After posting in the welcome section and receiving some good advice I am more or less decided on a plus 4 for my purchase.
However which plus 4 is still to be decided.
I will now start driving as many as I can persuade dealers to allow me.
I think it will be a duratec 2.0 or gdi 2.0 powered mog for me, post 2009. In the good advice mentioned above I was told to watch out for the plastic rad models, and ensure that item is upgraded…..so question 1 is
What years did Morgan fit plastic rads to the plus 4?
How much will it cost me to upgrade the rad?
Can I reasonably do it myself?
Who would do it for me?
I am fairly sure I want either a white (old English or ivory) car with red/burgundy interior, Or a red car with cream interior. Stainless wire wheels and a spare with luggage rack. The rest of the spec is not a deal breaker ….. I would prefer just overriders but can’t be too fussy.
I intend to do all work myself where possible so am interested in which obd2 reader other Morgan owners use?
I am determined to take my time, drive lots of cars and make the best choices.
I am an anorak and will be soaking up as much Morgan knowledge as possible before purchase.
I will be selling my life collection of beautiful motor bikes and a very special day sailing yacht to fund this purchase so will be very thorough in the process
I am happy to take 12 to 24 months to get the right car.
The mazda gearbox was fitted in about early 2011 onwards and is a much better (smoother) box than the Ford. If you peer down the transmission tunnel from under the bonnet, you may see a label with N7 on it, confirming the Mazda box.
I think all modern 2004+ Morgans have the plastic rad. Not difficult to do yourself if you have a jack, axle stands and a few basic tools. Mulfab should be able to quote a price for supply only. Expect a dealer would charge £850+ for complete job.
Personal opinion but I prefer the Duratec to the GDI, the latter having a few foibles unless it has had a map upgrade from the threads I have seen on here.
Also, when looking at cars of that age, do check the age of the tyres…a low mileage example might seem attractive until you realise its on original rubber adding another £500 to your purchase, if they are about 8 years or older.
Check if on original king pins or not…depending on how they have been greased etc their life could be anywhere between 20k and 60 k miles. An upgrade to SSL suspension is a worthwhile enhancement.
Good luck and remember, the right car will find YOU!
René, I had a GDI plus four before I got the CX Plus Four - I had the ECU flashed by Williams Automobiles in Bristol, UK and that elininated the issues you mention which my car had also - Flat spot at about 2600 Revs etc. I would recommend the "mild" flash that i got as it transformed the car.
Another vote for the Duratec Plus 4, the port injected 2.0 variant really is an outstanding engine!
The best of the modern Plus 4 breed was the Supersports model as it received the best Mazda L variant of the Duratec, this version benefitted from variable valve timing, better rods, a steel crank, and made 200hp on throttle bodies while retaining simpler port injection, the trouble is they only made 60 Supersports so they're rare and when they do come up for sale they tend to be pricey.
Ignoring the Supersports for a minute, don't forget a regular port injected Duratec Plus 4 will be usefully cheaper to buy than the direct injected GDI, and other than the engine difference it's essentially the exact same car, this makes the cheaper to buy Duratec Plus 4 a far better value proposition.
Finally, don't ignore a narrow body 4/4 75th Anniversary model as Morgan gave it the 143hp 2.0 Duratec from the Plus 4, this one recently sold for just £26,000 which was somewhat of a bargain if you ask me!
And for just £2,500 you can take any standard Duratec from 143hp to 180hp, all you need is a Fusion Fabrications inlet, their Supersports replica exhaust manifold and an ECU reflash. The above narrow body 4/4 75th Anniversary probably only weighs 900 kg, so 180hp would give you 200 bhp per ton!!! This would make for a very nippy little depreciation proof classic car with the modern and bombproof Duratec engine paired with the super slick five speed Mazda transmission.
All this for just £28,500, try building a resto-mod Duratec MGB for that and you'll soon be spending more
