2002 MORGAN PLUS 8

Property of a Gentleman.

The last few decades have seen a number of retro-styled relaunches of popular cars, with BMWs, Mini and Fiat’s 500 perhaps the most frequent, whilst most recently the Renault 5 has gained acclaim with its stylistic homage to the original. Yet there is only one manufacturer that builds a car so similar to its original, that it couldn’t even be called retro. The family owned Morgan Car Company, restricted by its status as a low-volume manufacturer, kept the styling classic and the upgrades between the seasoned ash-framed chassis, minimal. New models like the Aero 8 kept the marque in the spotlight, whilst the Plus 8 kept the demographic happy.

In the mid 1960s, Morgan was granted access to Rover’s newly acquired ex-Buick lightweight aluminium V8 engine with a view to cementing a supply contract. Hired by the Malvern Works to assess the powerplant's merits/suitability, race engineer, Maurice Owen, lost little time in shoehorning one into a Morgan Plus 4 chassis. With trials of the resultant prototype successfully undertaken in 1967, the Plus 8 debuted at the following year's Earls Court Motor Show.

Its lengthy production run has seen the Plus 8 alter little in outward appearance, save for ever-widening wheel arches accommodating fatter rubber, yet beneath the skin the changes have been innumerable. Better gearboxes, fuel-injection, rack and pinion steering, improved corrosion protection and paint, telescopic rear dampers, airbags and the obligatory catalytic converter have all become part of the Plus 8 picture over the years, along with, of course, bigger engines to offset the inevitable increase in weight and a growing desire for comfort from a growing population. However, no matter how powerful or sophisticated the Plus 8 became, it still remains a 'real Morgan' to this day in the eyes of any fan of quintessentially British classics.

As stated by the original confirmation letter and the Morgan Motor Company Chassis Record Certificate on file, this car was ordered on 6th November 2001 in right-hand drive, finished in Royal Ivory with tan leather upholstery and supplied with a Sand-coloured PVC hood, spare wheel cover and side screen bag. Additional remarks include chrome wire wheels, Walnut dashboard, centre instrument panel trimmed in leather, speakers and aerial, extra-tread rubber and lastly, rather handily, door handles. The car was registered to the first of its two recorded keepers on 1st January 2002 and remained with the first owner until 2020 when it joined a carefully curated Collection of low-mileage British sporting motor cars.

Used sparingly over the years, the MOT records show incremental mileage increases and despite having travelled just 261 miles since its last service, the car will be given a fresh service prior to the auction. With an odometer reading, at the time of cataloguing, of just 8,261 miles it's presented to auction with an advisory-free MOT certificate valid until 23rd March 2026, the aforementioned factory correspondence, stamped handbook, historic MOTs, maintenance receipts, the current V5C and its blue predecessor.