As I have a few friends who are serious Morgan motor vehicle fans, both of whom have raced them in Tarmac Rallies and performed well, I’ve always been a bit interested in Morgan Motor Company and am continually amazed that they are actually still in business.
Morgan was founded in Malvern, England in 1910 by Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan when he designed and built a three wheeled car for his own use. Prior to this he had developed the first independent front suspension in the engineering shop of Malvern College. Initially production prospered as the sales of three-wheelers approached 1000 by World War I with the first four-wheeler being released in 1935.
Today the Morgan Motor Company is owned by a British investment group Investindustry, is still located in Malvern, employs approximately 250 people, who produce 850 cars per year, and they are still all assembled by hand.
Morgan cars are unusual in that wood has been used in their construction for over a century and contrary to some stories, they have never had a wooden chasis, but the Ash was always used – and still is – for the frame that sits on top of the chassis with the body panels mounted to it. In fact, you can see the grain of the wood if you open the bonnet and look at the front bulkhead.
So, I was interested to see the latest motoring news out of England that announced the release of the brand-new light weight, high performance roadster that is the successor to the Morgan Plus Six – the Morgan Supersport, a 3.0 litre turbo BMW-engined sportscar which goes from 0 to 100kmh in 4 seconds, tops out around 270 km/h and will set you back around $220,000 Australian. Which targets it straight at the Porsche market.
According to Morgan Motor Company CEO Matthew Hole, “We’ve really focused on making this a car that you can jump in and grab by the scruff of the neck, and just really, really drive, and we’ve hopefully put as many features into the car that means you want to do that all the time rather than some of the time”.
To which British Top Gear journalist Vijay Pattni questions– “Is it a genuine long-ball attempt at transforming the range-topping Morgan from a weekend-when-the-weather’s-just-right-and-the-moon-is-in-retrograde car, to something that’d make you pause before going into a Porsche dealership”.
Richard Hammond Unveils the All-New Morgan Supersport – DPCars
Time will tell as to how successful the Morgan Motor Company will be with their new flagship model, the Supersport and will it take the company into a more financially secure era. It appears that the British motoring press are fully supportive of the new car and management approach to the future.
Brand new Morgan Supersport is VERY expensive and not electric – autotrader.co.uk
PS … I’m also thrilled it’s not electric!
