Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Classic Morgans (pre-CX) Morgan Chassis information source

Hi all,
When we bought our Morgan a 1986 4/4 the dealer (since retired) told us it was 1 of 14 build of that configuration. We were thinking of getting a custom plate with "1 of 14" with the plate number. But wanted to make sure that it was really true. We ordered the chassis record form morgan but it didn't really have much information. Is there a way to see if it was really 1 of 14?

Thank you all for your help.

They produced a good few 4/4s in 1986, certainly more than 14. Can you give us a run-down of the spec? It might help identify how special it is. What's the chassis number? My 1986 4/4 is C7114.

Try the factory. If you give the chassis number they might have build details on file.
What engine is in the car?
Post a photo too! There might be visual clues.

Most likely your 1986 4/4 is a Fiat engined car. Of those not so many were built. If you want info, please contact me off line. Publishing chassis numbers on more or less public fora remains dangerous.

Why's that Hermen?

It can be used maliciously by third parties for creating "duplicate" cars. This has happened a number of times and certainly other unknown cases also exist.

I've heard of this happening with ultra-high value stuff, but it's an awful lot of trouble to go to for a 1986 4/4, I would think. Fortunately these days its much easier to ensure the history and provenance of a car is copiously and publicly documented, but in the old days when there could easily be gaps and contradictions in a car's history it was much more of an issue. There's an interesting article here .

If anyone tried to clone C7114 and offer it at auction, people would be saying "Blimey, that's Tim's car isn't it? Surely you don't expect anyone to pay good money for that shite old nail?"

Much more of a risk these days is having the licence plates of one's tintop cloned, and there's not really anything one can do about that.

I'm happy to be corrected but wouldn't the VIN number have to be unique in the UK to obtain a registration document for the vehicle?

To build a car from the remains of a crashed car and use the identity of another one can be much cheaper than purchasing any Morgan. If you would be in -say- the USA, where they have a different system of registering cars and don't cross check identities with Europe, it would be worth the trouble.
Less "famous" cars are also less likely to be checked.

I have a letter from the factory to the previous owner of my car stating it is build number 1 of the 31 75th Anniversary 4/4's produced.

Perhaps they could do the same for you?