Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Classic Morgans (pre-CX) 2005 Roadster reliability?

I’m currently an owner of a 2014 Brooklands 6/50 3 wheeler. I love it, but it is mechanically a challenge and with the engine out of production and Malvern not supporting the three wheeler of this Vintage as much anymore I am considering selling or trading. How reliable are the circa 2005 era Roadster’s?

Thanks in advance for all your opinions!

Will

Generally very good. The weak point is the pcb that is prone to fail due to water ingress.

I had a 2005 Roadster from new. I probably would have had it today if it hadn't been for that dangerous mishap with the steering. It had a needle bearing just before the steering wheel. It started to scratch and after a day the steering wheel was completely blocked.
Apart from that, and I'm just writing it down so you're aware that you should have that needle bearing checked, it's a fantastic car. The Getrag transmission is a real pleasure. At the time, nobody knew that the later transmissions were much less suitable. The transmission, with its correct gear ratios and shifting feel, is a unique selling point. A small weakness is that on mine, the seals between the manifold and the catalytic converter broke three times every 6000 km within two years. But apart from that, it was the best roadster. A lot of energy and effort had been put into its development. After all, the first roadster had to be as good as possible because it had replaced the Plus 8. To sum up, I would go for a first series roadster like this.

I bought a new roadster in 2004. As Heinz said, a lot of work went into getting that model right. It was very quick, I don't think any other Mog has ever beaten the 0 to 60 figures and I used to annoy many a Porsche owner up to about 95 mph. Mine was totally reliable for about five years daily use. I didn't have any issues that Heinz described but apart from it not making a V8 soundtrack, I'd come from a plus 8, it was a fabulous model, exactly as Heinz describes.
Nick

The main point is that the Series 1 Roadster of 2005 is either 19 or 20 years old now. Mine was a late 2004 build as far as I can tell, and sold in the spring of 2005. I've taken a lot of care with it and at the risk of tempting fate, nothing serious has gone wrong. I've had a rear damper bracket shear, and lost a front damper upper mount, but other than that, it's been, and still is, a great car.

A lot will depend on how well a 20 year old car has been looked after. I wouldn't worry about the number of owners, but the usual checks apply.Simple things like tyre age, and matching brands. Paint chafing around the bonnets & doors. State of the interior and underbonnet are all good clues. And the mileage of course.