Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Is The Seven Year Itch At Play?

I've had a lot of Morgans over a lot of years, I do still love them..........however........I sold my last one because the world has moved on too much for a morgan for me now, there's too much traffic, the roads are crap and there are too many dangerous drivers out there. Sitting at the same height as a 4x4 exhaust or wheel hub make me feel too vulnerable.
So many Morgans end up as garage ornaments doing a hand full of miles per year between MOT's.
Don't be scared of selling if you're not using it, there's so many other options out there and life's waaaay too short....!

I have a different perspective. Crap roads are crap in any car, but if it’s an interesting and engaging road, it can still be a great drive, you just don’t want to be going faster than the road is suitable for. Too many people, big SUVs, idiots, those all tend to use main arterial routes, give yourself more time and don’t use them.
A Morgan is one of very few cars which doesn’t suddenly become naff old junk as soon as the next latest one comes along, it’s always an attractive thing to look at and an object of desire.
Life is indeed short, all the more reason not to sell your Morgan and give up like all the other lemmings rushing around in swarms, oblivious to their ever diminishing time on Earth and the futility of their pursuits. Enjoying yourself is about the most important thing you can do, a bit of selfish enjoyment makes you a better person in so many ways and enjoyment is infectious, you’ll indirectly improve the day of many others around you.

I would have to agree with Ewan on this. I nearly sold my Morgan about four years ago as I just didn't seem to be using it and I've had the same safety fears regarding the size and ferocity of other traffic on the roads. Then I went for a fabulous long drive and realised life was too short to worry about things like that. I also bought the Morgan because it connected with me in a way that chasing the best sports car every year inevitably failed to deliver.

I don't drive my 4/4 much any more, a thousand miles a year maximum, more of course when there's a Highlands jaunt involved. Any journey under 10 miles and I use the ebike, anything in the 'everyday driving' category it's the electric Mini, and anything towing, gnarly, or in the winter and it's the Landy - which TBH I enjoy driving at least as much as the Mog.

But the Mog doesn't owe me anything, it's easy to maintain, costs me about £750 a year in tax, insurance, and maintenance, and there's a space in the garage for it. There's nothing I'd replace it with, so I'm quite happy for it to stay and be driven whenever I want. Which happens to be today, I'm off to meet up with some pals near Portsmouth.

One other consideration, and perhaps this is too whimsical a thought; however, I have purchased vehicles before (from friends) and promised them first refusal if I decided to sell it on again. Perhaps this is worth considering if you're worried about regretting the sale? I appreciate this works better if you sell to a friend or within the community but I'd like to believe that most people would honour that request and offer you your ex-car back should they chose to sell it in the future. Of course there is no guarantee that they'll sell it but equally there is no guarantee that you'll want it back. Just a thought.

I appreciate that this doesn't solve your conundrum but perhaps it alleviates some of the concern about making a mistake?

Morgans do fill a niche that does seem to buck the trend of the constant marketing pressure to upgrade to the latest model; although, I am not certain we won't see a move towards that with future products because of a need to manage the investment / ROI. This is something quite special and definitely a positive in my mind; therefore, it would be a shame to lose it. There is too much in-built redundancy in modern products (real or perceived) and I'm not keen on it.

Perry, you mentioned Porsche, to my mind, you can achieve some of the feel of 'no need to upgrade' and driving something a little special if you look to the 993 and older. The 993 is young enough to not suffer most of the foibles associated with a classic but old enough to feel special. To a large extent, the same can be said for the 964. 1989 and older you move into classic territory but again, if cared for, they are wonderful vehicles. Whether they would fill the place of a Morgan comes down to the individual.

What I do know is that there is no such thing as automotive nirvana. I chased it for many years and the saying 'horses for courses' comes to mind. A Defender 90 does what it was intended to do very well but driving them on-road for long journeys is tiring and the moment a fast section of twisty road unfolds in front of you, a sports car would be preferable. Sitting on a motorway, at 70mph, for hours on end can be done in a noisy low sports car but I'd rather be in an efficient, comfortable, safe vehicle with the ability to listen to music, podcasts or audio books. And on and on but you get my gist. Driving for pleasure is something you have to want to do and my sign of a good car, no matter what it is, is one that you park, walk away from and then take a glance back over your shoulder at it for another look... silly but those are the cars that I enjoy the most.

I tend to find no matter how well you store something, a vehicle does tend to degrade more rapidly when not regularly used.

I've had to sell my 4 seater Roadster because of a fall at Xmas when I hurt my back, making it uncomfortable getting in and out and depressing the clutch. I was sad to see it go, I had just got it running the way I wanted it to (within the limitations of a Morgan) and to be honest 4 or so months on I don't miss it. I do have access to other convertible cars, so the open air aspect of Morganeering is catered for. Of course they are always a talking point when you stop and the admiring glances, but it wears thin after a while and not always IMHO enough to justify just having a car sitting there and its probably not doing the car any good either

I've just come back from Ireland and to get to and from the ferry port are miles of speedhumps and pretty hard work in a low slung conventional sports car, it would be nail bitingly hard work in a Morgan, which would have me on edge and dreading that part of the journey. I don't need that anxiety in my life.

So If I was you, life is too short, if your head is telling you its time to move on, but the heart is fixed on some former utopian rose tinted glasses view of the past.....maybe its time to listen to the head and find something else to fall in love with, whilst you still can. I've found from experience nothing is irreplaceable and I tend to agree with Talkmorgan a 993 Porsche has the right balance of modern features with still relatively old fashioned engineering and driving feel. that will bring a smile to your face when driven enthusiastically within a much lower performance envelope than a modern Porsche, so you are much more likely to enjoy yourself more and still keep your licence.

What ever you do, all the best., there is bound to be something else out there that will stir your juices and get the excitement back to your motoring.

We have come out of a very strange period. Covid restrictions.
Our regular routines were stopped suddenly. We had to adapt to very strange day to day life.
It takes time to revert to what we did before and yet there are lingering thoughts persisting.
Can I ? Should I? Will I?
During the restrictions we used the Morgan for shopping to keep it running. As restrictions eased it took a while to use it as before. Eventually a return to pre covid normality returned.
Next thing to evolve has been planned future ownership. Getting older means less time to enjoy things as the trip to the ever-after looms. How many people do we know who were unable to enjoy life in later years? The “do it while you can” feeling is important. Less inclination to spend time maintaining an ageing and increasing mileage car. I still wanted a Morgan but to use and enjoy with reduced garage time.
Plumped for a Plus Four.
Expensive but a clear step forward. Comfort, performance, enjoyment. Comparing it on two long trips....Scotland from West Wales. 2022 in the Plus8 versus 2023 in the Plus Four.2023 was a better experience and has encouraged more future use. A 500 mile return journey home with a couple of comfort breaks was no problem and I felt good on arrival.
Used mainly in normal auto mode with a few Sport/S+/paddle sessions and easily 45+ mpg with daily 200+ mile runs, hitting 50mpg on half of them. Do I miss the Plus8? Not really. The refinements outweigh the previous “old school” Morgan characteristics. I seem to have outgrown this liking of the driving an older car and having to consider spending time on keeping it running. Drive and enjoy but cut back on the maintenance enjoyment.
Now, how can I also start fishing again....?

Sospan,

I'm reading your posts with interest, as to how the CX Morgan would fit into your life style after a +8 and no gear shifting (automatic) and clearly you are enjoying the experience. I'm just waiting to see if the current batch of problems seems to have consigned to history and then step into the world of CX. Its increasingly important that any toy we have can be driven by Sue so we can share the driving experience and at 5 foot nothing, the traditional Morgan controls were just too heavy for her. I've already hurt my back recently, so clutches are out and must accept at some point I wont be as active as I am now, but would still like to enjoy the delights of open air motoring. The only reason I'm holding off at them moment is in essence I don't want to get a new CX and then find I'm faced with poor engineering issues that will devalue the ownership experience as I have a low tolerance threshold for mechanical ineptitude and unreliability and would quickly move the car on, I just want a car to do the basics like go somewhere, come back home without a nagging doubt when ever I use it. It does look like things are moving in the right direction.

I do believe Covid for many has changed their perception on life and highlighted for many in the senior age group how vulnerable we really are, as we all hid away for each other. I'm sure as we learn to cope with the changes this has brought to society and it becomes a distant memory fading into the background, those former pursuits/interests/hobbies will reassert themselves. Sue and I over the last few weeks have started to play a few games of pool at the local pub every Tuesday lunchtime when its almost empty, a pint of half price cask ale and 3 or 4 games and we both are feeling the benefit in our flexibility and joints and enjoying ourselves at the same time.

John, Sospan,

Covid changed everything and nothing. Age related decay is more of a threat to continued driving pleasure than anything else. Tarka had started to show some age related electronic issues and I think in 2022 I spent as much time driving back and forth to Williams as I did going places, so we concluded a change was needed. Henry tried his best to get me into a new Plus Four, but the numbers just didn't add up.

So, we bought a 2016 Porsche Boxster S, for £52,000. Very low milage, full main dealer service history and the main dealer is 45 mins away, not an hour and a half. We love it...We have more comfort, more performance than Tarka, proper storage space and the same silly smile.

DIY servicing is virtually impossible as engine access is from underneath.....service interval is 2 years or 20,000 miles.

There are more similarities than one may think: Porsche has been developing the same basic car for 50 plus years. Today the 911 and its little brother the 718 are nothing like the original 911, but they are virtually unchanged in looks, engineering quality and character. Morgan has done the same with the Plus 4, but the lack of in house engineering and investment cash has limited their ability, but a CX Plus Four is still recognisably a Plus 4. Both brands have an active membership community and both have owners who race, hard.

Porsch Boxster S, the old persons Morgan PlusFour?

On reading the comments above it would appear that driving the English roads is no longer the visceral pleasure it used to be and one needs to be on the roads the other side of the borders to have that real enjoyment. I am very lucky as just driving to the local shops is via quiet twisting mountain roads with gorgeous views a pure Morgan experience. Then of course we have the open roads where you can drive for hours without seeing many others taking in the sights of the long straight roads disappearing into the horizon with brilliant blue skies and white puffy clouds. Today is a gorgeous day and writing this has stimulated the yearning to go somewhere for lunch, so now which one to take the M3W or the +8???? If you don't have the desire to take the Morgan out or just find excuses not too then it is probably not for you.