Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) If not a Morgan??

Giles, put down the The point made is that the Z4 drives like a 'big' car but without the compensating benefits of 4 seats/large boot etc.

I get that - one of the reasons I admire the new MX5 is that Mazda have been brave enough to engineer more 'smallness' into the way it feels to drive.

An interesting if not somewhat varied read, one thing stands out and it seems to be you have gone for a well established traditional car builders again although unlike Morgan have failed to maintain their independent status.
Perfection comes at a price - enjoy your car to the full and have many lovely tours.

Mine has two seats , very hard suspension and an M3 straight six engine under the bonnet - great engine

The are many owners who value the opportunity to "fettle" the cars. Its the same mind set that has Harley owners customising their bikes and the bikes themselves are just as "faulty" in modern terms as are Morgans. How could the average guy ever personalise a Boxter? Its far too complex for that.

In reality one mans "faults" are another mans "character".

Its the same i the sailing world by the way.

On top of a Spanish mountain?

Discovering that MMC don't record part numbers and have no ability or desire to assist?

Feel free to fettle.

Furry dice.

I bet I could find somewhere to stick some neoprene.

I would say that any Morgan desires a significantly greater level of owner involvement than any modern car, and the level of involvement required may well be off-putting to many potential (or existing) owners.

That said, it's entirely possible to own a Morgan and use it for many thousands of miles of trouble-free travel every year. It just needs a bit of regular TLC

So why do owners spend significant sums of money on rear axle, suspension and engine enhancements if they desire imperfection? I can't see the logic in sneering at the qualities of a well engineered car and then trying to replicate it.

I assume your car is an unmodified, warts and all example of a Morgan?


Is this a dig at BMW powered Plus 8 and Aero owners?

The owners I'm talking about desire imperfection as a starting point, not an end goal. I'm not sneering at the qualities of a well-engineered car, just pointing out that Morgans are not always capable of meeting the modern criteria of robot-built products, and that factor is best appreciated before one commits to purchase, rather than learned after the fact.

I believe that many Morgan owners like to improve their cars. This is what the old-style enthusiasts (the 'Flat Cappers' as MMC used to call them) have always done, and indeed it was Peter Morgan's oft-quoted view that the cars were a basis for the owner to work on, rather than a finished product. If one wants to buy a car to improve, then it stands to reason that one wouldn't go out looking for a car which needs no improvement.

My own car is about as far from 'original' as it's possible to get. Different engine, different suspension, revised gearbox, different final drive, the list is pretty much endless. I treat it as a giant Meccano set, I absolutely love playing about with it and see no reason at all why a 30 year-old car should be maintained in original condition. And yes, I do have a flat cap






absolutely not. I seriously doubt that any Morgan owner bought a Morgan just because of the badge. It's more a dig at the wider car market.

It's objectively true that if one wants a functionally perfect car (in the sense that it does what it's supposed to do with the minimum of servicing and 100% reliability) then all one needs to do is to go and buy a Toyota or a Honda or a Hyundai. (Other similar makes are available).

It's also objectively true that many people perceive cars from this group as being somehow 'inferior' to BMWs, Audis, and the like (other posh cars are available). Furthermore, the market demonstrates that such people are prepared to pay a premium for them, despite the fact that the use they put them to would be perfectly well addressed by the aforesaid Honda or whatever, and they will never get anywhere near exploring the enhanced performance envelope that these cars offer.