Lot Ended
Description
1978 Morgan Plus 8
A highly original car
with just 6,846 miles from new; just two owners - the last for 43
years; plenty of bills and history
Introduced
in 1968, the Plus 8 became such an instant and enduring success that it not only
provided the bedrock on which Morgan could build for the future, it quite
possibly saved the company from going under at a difficult time in its long
history.
Morgan’s
first big-engined car, it was powered by the new Rover 3.5-litre all-alloy V8, a
re-engineered version of the Buick 215 block. Race car engineer Maurice Owen was
taken on to develop the Plus 8 which used a widened and strengthened version of
the Plus 4 chassis.
The
Salisbury 7HA axle was uprated with a limited slip differential and a new Moss
4-speed gearbox fitted to cope with the extra power (although from 1972 the
somewhat graunchy Moss ‘box was replaced by a smoother all-synchcro 4-speed unit
from the Rover 3500S). The bodywork was also widened to accommodate the larger
wheels and tyres that were required.
Weighing
only 850kg and with some 170bhp and 210lb/ft of torque on tap, the Plus 8
immediately became Britain’s fastest-accelerating production car, sprinting to
60mph in a shade over 6 seconds. The Plus 8 remained in production until 2004 by
which time some 3,506 examples had been sold, although the model has
subsequently been reintroduced, now sporting a radial aluminium chassis and BMW
V8 engine.
The
original bill of sale tells us that this Plus 8 was sold by Malvern Sports
Cars to Mr Lyons of Liverpool and invoiced on 6th February 1978.
He paid extra for a bonnet strap and stone leather upholstery, the total bill
coming to £6,147.89.
As
was often the case back then, he sold it on almost straight away (presumably for
a nice mark-up), its new owner – our vendor acquiring the vehicle on
20th February of that year – just 17 days after initial delivery with
300 miles on the clock.
Multiple
invoices on file show regular service and maintenance over the years, with
regular work done to the brakes as is often the case with cars that see such
little use. There are 19 MOTs on file which help corroborate the minimal
mileage, but as its been in the owner’s hands from just a few days old, the
mileage is warranted as genuine at just 6,857miles.
It
has worn a personalised plate for most of its life – 1000K which could
be reunited with the car if so desired as it is on offer later in this
sale.
Complete
with hood, tonneau, sidescreens and sidescreen bag, it sits on correct Cobra
Slot alloys and is painted in ‘period’ and now very fashionable ‘70s livery. It
appears to have been resprayed at some time in its life although
this is not documented on file. This incredibly low mileage Plus 8’s
most recent MOT expired in 2019 (now exempt of course) and it certainly looks
the part – with the usual blemishes one would expect of a 43 year old
car.
Now
that the factory have stopped making Morgans with traditional chassis’, this
looks like an ideal opportunity to get hold of a very low mileage example
and relive the best bits of the 1970s…..
For
more information – contact matthew.parkin@brightwells.com
* All charges are subject to VAT