Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) Why ?

There is something about the V8 90 that I like. I had one for a few years, but it did have a bad drinking issue - only cost £6000 though.

I like the three door shape, it's like a Mars bar just right..

No that's just the boggo V8 not the stupid marketing+ version.

And the palpable disappointment when the door opens and I get out would be more comical than suspense.

It gets worse, that is mad
And no money left for therapy

But the car is the therapy....

I would start of by saying beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and after that, having seemingly been somewhat afflicted with an engineering appreciating chromosome or two at birth, there are indeed aspects of the Merc that appeal. I do like LARGE engines though more than happy to listen to a Lotus twin cam 4 pot, or a Max Norton single or, or , or, or, yeah the list could go on and on and on... (-: T`was following an old open top Bentley that brought me to Morgan ownership and the +8, though in truth I suspect the Trad 4/4 to be a better match of engine to it`s vintage underpinnings, but I was desirous of the burble... and in time it seems I have become a burbleholic..!

I always appreciated the look of an engine, never more so than when I was exposed to that which lay under the bonnet of a Jaguar... Those highly polished cam covers, the black enamel exhaust manifold, a work of wonder indeed... Then the Lotus Twink with it`s twin Webers.... Unfortunately I can`t see the engine in my latest acquisition, but then a 911 engine was a bit of a dissappointment ever looking a tad like the innards of a washing machine, though in time became an acquired taste, these days all I can see under the lid are a couple of electric fan grills, and alloy badges promising there is a power plant under there somewhere, I guess the design may well be a half way house to help us become accustomed to not seeing an engine, which seems likely to be replaced with an electric motor...? I guess it would be a simple matter to play back any engine sounds through the Bose speakers one might choose with the push of a button, be it a V12 or a single and anything in between... Hmm..?

Nah, as an antidote to evolution, the old +8 hits the spot for me, Carb fed, pops with occasional bangs or even flame thrown in on the over-run, taking to the air over humps and bumps, with an occasional hop to the side thrown in,and all within legal road speeds....ish. I feel fortunate to still be able to pilot the old thing other than in cold weather, and well understand those daft enough to take to the roads in a M3W, Lotus Seven or indeed anything that removes the layer upon layer of driver insulation that we all have evolved into an acceptance if not need of..... But then perhaps as ever ageing folk we really need a bit more comfort, safety and driver aids to reduce the chance of making a fool of our selves ..

Luddite,

your words seem to come deeply from my heart;-)
Although I have not made it to the V8....

It is very godd to feel the real thing and enjoy all the features it brings.
For the things that started this thread - they seem plastic to me.
I do not need a brand new i.e. engine to pop and pretend misfire!
This getting on my nerves... The starting procedure of e.g. the monster of Torino is a work of art (of engineering).

So is the quiet zzz of my etron following the car in front on L2 automation.
Fascinating new things not pretending to push the old world over the top.

Glad to have toys of both worlds😎

Mkiss, I am pleased that you found something you could relate to in the ramble through my mindset.. (-: As I have often typed (too often perhaps) When I purchased my Morgan it was as a substitute for a big old LM Bentley, having decided I was desirous of something close to a large engined vintage driving experience and within my budget.

For sure any owner of a vintage car could point out that my 86 +8 Morgan is so much more advanced that a real vintage machine, listing hydraulic and disc brakes, synchromesh gears, alternator fed electrics, Halogen lighting, flashing direction indicators radial tyres, and hydraulic shock absorbers, not only that but they are tubular and not lever arm... and even a RADIO... whatever next.....!!!! (-:

Yeah well, so my Morgan is but a pastiche in terms of it`s initial vintage appearance, but then I do have to crawl about greasing the dirty bits, which caused wonder and amazement to an American who saw me performing that necessary duty in the car park of an Agritourismo establishment near Cortona early one morning many years back... (-:

In regard to all the above, as a wiser man than I once said "Everything is relative " and on that basis relative to my introduction and experience of things automotive, my Morgan has provided as much of a vintage driving experience as I have desired, and I felt no need to modernise it any further to match the ever evolving comforts or performance of mundanemobiles to the extent that so many of us seem to require or desire. I did all that kind of stuff in my younger years, when dragging old machinery back to life to make it go faster... Brakes, Suspension..? Nah spent all the available and limited cash spent on making it go faster, and of course the result was ..err..interesting. Don`t ask me how we survived creating such imbalanced machines in terms of sensible automotive engineering....!!!

Some years later when I first discovered the interweb and Morgan discussion groups it was interesting to discover a "mature" group of folk who had in later life, perhaps as the result of having more free time, had set out to find a project of some kind, and nothing too complex bodily or mechanically on which to exercise and perhaps extend their automotive skills, real or imagined.. (-: On that basis it seems many a Baby Boomer may have been attracted into Morgan ownership... I am one such.. though in my case I also wanted a non digital dependant machine that I could have some confidence in my own ability to maintain and repair when necessary. I was not looking for more power or better brakes softer suspension, or air conditioning though in my 20 years of ownership the older man I have become can appreciate such..err..refinements. BUT, on a good weather day and when my bones are not so stiff and my stents are not feeling strained.... JEEZ, is it great to skip hop bounce and countersteer the old thing round a few back road bends...(-:

After any outing in the Morgan and when later driving the family barge, I still find myself returning to the habit, learned as a young m/cyclist and carried on into Morganeering, of watching the road surface carefully for uneven repairs or a change in surface material, bumps, holes, and the likes, avoiding them when possible...Yeah in a modern 4x4, it seems such is the possible isolation from all around that there is no need of such ancient "roadcraft," or awareness....Where is the FUN or sense of adventure or test of skills in that which modern vehicles provide, unless when burning rubber, or at ballistic speeds, or both....HMM..?

Thats a good answer.