Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Classic Morgans (pre-CX) What model is this??

Hi,

Nice to be here, this is my 1st post:

I'm thinking of buying a Morgan from an acquaintance. I have the reg number and it's in my garage at the moment as I asked if I could keep for a week or 2 to give it the once over. Problem No.1 is I can't work out what model it is. Its 1st registration was October 1969 and has 4 seats,1600cc engine. It runs OK but needs work, handbrake won't latch, external mirrors are falling apart, Propshaft tunnel cover is badly worn, Steering wheel is split and the engine looks like it needs a good service, new brake fluid cylinder, oil filter. Various other TLC things but I'm an ex MG Owner so I'm OK with mechanics and have a garage near me that was good with my 1990 Jaguar XJS.

So I'm looking for the actually model number (is there any Identification anywhere on the body or engine?

Problem number 2 is working out an offer price. I've come across a few auction sales (sold now) which give me an idea but I really need to nail down the cost of replacement parts and availability. Oh and one last thing: I have lived in France for 20 years so would need to change the reg to French (I know the routine for doing that), and I would need to get it passed the French MOT or control technique (CT) as it is called here - needed every 2 years so I will need to check what the CT garage says in relation to it's age.

Any help, thoughts on the above?

Thanks

Sounds like a 4/4 4 seater. Photos would help. There is from memory only a chassis number on the cross rail infornt of the drivers seat.

Hi, Thanks for that, pic attached. Cross rail in front of the drivers seat?? You've lost me there. The only thing I can see in front of the drivers seat is the steering wheel, dashboard and windscreen :-) OK so this is a 1969 4/4 4 Seater.

I was looking for spares prices and came across all sorts of names in categories like 4/4 Kent. 4/4 CVH, PlusFour but no 4/4/4 Seater. Have you any idea where I might look for spares prices as I want to get an idea of how much I'm likely to want to spend on renovations and service parts before I make an offer. And do you have any idea of the rough value of a 1969 4/4 Seater in reasonable state but needing some work. I know that's an unanswerable question but if the seller wants £20k I have absolutely no idea if that is a good price or is £10k is more realistic. They say it is rare, but no idea what that means other than making it pricier!

Thanks & regards

As John says ... photos would help ... at that age it should be a Kent crossflow 1600 ... cracking motor ... straightforward and easy to work on and there's fine parts support from the likes of Burton etc. Gearbox would have been 4 speed (though some owners upgraded to the type 9 five-speed in period or after ... well worth doing) ... with your friend's permission the interior trim panels cpme off easily with screws so you can check.out the wooden framework ... the door-hinge uprights, sill plates below the doors and cross-piece under the spare wheel reward a good look ... wood replacement can be done but it's time-consuming and sometimes out of the comfort-zone of those of us more used to metal bashing on cars (I bit the bullet and replaced quite extensive parts of the framework as mine was badly neglected when it arrived, and I'm no genius!) ... in general the car is just like a big meccano set and great for garage-diy ... especially ccompared to modern things with acres of plastic covers and weird, one-off fastners.

There's a few crossflow 4-seaters on here and they're much loved by their keepers.

K

Sounds like a Ford Kent engined 4/4 4 seater. There were two stages of engine tune at one time but at some stage I believe all of the Kent engined cars had the higher stage of tune. Not sure when this changed but hopefully someone with more knowledge will come along and let you know when but if its the lower state of tune its easy enough to pep it up.
What I can say for certain is that they are brilliant fun cars. I had a 4/4 4 seater for over 5 years as my first Morgan and loved it. The engine smells and behaves like a real car engine and the 4 speed gearbox was really sweet although the revs were high on motorways due to the gearing. See if the suspension has been upgraded, again easy enough to do, and make sure there is a tonneau as the hood is a nightmare to fit on the 4 seaters, and I did have the John Taylor swivel pivots. I took the car to France once without sidescreens or roof and just used the tonneau and it was fine, if a little damp on occasions.
They drive very differently to a 'modern' Morgan. No rack and pinion steering, no servo brakes (again you can fit one but I never bothered) and if its got the original suspension then be prepared for a very firm ride. My wife loved driving it as well but when I replaced it with a 2004 4/4 2 seater after a brief drive she refused to drive the new car and hasn't driven a Morgan since. Says it feels like driving a go cart now. As I say a very different driving experience.
Can't help with the pricing but I spent quite a lot on mine getting it up to spec and at that stage it was 'only' 20 years old so probably worth less than your acquaintance thinks.
Good luck and let us know how you get on.

The chassis number is on the crossmember behind the driver's seat (as I'm sure John meant) ... often hard to see due to paint, fluff, added carpet etc .... there's also a plate (about 2"x2") under the bonnet (riveted to the toilbox on mine but they vary ... as do lots of things with old Morgans! 🙂) ... not a modern vin-number.



If you have the plate your chassis number would be where the red scratchings are.

Price is very subjective but not sure I'd stretch to 20k for an unwarranted and well used 4 seater in the current market ... but then I'm no expert having only ever bought one!! 🙂

Thank you Andrew, Really useful information and you're right it is fun to drive, you have to drive it like a real car, using the gears and being on the case all the time, a joy to go out in and lovely round the quiet country lanes of Provence where I live. As I said I'm only borrowing it at present to access what needs doing and to establish a value but 1st thing I did was take off the sidescreens and roof and enjoy the open road. Will continue with my researches and update if/when I get a purchase agreed.

Thank you for that, and the photo, will go have a look! And for the other comments too, it all helps.

I'd have though 15 tops there are plenty of road ready cars at 20k out there right now.

I’m not familiar with Morgans of that era, but as you know used car prices are generally higher in France than the UK, and Morgan’s are no different. It’s worth (if you haven’t already) asking the question here:

https://www.forum-morgan.fr/index.php