1973 Morgan PLUS 8

First registered on the 1st of July 1973, this fabulous Morgan Plus 8 has clearly been loved and cherished by its five owners having had a fortune lavished on it over the years in order to keep it looking smart and running better than ever, not least a complete rebuild in 2012 which included new chassis, frame and engine! Looking at the car and through its invoices, leads us to believe that this Morgan has had more money spent on it, and works done, than any other in the past decade. It is a pleasure to sell, and should offer a superb purchase to all you aficionados out there who demand ‘the best’.

Other work includes a recent respray, a tuned 3.6-litre Rover V8 engine from acknowledged experts, JE Developments, a reconditioned gearbox, and AVO dampers on all four corners. There’s a full roll-cage from Andy Robinson Race Cars too, a vital piece of safety equipment that supplements the door bars, Tillett GRP race seats, and racing harnesses.

Are you surprised at the level of work that’s been carried out in the last 10 yeasr? You won’t be when you see the bills; these tot up to almost £60,000, which some say is about par for the course when you rebuild a car to HSCC 70’s Road Sports Championship specification…

Maybe not one for the purist, it would be ideal for the Morgan enthusiast looking for an exciting multi-role car that’s as comfortable touring Europe as it is competing in your local hillclimb. Docile enough to trundle to Waitrose without complaint but quick enough to set new records in the right hands it’s available for less than you might think.

Fresh from a full respray by Classic Car Restorations in August 2018, the Ivory coachwork might be minimal but it looks fabulous. Largely, if not completely, aluminium, it’s as light as it is consistent while retaining at least an element of practicality.

There’s a delightful mix of the old and the new, the original and the functional and we love the juxtaposition of items such as the twin alloy fuel filler caps and LED rear rain light. The battery master cut-off switch/fire suppression system handle and the minimalist rear over-riders. The hefty roll-cage and the delicate windscreen frame. It’s an absolute delight and we can’t imagine ever walking away from it without glancing back…

There are side screens in place plus a removeable fabric roof. Both are in an excellent condition but while they were touted by Morgan as providing weather protection, if you expect to keep warm and dry no matter what the season then may we respectfully point you towards a Mazda MX-5 while suggesting that the life of a Morgan owner may not be for you?

The genuine 15-inch Minilite alloy wheels are in a great condition and they’re finished in contrasting black. Fitted with a full set of 205/50R15 Toyo R888 Proxes tyres too, all of which have a decent level of tread, at least by the standards of this competition-biased tyre.

As we will never tire of explaining, our experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly. Their presence does not, of course, preclude the need for a thorough inspection - something the vendor would welcome, by the way – but it does perhaps give you a shortcut into their attitude towards maintenance.

Problems? None really. Sure, there is the odd stonechip and mark but there’s nothing there that would worry us at all.

The interior is, just like the outside, a wonderful blend of the aesthetic and the practical, so you’ll find a Mota-Lita steering wheel sitting comfortably alongside a high-tech Stack digital rev counter, and the original toggle switches cheek-by-jowl with a red-capped ignition switch. Whoever spec’d this car did a fabulous job.

The pedals might be a work of art but the FIA-spec seats are strictly functional which, given the car’s previous and likely future roles, is how it must be. Only minimally padded, the vendor assures us that they’re more comfortable than they look. Their support is, of course, beyond question, a role the OMP and Willans harnesses contribute to in no small way.

Faults? Well, there are a few small rips in the vinyl covering of the centre console but there’s bugger-all room in there, so this sort of thing is entirely consistent with the Morgan lifestyle. However, if it bothers you then recovering the affected area wouldn’t be hard or expensive. It’s fabulous.

The 3.6-litre was fitted in 2012. Built and installed by very well-known Rover V8 specialists JE Developments, the dyno run showed it producing 252bhp and 223lb/ft of torque, or a good 100bhp more than standard. The set-up includes an 85-litre foam-filled fuel tank.

We’ve driven it and were struck by a couple of things: the first is that it makes a lovely noise and goes like stink, while the second is that the engine, while powerful and rorty, is very tractable and torquey, making it easy to drive at low speed around town. The vendor is very experienced with high-performance cars, but still singled this one out for its shattering, but accessible performance. It never failed to raise a smile.

Previous significant work includes a bill for £5,860 from Richard Thorne in 2015. This work was, as you might have guessed now you know who did it, comprehensive and included a spin-on oil filter conversion, a reconditioned gearbox, a battery master switch, two new halfshafts, and some brake fettling in addition to tuning the carburettors.

The same firm carried out over £5,500-worth of work a couple of years earlier; please see the invoices for details. The car’s previous owner lavished even more on the car, spending around £20,000 with RPM (Scotland) Ltd on having the car rebuilt and modified in 2012. Please see the invoice for the full details – but set aside some time to read it as there’s a lot to absorb including a new bodyframe and chassis…

The engine bay is very clean and neatly organized but then you’d expect that given its role and maintenance, wouldn’t you? It’s the same story underneath with plenty of evidence of recent expenditure and no rust or corrosion.

The Morgan comes with a few spares too; please see the photos for details of what is included but the package does include a set of four black-painted Minilite alloy wheels and tyres.

It has a number of expired MOT certificates plus a thick sheaf of invoices and bills to confirm the work that has been done to it over the years, work that the vendor totted up and arrived at a figure of £58,000 – in the last ten years alone.

It also two sets of keys, a Historic Technical Passport and an HSCC Identity Form plus a safety certificate for the Andy Robinson Race Cars roll-cage. We understand it has completed just a couple of races a few years ago.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to a very good standard.

The Morgan doesn’t have a current MOT certificate, it’s previous pass – with no advisories – having expired in March 2019. While it is exempt by virtue of its age, we would strongly encourage the new owner to have the car re-MOT’d at the earliest. The cost of an MOT is a small investment when offset against the purchase and upkeep of any classic car, and it gives an independent, third-party assessment of the car’s condition, which not only provides reassurance to the owner (and any subsequent purchasers) but might also be invaluable in the event of a bump when negotiating with the police and any interested insurance companies…

If you’d like to inspect the car prior to placing a bid – something we would encourage – then please use the Contact Seller button to arrange an appointment.

Morgans have something of a cult following for a good reason; they look terrific with a retro charm that evokes all that’s good about hairy-chested British roadsters.

And yet, there’s so much more to them than old school engineering because few marques offer a better solution to meet all your classic motoring needs.

Take this 1971 Morgan Plus 8, for example. Capable of competing at the highest levels on a hillclimb circuit of your choice, you could drive it away and across Europe without pause – and that sort of versatility and competence is far from common. The vendor says that when looking at buying this car, he spoke to a number of Morgan ‘experts’ who all agreed that the spec and condition of this one was ‘very special’.

Not that this sort of quality comes cheap; we think this one will sell for between £40,000 and £50,000, which we can all agree is a hefty chunk of money.

But, this represents less than has been spent on the car in the last ten years on maintenance and refurbishment alone – and cars like this are always in demand, so you might do very well out of it in the medium to long-term when the time comes to let it go…

So, if you’ve ever promised yourself a car to place at the centre of your life, then this might just be it. Running beautifully and looking terrific, it is your passport to the Morgan lifestyle, a lifestyle that most of us have dreamed of at one time or another.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.