that forums tend to emphasise the problems, but the Jaguar forums are giving an impression that the build quality of the car is nearer Morgan than Honda. Mostly down to unnecessary complications like disappearing screen vents. How have you found yours?

Yes. I once had a company Rover that was totally and absolutely fault free and both recent family cars ( one Volvo, one Merc) have only had one minor fault each like the Lotus. My wife's Smart Roadster has been totally fault free for the 9 years she has had it. In all fairness, modern mass produced cars are pretty damn good these days. Poor old Morgans problems come from low volume and unmechanised assembly using unreliable human beings.

I never understand why people say something is hand made as if that is a plus point.

Ian,

another "ex biker" here.
Also an ex SLK 300 owner.
Presently an E350 AMG Coupe owner.
And an aluminium chassis Plus 8 owner.

All you say about Morgan is true, to a degree. But comparing a SLK with a Plus 4 is not a realistic comparison. Mercedes spend more on coffee than Morgan does on R&D. Morgan is an artisan producer of eccentric cars. Mercedes is a global monster without any soul, but they make some good, reliable cars.

If I found that the wing on my Merc was lose because a nut had fallen off I'd be livid. On the Plus 8 I smiled, sorted it.

Mercedes recently recalled the E350 for a total respray. First fault in 5 years, if paint failing is a "fault".

Yes, rub down to bare metal and re-prime, undercoat,colour coat and clear coat. Why? 5 years on there is a reaction between the primer and undercoat that is causing the clear coat to lift. £5k. No argument, Mercedes guarantee their cars for 25 years.

You cannot compare a Morgan and a Mercedes. I wouldn't part with either, but the Merck doesn't make me happy in the way the Plus 8 does and it doesn't make others smile when they see it. But it carys 4 plus luggage in enormous comfort and with more torque than the Plus 8...yes, really, it is interesting. Not yet 40,000 miles and will shortly be on the 5th set of rear rubber...

Oh yes, the SLK 300. Harsh ride, 3L V6 yet gutless, heavy, useless boot with the hood down. Brilliant "Air Scarf"..want one on the Plus 8...

OK, Morgan make toys. Mercedes doesn't.

I've been back with Morgans for two+ years now, after three Caterhams over ten years or so. The Roadster 3.7 broke a hood stud, and the battery on the Aero went flat once in Ireland when I left the satnav plugged in overnight.
Otherwise both were/have been totally reliable (although saying that has no doubt cursed my next few years).
I may have been lucky, and if I'd had poor reliability I'm sure my view would be different, but I expected more problems and was prepared for them. The Caterhams were much more prone to problems, but were fairly easy to work on. I now feel very reliant on my dealer, who has been great so far.
As for smiles per mile -
Ex-biker was a great custodian of the car before me! i

I have had a couple of things on the car that haven't been behaving as they should, but they got sorted without any fuss by the dealer during it's service.
So far I would say that the car has been very reliable, but I completely understand the concern about the fact that there is so much stuff on the car that could go wrong. They are pretty complicated vehicles, but aren't all luxury cars these days?

Morgans, built by Roberts not by robots and in a shed in Malvern!
Little niggles yes but they've never left me stranded 🙏
Love 'em! And factory support has been far better than tintop main dealers.

Sums it up in 6 words.