Talk Morgan Forums Community Welcome Forum Hello from Oklahoma

Hi Kevin, welcome to Talkmorgan. I live in Hampton Roads VA and have been a Morgan owner for over 50 years.
I looked at your Hemmings candidates and depending on whether you want ancient or modern the latter 3 look all good . The 1st one on your list is not a 1969 model, it appears to be an EPA/FMVSS import special and titled as a 1969. I suspect the car left the factory sometime in the early 80's. There were no VIN's in 1969, and Cantab Motors were not building Morgans. I self imported my +8 in 1976 and it wasn't easy.

The +8 and the roadster have all the performance your Dad needs and being a former racer he will enjoy either. The +8 is old school, parts are readily available from several US outlets and the car is a head turner wherever you go. The roadster is more modern and engine parts are at your nearest Ford dealer. The 4/4 looks to have an older rebuild but shows as a solid car.

Watch the BAT auctions, there's a wealth of information in the comments section and as others have said GOMOG.com is the go to resource. There's also DaveW on this forum and his book about Morgan ownership.It also pays to read back thru this forum and see the comments and solutions, especially the classic and maintenance sections.

Enjoy the hunt, the right car will find you!!

Kevin,
In the photo you submitted, the driver is behind the wheel of a race-prepared Morgan Plus 4 at an
SCCA racing event competing in EP class during the mid-60's. Unique, very interesting carburetor/filter inlet fitted.
The most prominent vehicle in the background is a 1965 Oldsmobile Delta 88 station wagon,
(wonderful tow-car/ tool and equipment hauler for someone) thus we can establish an approximate time frame for the photo.
Purchasing a Morgan is very subjective and usually not a decision to be rushed.
The commonly referred-to saying among enthusiasts is, "The Morgan will find you"
As mentioned previously, your best resource would be for someone locally to assist and guide you.
I greatly admire your motivation!.....Best of luck in your quest, fingers crossed for you and you Dad.

Good advice...

They all look good but they wouldn't post a duff photo.
The Roadster is a great car but the PCB that controls the electronics can fail.
The +8 is electronically simpler and could be easier to maintain yourself.

You need really to go and drive hem with ideally a current Morgan owner.

Thank you all for your kindness, encouragement and time in responding. I’ve read and re-read all of them. Will again.

I don’t think he was a serous race contender, more of a hobby and to the guy who pinned down the particulars of that photo..thank you! I think he was part of a car club or something in the Dallas area, this was a few years before I was born and because my parents were married in ‘69 and my mom has talked a little about his racing, I think it was ‘68–‘69.

I particularly took notice of “The right Morgan will find you”. I believe this on a couple of levels that I won’t get too deeply into but in my case I’ll most definitely need to have to be the one to initiate the first date, the introduction because there just aren’t many or any nearby. I’m a long way from anyone, the largest metropolitan area within reasonable driving distance is Oklahoma City. The rest, Dallas or Austin or Kansas City or Little Rock or Albuquerque is an overnight trip and dealers who I’ve found who have more than one are a plane ride away.

I will follow all of your advice, asked for/ordered the buyers guide referenced and will look for that and continue my research. At the end of the day, perhaps I’m naive but I’m really not as concerned with value as I am about integrity. My objective is not to squeeze every penny and to not be taken advantage of either- I try to treat others as I hope to be treated. There are two kinds of people in this world, those who serve (help) others and those who take advantage of (use) others. When money is involved people get weird so I try to deal with the former and avoid the latter.

If I buy a vintage car I don’t want to drive away with a known grenade that’s been hidden under the hood, transmission, maybe in the wood frame itself (I didn’t even know that they had wood frames until yesterday) or something. I just want to know what is knowable and a good deal is usually something neither side is completely happy with but works. I’m not even there- good deal on this though because however much homework I do, particularly on an older one, the previous owner or seller will know far more than I do and I’m just going to trailer this beauty to Cordova TN, spend the weekend with dad and drive home. Getting this in his driveway and the right one is the objective, I don’t want to drop off avoidable problems.

So thanks again and if anyone has any further advice I’m all ears. I think I’ll continue to watch classifieds, watch BAT and if/when one comes up start researching that year/model early on, have a number in my head and take a swing. It’s also possible that one comes up somewhere that I can see in person, that’s my preference but not always easy to pull off.

The hunt is often as much fun as the harvest so I’ll try to enjoy and learn from it. Thanks again to all of you, much appreciated.

HI Kevin,
Your Dad and his Morgan would become instant celebrities if they joined up with this
Memphis group of car enthusiasts. I had fun researching their archives, they seem like a lively
and exuberant bunch!
http://www.memphisbritishcars.org/

Apparently, there is already a Morgan owner among their membership: http://www.memphisbritishcars.org/gallery/morgan.htm

Do keep in touch as regards achieving your goal, suffice to say all forum members hope you attain it soon.

Hi Kevin - lovely story and what a generous and fantastic experience to share with your Dad.

I can't offer any advice on your choice of car (I'm not knowledgeable on the older cars that would have been imported into the US, other than to say that unlike other marques, bigger-engined Morgans aren't necessarily better than the four-cylinder models).

I can share some experience of buying a car for my Father - when he turned 75 - as I thought he was becoming less vigorous and his interests had dwindled. He's now 86 and still driving it enthusiastically and no chance of giving it up anytime soon. Best thing I could have done, as he seems to have got younger again.

One final thought, I don't know how US registration works and inheritance tax, but since I don't want my Dad's estate to pay IHT on an asset which I already funded, I registered the vehicle in my son's name since I'd like it to pass to him once my Dad no longer has use for it.

Good luck finding a car you will both love.

Kevin...welcome to the TM group. A lot...A LOT.. of folks on here have decades of experience with these cars...don't be shy about picking their brains/asking questions. And...visit BaT as frequently as you can manage. If you look at that site, and look at completed auctions for Morgan's you'll get a sense of the types of cars available, and what they sold for.... I'd suggest you start by giving yourself some general parameters as to what would work for you. The, as been suggested, get with a current Morgan owner and drill down on some specific cars.... you'll fine the right one...or what usually happens...the car will find you. Make it fun, don't obsess, and good luck!

Tom

In the spring of 2019, when I was ready to purchase an older Morgan in the US that was far away, I went with an inspection service called Road Ready Inspections (https://www.roadreadyinspections.com/). For about $300, they send out a driver to thoroughly inspect the car, take pictures of everything, and even make a video of the car being driven. Their reports helped me to decide to pass on a 66 Plus 4, and a month later the report gave me the confidence to purchase my 65 Plus 4.

I have no affiliation with the company, and I imagine there are other similar service providers out there. I just know that it was a great experience for myself.

I know there were two Morgans in Tulsa. One is now in Virginia (with us) and the other belonged to a rather eccentric older fellow. I would suggest you contact British Iron of NW Arkansas as they might be aware of others. As I mentioned earlier there is a rather large group in Dallas.

Or better yet contact one of the Morgan dealers in the USA, rather than rely on an auction. You will have a much better idea of the true condition of the car than what you can learn from an auction