Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Three Wheeler & Super 3 1560 3W

Having bought 2 new 4/4 Sports and a 10 month old Roadster in the last 3 years I can honestly say from my experience that Morgan paint finish is well up to the standard I would expect. MMC is a cottage industry and to demand the same finish as Audi is as unrealistic as expecting Audi shut lines. Obviously if you want a show finish you have to spend the time and money to achieve this. I'm not that bothered to be honest, I keep the car clean and give it an occasional wax but that's about it.

Never having benefited from Morgan ownership in the past, I'm not able to bring personal experience to bear in the quality of the company's finishing, but hoped that it would be of a suitably high standard, being a cottage industry does not mean they have an excuse for poor quality work.

As an aside, what is all this clear coat business all about, and if it is important why don't MMC do it?

There is only one slightly dodgy area on my Roadster and that's on the offside front wing but almost under the bonnet edge, so it doesn't really show. It's a patch which shows sub surface scratching, so cutting back won't reduce it without risking taking the paint off. The rest of the paint is very good, but with a few polish induced scratches (not by me I hasten to add). Every time the paint is detailed by a pro, a layer comes off, so eventually the paint will thin, until it goes through. I remember a concours event at Brands Hatch many years ago. I was next to an immaculate black MGBGT. The paint was cut and polished to perfection. The owner was polishing hard on the rear wing, when he saw a small grey speck which wouldn't come off....... Out came the abrasive polish, and before you knew it, he had cut a long strip of paint back to the primer.
Polishing is an art, and the pro's do it every day. We amateurs need to find a style which suits us, but if you have swirls, your technique isn't right. It's all about the colour, the brand of polish, and especially the applicator and the polishing cloth. Then it's about the level of pressure applied, and the direction of effort.
In respect of paint rubbing off - yes it does. The chassis flexes, so where paint is in contact with something it will rub away over time. On a trad, the sidescreens will rub the B posts, and the bonnet will rub the bulkhead and the cowl. There are steps that you can take. The B post can be protected with clear plastic, and the corners of the bonnet can be protected with neoprene pads (what else!).
I've seen the paint shop at the factory and as far as I have seen, the results are excellent.
I don't know whether MMC use lacquer or not, but I imagine they do on metallics. Normal non metallic paint doesn't really need it. I may be cynical, but I think big players use it so that poor polishing doesn't show swirling. On black for example, swirls show very quickly, whereas with a lacquer over the top, there's an element of protection.

I had a new black Caterham 7 - 8 years ago and I was obviously doing something very wrong, as, after a couple of years, the paintwork was full of swirls, I hope not to repeat the process this time with my Black/tan m3W! I'd be grateful of any hints and tips to stop that happening this time, [other than by spending large amounts for a pro. to do it for me].

Thinking about the laquer coat, I can see that on flat paint, as opposed to metallic, it may be a good idea not to have it, as, if the clear coat gets damaged, it will then be impossible to actually take a layer of paint off to give the best finish. Am I right?

My 02 +8 Paint was OK'ish very very soft initially with a few flaws fixed under warranty. But I had some work done in the UK and it got an " Apprentice wash" dirty bucket, gritty old rag causing a fair bit of damage. I have fixed most of it but will take it to a professional refinisher to see what they can do.
There certainly has been a couple of negative comments on Detailing World about the standard of MMC paintwork. Cottage Industry should not be an excuse, quite the reverse I would have thought? But on the whole just another item to add to the check list of a new car rather than an endemic problem I would imagine

There won't be a single bloke doing the painting at MMC, so it will vary. No robots remember, and a lot depends on how good it is straight from the gun, or whether it nees fixing 'later'.
Black is the worst paint to polish, and circular polishing won't work well. It has to be in straight lines and then in different directions. Black can be cut back very well though, and even blown in - I can say that with 25 years experience of black cars (why oh why....). Too much cloth pressure on black will mark it. Treat it like a soft layer, and resist the temptation to press too hard. You're right Paul that if you cut through the lacquer it will present an edge which can't easily be fixed. My Corsa Red paint comes off on the cloth, so it's not lacquered, and I'm quite happy with that.

While I imagine a clearcoat or varnish is used sometimes, historically plain colours were not clearcoated.

One specialist told me that for a vintage three wheeler that should be brushed, he would still spray as a lot of restorers would, but the final finish would be a brushed clearcoat. He maintained that doing that, you got the look of immaculate brushwork, and the advantage of spray paint, namely a quick drying finish. The correct finish, brushed coach-paint takes a long time to dry. And is seriously hard work to get a good result.