Talk Morgan Forums Thread Like Summary - Living with a Plus Four

We are considering buying a current-model Plus Four and going through the many options. Could any existing owners comment on these questions please?

1. We love lighter leathers, but with an open-top car there must be a lot of dirt that gets in. How have others found looking after leather in practice? Would we be better off with the rich tan leather - how does that wear over time?

2. Matching leather over the centre tunnel looks great, but what's this like in real life - does it get scuffed (and therefore should we just have carpet)?

3. The Morgan would be our "fine weather car" with another car for everyday use. We don't have a garage, so I assume it may therefore spend a few months a year parked on our drive, presumably with a storm cover and battery conditioner? Does this work ok?

Any other "actually living with this beast" thoughts would be most welcome, especially things we might not discover in the showroom or talking to a dealer. Thanks!

I've got a MY22 Plus Four, and I don't have a garage, and it stays out on my drive at all times.

I've put in a couple of security locking bollards, and I've got some cameras outside too.

I spent some time looking at different makes and types of covers. They need to be breathable (this is really important), multi layer, a good fit (so that it doesn't chaff with the wind), and not black (keeps heat down in the sun). The one I went for was Stormshield + Outdoor from Specialised Covers and they will have one patterned for a Morgan Plus Four.

With practice, the cover comes on and off in a 3 or 4 minutes, and I've got a large garden weatherproof box next to the car that will take the cover when its off.

I use the cover all year round, except maybe when the weather is very fine and I'll be using the car the next day. (I also think it keeps "nosey eyes" away from it too!). When the weather get colder I run a 40W tubular heater inside the footwell.

The car does get used in the winter too, if the weather is OK - the heater is great for this and the heated seats could fry an egg if you keep them on high!

The other thing I did was to get a top of the range Titan ceramic finish on the car to help protect the paint from 'cover rash' - so far after two years, I haven't found any marks on the paint at all. It also helps if you don't put the cover on if the car is dirty!!

Our 4-seater has a leather interior with magnolia seats and oxford blue center console and sills. The magnolia needs much more effort to keep clean than the blue parts. Yet after 16 years and 70000 km the interior still looks good despite children and dogs.

Hsrald

Leather care products are fine for keeping it in good condition. Mine is light in colour and no issues.
Limited use with no garage is possibly your biggest thinking point. Any car benefits from good storage and regular use. A neighbour has a TVR he keeps in a rented garage. He'll keep it on his drive more often in summer than winter to save going to the garage. An outdoor cover will ge an absolute minimum A car coccoon better. A rented/borrowed garage better still.
VED is high for 5 years, SORN can help a bit for extended storage but you can miss out on fine winter days for driving.
My advice is not to treat it as a "fine weather car" but use it. Join your local MMC centre. Go now before buying to get feedback from members there. I think Oxmog is your local.
I've done 7k+ miles in year 1 with my Plus Four inc a tour of Scotland. Similar to previous Morgans. Year 2 is likely to ge higher with two Scotland trips planned plus other stays away. The Plus Four is a good tourer with a case on the luggage rack plus stuff on the shelf. Performance and ride are great. One warranty fix for a minor behind the dash problem. I chose the auto so have the choice of auto or manual paddle shift.
A chunk of money to buy but absolutely no regrets.

I've used leather offcuts from the factory for a long time. They sold a largish bag of leather for a fiver, in a range of colours, but sadly since the change in management they no longer do that.

During the migration period to the CX range, leather was sitll available, so I got some blue and whatever the other colour was from the launch Plus Six. As Simon mentioned above, this is much more similar to VW leather (for example), which is nowhere near as soft as Morgan leather once was. This is very obvious when trying to stretch a piece of leather over a curved surface. The thickness is crucial, and thinned hides stretch much more easily, but the later leathers I have are thin, but also appear to have a backing layer which makes them much harder to stretch. I have made some drinks coasters from the CX intro leathers, and they remain flat and without shrinkage, even when heated by a mug of tea. The older leather is much softer under those conditions, and would crease and get crumpled edges.

What you can take from this is that the current leathers will be hard wearing, like any other automotive leather, but whereas there was once a big difference in quality between Morgan leather and the rest, now I don't think you would see that. The VW leather in our Golf is very rigid and plasticky in comparison to the soft supple leather in both My Trads.

Leather will scuff. Rings, fingermails and keys, but is also repairable. It will sand down, it will fill, it will re-dye. Our son in law has just used a furniture clinic steering wheel repair kit (who knew?) on an old leather Golf wheel, and quite honestly it looks like new. Lacquered wood on the console will also scuff, so I don't think there's much to chose between the two.

I can't comment on the CX leather because I don't have insight into the source of it; however, I would be surprised if the new-MMC aren't using standard automotive grade leather, which like most modern equivalent leathers is designed to not alter in tone over time (aka pigment dyed and protected leather). Far less common is Aniline leather, which does have a tendency to change tone over time. Morgan would previously use any leather you wanted (for instance, I used a furniture leather for one Morgan I owned, which did age and gain patina) but due to lack of experience with the CX, I do not know whether they still allow this level of customisation - your dealer or MMC should be able to advise. With a standard, protected, auto leather, you will not achieve the patination you mention (unlike a saddle leather)

As for the tunnel, same as the seats, knees rubbing against them will cause marks to light leather. So all down to personal choice and the amount of time you want to spend cleaning!

Using the car will result in patination both exterior and interior. It's up to the individual to decide how much they accept and how much time/effort/ money they spend on maintenance.
Unless you coccoon the car and don't use it you will get marks.
This doesn't worry me as I want to drive the car so accept patination. Some is easy to treat, some need more effort. It's up to the individual to decide.
After 7.5k miles in year 1 I have touched up stone chips, cleaned the leather, washed/waxed etc. Having a garage makes this easier and prevents weathering issues.
I didn't spend £££££ to keep it tied up in a garage and depreciate. It has and will depreciate more but the enjoyment mitigates that. Morgans were one of the lower depreciation brands but not as good these days. Cars are not moving in the market and expectations of past depreciation- beating are no longer there. Owners are being over optimistic on selling value. A Morgan sitting and not used is a sizeable chunk of dead money that isn't increasing. Enjoyment is your payback.
Advice? Get what you like and deal with arising issues. Don't buy as an investment as that only applies to very few cars with exceptional provenance.

We have the ivory leather interior on ours I dont think i would have been brave enough to spec it from new, everybody have been very complimentary on the interior but its a bugger to keep clean and have some water marks on the sill. As previously mentioned they dont like jeans and I keep removing some tarnish on the bolster every other trip. My 2020 plus six seems quite a popular colour as it pops up on much of the recent Morgan Blurb.I personally would go for a darker colour but whichever you chose it's the drive that really matters. Em

Regular quick feed with a good leather conditioner helps fill any microscopic pores that could hold dirt, apply sparingly with one of those little polish sponges...leave overnight, quick buff next morning, takes just 10-15 mins total

It will literally add years to the lifespan and help retain the original colour

My 2022 P4 has cream leather has been driven roof down most of the time in dusty and wet conditions and the leather still looks great.

The key is to use a liquid leather shampoo when it looks a bit gruby and when dry, treat with a good leather conditioning cream.

I do not regret specifying cream leather at all despite constant harping by the neigh sayers.

I did go for the standard black carpet option, including the transmission tunnel as it was a standard cost option. Having seen others with 'optional' other carpet and tunnel finishes I am glad I stuck with the standard black. It works well, is durable and is the one area that takes maximum internal wear.

At the end of the day, a Morgan is a luxury toy so don't compromise on the finishes you really want, assuming you are buying new.

Dave, you need to make a coat and then I’ll start calling you Joseph!