Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Would you Part-Ex your Trad for a CX?

Thanks everyone for your thoughts.. very useful for an occasional TML (Talk Morgan Lurker) .. and perfect timing as I went to the factory yesterday with Neville from Berrybrook and we had a lovely wander about: no Plus Four’s to drive but plenty to sit in…

Stewart’s description & photos in the “Visit to see the new Plus Four today” thread are great, and I also resonate with Heinz’s description of the “macho” look of the Plus 6 compared to the softer lines of the Plus Four. Whilst the extra width makes the Plus 6 an impossible car for the Devon lanes, the more important design difference for me is the “height” of the front bonnet in relation to the wings: in the Plus 6 it’s almost a straight line!

So for £40K extra, I can trade my 2005 S1 Roadster for a Plus 4…

Of all the pros and cons voiced here, the real question is can £40K “extra” (which will depreciate for at least 5 years) give me something I don’t have with my Roadster.. and the answer to that is whether I really would use it as my driving car, which I don’t with my Roadster.. because.. well..

I don’t want to mess it up.
My bumpy Devon drive/lane is super rough and muddy.
It doesn’t depreciate.. (if I don’t mess it up!).
There is part of me that wonders if I will make it out of any particular corner… and I am confused about whether I like that…

I don’t like the dashboard of the modern cars, so I would really miss my white dials..

So.. if I “upgrade” will I then use it as a regular car? Er No.. I think not.. because it is “too valuable”..

So.. ergo.. much to Neville’s disappointment, I will, most likely, stick with my Roadster. I said I would let him know on Monday.. so who knows?

PS: What is really great about the idea of buying the new car is the thought of supporting all those amazing craftsmen and women who design & make these cars. I hope Morgan manage to retain the whole experience that we have there when we visit.. it’s really delightful!

This has been an interesting exchange to read, and it seems possible that there may be a few influences at play when it comes down to determining our present day and evolving priorities, which still finds us owning or interested in Morgans...?

In times past I can remember a degree of acceptance to a "new breed" of Morgan buyer who unlike many who went before showed little or no interest in the very hands-on aspect of Morganeering, which given the accepted norms of Morgan..err..foibles seemed to cause a rise in complaints that I read of in the early days of Morgan related forums on the internet, circa the 90`s..?

It seems died in the wool Morganeers were ever of the dirty fingernail variety, some out of necessity required to equip themselves with a degree of ability and a set of tools to match, in order to be able to afford to buy and run a Morgan, while others who had no such financial restrictions may have been in search of a pastime, may also have sought the ability to maintain their new, or even rebuild their own old recently purchased Morgan, and equipped themselves with many of the skills necessary to do so..?

Around the same time It seemed that there were perhaps those who who were being de-layered and downsized into early retirement and who may have been used to the company BM, Merc or Jag, and had perhaps considered that some aspects of Morgan ownership such as waiting lists, value retention, the whole heritage scenario combined with a very attractive open top sports car package to roll around the countryside on a balmy days in retirement sunshine.......to then be awakened up to the realities of Morgan ownership and associated foibles, which seemed to come as quite a shock for some, given their automotive expectations were directly related to the level of comfort, reliability and service backup that they had become used to in modern mid range to high end saloon cars...? The effect of which seemed to be a rising degree of discontent that appeared from time to time on the forums from those who might be thought to be a "new breed" of Morgan owners....?

I can remember very many complaints on all sorts of issues and equally many great minds suggesting a degree of modification to alter the rudimentary design of the TRAD, which to some degree fitted with the expectations and ideals of the old guard of hands-on Morganeers who were well used to foible resolution and modifying their Morgans for more power better brakes etc.etc.etc., though it seems the new breed`s ideals were perhaps more comfort and reliability motivated, thus it also seems logical that there would be all sorts of clever thinking on ways to improve the suspension system, both in terms of increasing quality and perhaps cutting down or easing of maintenance demands and increasing comfort, desires which witnessed the introduction of rear chassis hoops to allow tubular shockers to replace lever arms, though how much of an on the road advance that was, I have no idea, though I do remember the now departed dear old Bill Button, having covered many a mile with no shockers fitted to his car, determined the difference between with or without shockers seemed negligible...From a dull memory I think he was not alone in that line of thought..?

In the same vein, it seems even more comfort was desired by the new breed, who may have been added to by the old guard to some degree as they were advancing in years and who may have evolved into similar mindset on comfort convenience and may have become less inclined to enjoy rolling around the garage floor... Hmm..? Thus it seems there was rather a lot of interesting discussion on designs to further modify suspension systems to make them more comfortable and to try to make steering lighter. Also it seems getting in and out of Morgans was becoming an issue, whether related to the increasing girth of Morganeers or their stiffening bones or both, thus larger doors were incorporated in the design improvements along with fancier levels of trim than might have been expected in any Morgan in times past..?

Thus over quite a few years it seems increases in comfort, ease of driving and higher levels of quality in terms of trim became the priorities of the evolution in the desires of the "average" Morganeer...? All of which seems reasonable to have predicted..?

Of course there will ever be the ...err... Luddites...(-: Those who in varying degrees hold on to their ORIGINAL ideals of that which a REAL Morgan and a real Morganeer should conform to but logically (?) they seem bound to be reducing in number with the passage of time as natural human ageing processes demand.

As for the possible effect on the MARKET in Trads now that the CX format is the way forward for the MMC, I have my doubts that there will be a great many young folk interested in old cars, let alone those that seem to involve very old technology, and for the 90`s on Trads that are dependant on digital technology and related spares... hmm..?

Then regardless of Trad or CX, the climate change pressures and the way they might evolve, I leave that to your imagination as to the effect on the ability to run ICE cars of many generations and the processes that may be constructed to determine those that may require to be scrappe...err..recycled, and the many and varied ways such processes might evolve relative to ever changing regulatory processes...? Thus I suspect "investment potential" in any ICE vehicle let alone those with large powerful engines, or those with zero in the way of emission controls, may be more of a risk than they have been since the last banking crash after which it seems "Classic" cars were thought of as a better investment for the man in the street and others than money in the bank, given the low interest rates that have prevailed since then...Hmm..?

Oliver, I understand your decision very well. For one thing, if you always drive a car with inhibitions because it is worth so much, then it reduces the fun and enjoyment. I have similar experiences.
Secondly...After my odyssey with 5 Morgan I am very happy today with my 4/4 but the first Series 1 roadster was exceptionally good. She had the most beautiful dashboard and the best gearshift of all 3.0 roadsters and the best of the 3.0 litre engines. Today I know better! but I was too curious about what I all wanted to try....

What I mean is, your S1 is not just any roadster, it is the best in my eyes (I also had S2 and S3 to compare).
(after some time I was undecided about my colour choice, Indigo with Mulberry (after 6 weeks without sleep back in 2005), one of the reasons to sell her..today I would find it very cool

Thanks Heinz: my thoughts exactly! I've just been down the garage, started her up (first time in 3 months), on the drive to roll around the brakes etc.. and..
Definitely sticking with my car!! I realised a couple of things..
I do love the white dials so much and the beautiful wood (so much better than what they offer now) and, even more important, the mulberry red I have is not longer available - it's either a bright red or a murky brown - neither of which I like.
With the suplex front suspension, the car handles perfectly well for the modest speeds I drive on public roads.
The parcel shelf behind the seats is considerably bigger.
The driving position is perfect for me (slender 5'10") so I don't need "increased cockpit space", and I like being near the passenger...

So yes, if I was in the market for my first Morgan and had the cash, the Plus Four and Plus Six seem like superb new cars. But for me, like many here, I am more than happy with what I have: and now I have an excuse to spend a little on a few "improvements" as I'm SAVING £40K! WooHoo! Can't wait to get her back on the road after this wet muddy winter!

Or, just for contrast out side the Malvern universe, for the price of a nicely specced Plus 4, this new Lexus for £78k

That Lexus is nice enough but its got no soul, man.

Something with a bit more soul would be a Suffolk SS100, or maybe stretch the wallet to breaking point with one of these -

http://www.asmotorsport.co.uk/index.html

That AS motorsport car is a beauty. Wouldn’t it be nice Morgan did something with similar style as a premium car to top the range.

Back onto the new plus 4. I had A test drive in a new plus six this week and loved it! I had always liked the arguments about not being too fast and the handling making a trad more fun to drive. I used to own a 1938 Norton and loved riding it so understand that something slow and poor handling is fun to ride.

Having driven the plus 6 my gdi felt underwhelming although not bad enough to have the same feel as a really old car. I looked at the z4 and quickly understood that was not for me. In conclusion I think, subject to a plus four test drive Morgan May have nailed it for me and I’m very tempted.

Go for it Gary. You really enjoyed the drive.
As ASM are in Bressingham I have sent them a cheeky email asking if we could vist on 11/7 when FolkMog are at the Steam Museum. I expect not but who knows.

The "elephant in the room".....

A new PlusFour CX is my S1 Roadster + £40-45k......even with man maths and rose tinters on....that takes some computing!

So for me the question is not "would you swap your trad for a CX"? but "could I swap my trad for a CX?".....with retirement a couple of years away would probably say no!

I also would prefer a six (or eight) cylinder car....