Morgan Model History

1969
Twin exhaust outlets fitted to the Plus 8.

1970
The Plus 8 gains US type approval.

1971
All 4/4 cars are fitted with the Ford 1600GT engine previously fitted in the ‘competition model’.

1972
The Plus 8 is fitted with the Rover 4-speed all-synchromesh gear box.

1975
A Plus 8 Sports Lightweight is offered in addition to the standard model. Only 19 were built.

1976
The Plus 8 gets the Rover SDI engine and the 5 speed Rover gear box. The car width was increased to 62inch to take the 6inch by 14inch wheels. The engine produced 155 bhp at 5,250 revs. The price in 1977 was (basic) £5,095 plus for the ‘lucky’ ones in the UK £424.58 special car tax and £441.57 VAT.

1981
4/4 Twin Cam launched as an alternative model fitted with Fiat’s twin-cam 1600 engine.

1982
The 4/4 is now fitted with a Ford CVH engine of 1597 c.c. taken from the Escort XR3 with modifications to fit a ‘north south’ installation and a Cortina gearbox. Power was 96 bhp at 6,000 rpm giving a 0 to 60 mph time of around 10.0 seconds. Price including UK taxes was £7,244.52 depending on specification.

1983
Fuel injection becomes an option on the Plus 8. Power is now 190 bhp at 5,280 rpm. Price was around £13,000.00 including UK taxes. In a Performance Car magazine road test the author writes ‘After our drive, photographer Peter Robain and I arrived back at Malvern Link, cold, senses battered by the gale blowing into the cockpit, irreparably dishevelled, but grinning from ear to ear.’ Haven’t we all!
4/4 is fitted with the Capri/Sierra five-speed gear box.

1984
Cam Gear steering box discontinued. Rack & pinion on +8, Gemmer steering box on remainder.

1985
The Plus 4 is re-launched fitted with a Fiat 2.0 litre twin-cam fuel injected engine, 5 speed gearbox and Cobra style wire wheels. Maximum power was 122 bhp at 5,300 rpm with a maximum speed of around 112 mph. Price was just under £11,000.00. A road test at the time said ‘ Yes, the ride is harsh. Yes, it shakes, rattles and rolls over the lumpy bits of the road. But that, precisely, is its appeal. If you cannot understand all that, you never will, no matter how much I write.’

1987
Fuel injected engine becomes a standard fitting on the Plus 8

1988
Plus 4 M16 introduced with a Rover 2.0 litre M16 engine and Rover 5 speed gearbox. This engine increased the bhp to 140 at 6000 rpm. Price was now around £13,500.

1990
Wire wheels become standard on Four Fours.
Plus 8 fitted with Rover 3.9 engine as used in the Range Rover Vogue SE producing 190 bhp at 4,750 rpm with maximum torque of 235 lb ft at 2,600 rpm. Autocar wrote ‘It offers a tactile experience entirely absent from the cocooned opulence of so many of today’s executive cars. Drive a Morgan quickly and the driver gets a real sense of achievement. It sets the pulse racing.’ Price in the UK with the normal extras was £25,341.00.
Sir John Harvey-Jones visited MMC as part of the BBC TV programme Trouble Shooter. Need I say more?

1991
The Plus 8 gets Gabriel rear telescopic dampers to replace the lever-arm units.
The Four 4 is fitted with Ford’s 1600 fuel injected engine and 5 speed gearbox. The Plus 4 adopts the Plus 8’s wider chassis.

1992
The Plus 4’s M16 Rover engine is replaced with the T16 Rover engine.

1993
Four Four is now fitted with Ford’s 1800 Zetec engine and five speed gearbox. Power output was 114 bhp at 5,750 rpm. This gave it a top speed of around 111 mph and a 0 to 60 mph time of about 7.8 seconds. A road test at the time said, ‘And boy does the chassis communicate, yapping away like Ruby Wax, telling you things you’d rather not know about the road surface. And somewhere in all that cacophony there are messages that will get you around that next corner in one piece.’ Price was £16,256.00.
Plus 8 now available with the factory option of wire wheels. Front discs get 4 pot callipers and a direct acting in-line servo.

1994
Plus 4 and Plus 8 fitted with Rover’s improved R380 gearbox.

1997
4.6 litre engine for the Plus 8 becomes an option. Producing 220 bhp at 5,000 rpm and increasing torque to 260lb ft at 3,600 rpm. With almost every extra going, including air bags, the price was now just under £38,000.00. Autocar wrote ‘However much you want to slam the Morgan for its outdated dynamics and chronic ergonomics, it is hard not to be won over by the skill of the craftsmanship and the undiluted character of the driving experience. You are not merely buying a car but a perfectly preserved piece of motoring history.’
A number of production improvement where introduced including aluminium superform wings (all except the 4/4), longer doors, redesigned facia to allow for airbags and generally improved materials throughout.

1999
The four-seater version of the 4/4 is re-launched with rear bucket seats as opposed to the earlier bench seat.

2000
With Rover’s T16 engine no longer available productions of the Plus 4 ceases.
The Aero 8 is launched at the Geneva Motor Show. Complete with a bespoke aluminium chassis, all independent suspension and powered by a 4.4 litre MBW V8 engine producing 286 bhp at 5.500 rpm this was a radical departure from the traditionally build Morgans. Its styling was controversial and it was definitely in the love it or hate it category. Performance was 0 to 60 mph in 4.8 seconds with a top speed of 151 mph.

USA Specification Aero 8

4/4 Anniversary Edition
4/4 70th Anniversary

2006
4/4 70th Anniversary Edition announced. Just 142 cars will be built - two cars for every year of its production life since launch. Each car individually marked with the year it honours, and finished in period style. The price (April 2006) was £27,950.00 including VAT.


1973 Plus 8	1969 Twin exhaust outlets fitted to the Plus 8. 1970 The Plus 8 gains US type approval. 1971 All 4/4 cars are fitted with the Ford 1600GT engine previously fitted in the ‘competition model’.
1973 4/4	1972 The Plus 8 is fitted with the Rover 4-speed all-synchromesh gear box. 1975 A Plus 8 Sports Lightweight is offered in addition to the standard model. Only 19 were built. 1976 The Plus 8 gets the Rover SDI engine and the 5 speed Rover gear box. The car width was increased to 62inch to take the 6inch by 14inch wheels. The engine produced 155 bhp at 5,250 revs. The price in 1977 was (basic) £5,095 plus for the ‘lucky’ ones in the UK £424.58 special car tax and £441.57 VAT. 1981 4/4 Twin Cam launched as an alternative model fitted with Fiat’s twin-cam 1600 engine.
1982 4/4	1982 The 4/4 is now fitted with a Ford CVH engine of 1597 c.c. taken from the Escort XR3 with modifications to fit a ‘north south’ installation and a Cortina gearbox. Power was 96 bhp at 6,000 rpm giving a 0 to 60 mph time of around 10.0 seconds. Price including UK taxes was £7,244.52 depending on specification. 1983 Fuel injection becomes an option on the Plus 8. Power is now 190 bhp at 5,280 rpm. Price was around £13,000.00 including UK taxes. In a Performance Car magazine road test the author writes ‘After our drive, photographer Peter Robain and I arrived back at Malvern Link, cold, senses battered by the gale blowing into the cockpit, irreparably dishevelled, but grinning from ear to ear.’ Haven’t we all! 4/4 is fitted with the Capri/Sierra five-speed gear box. 1984 Cam Gear steering box discontinued. Rack & pinion on +8, Gemmer steering box on remainder.
1985 Plus 4	1985 The Plus 4 is re-launched fitted with a Fiat 2.0 litre twin-cam fuel injected engine, 5 speed gearbox and Cobra style wire wheels. Maximum power was 122 bhp at 5,300 rpm with a maximum speed of around 112 mph. Price was just under £11,000.00. A road test at the time said ‘ Yes, the ride is harsh. Yes, it shakes, rattles and rolls over the lumpy bits of the road. But that, precisely, is its appeal. If you cannot understand all that, you never will, no matter how much I write.’ 1987 Fuel injected engine becomes a standard fitting on the Plus 8
1989 Plus 4	1988 Plus 4 M16 introduced with a Rover 2.0 litre M16 engine and Rover 5 speed gearbox. This engine increased the bhp to 140 at 6000 rpm. Price was now around £13,500. 1990 Wire wheels become standard on Four Fours. Plus 8 fitted with Rover 3.9 engine as used in the Range Rover Vogue SE producing 190 bhp at 4,750 rpm with maximum torque of 235 lb ft at 2,600 rpm. Autocar wrote ‘It offers a tactile experience entirely absent from the cocooned opulence of so many of today’s executive cars. Drive a Morgan quickly and the driver gets a real sense of achievement. It sets the pulse racing.’ Price in the UK with the normal extras was £25,341.00. Sir John Harvey-Jones visited MMC as part of the BBC TV programme Trouble Shooter. Need I say more?
1992 Plus 8	1991 The Plus 8 gets Gabriel rear telescopic dampers to replace the lever-arm units. The Four 4 is fitted with Ford’s 1600 fuel injected engine and 5 speed gearbox. The Plus 4 adopts the Plus 8’s wider chassis. 1992 The Plus 4’s M16 Rover engine is replaced with the T16 Rover engine. 1993 Four Four is now fitted with Ford’s 1800 Zetec engine and five speed gearbox. Power output was 114 bhp at 5,750 rpm. This gave it a top speed of around 111 mph and a 0 to 60 mph time of about 7.8 seconds. A road test at the time said, ‘And boy does the chassis communicate, yapping away like Ruby Wax, telling you things you’d rather not know about the road surface. And somewhere in all that cacophony there are messages that will get you around that next corner in one piece.’ Price was £16,256.00. Plus 8 now available with the factory option of wire wheels. Front discs get 4 pot callipers and a direct acting in-line servo. 1994 Plus 4 and Plus 8 fitted with Rover’s improved R380 gearbox.
1997 Plus 8	1997 4.6 litre engine for the Plus 8 becomes an option. Producing 220 bhp at 5,000 rpm and increasing torque to 260lb ft at 3,600 rpm. With almost every extra going, including air bags, the price was now just under £38,000.00. Autocar wrote ‘However much you want to slam the Morgan for its outdated dynamics and chronic ergonomics, it is hard not to be won over by the skill of the craftsmanship and the undiluted character of the driving experience. You are not merely buying a car but a perfectly preserved piece of motoring history.’ A number of production improvement where introduced including aluminium superform wings (all except the 4/4), longer doors, redesigned facia to allow for airbags and generally improved materials throughout. 1999 The four-seater version of the 4/4 is re-launched with rear bucket seats as opposed to the earlier bench seat.
2000 Aero 8	2000 With Rover’s T16 engine no longer available productions of the Plus 4 ceases. The Aero 8 is launched at the Geneva Motor Show. Complete with a bespoke aluminium chassis, all independent suspension and powered by a 4.4 litre MBW V8 engine producing 286 bhp at 5.500 rpm this was a radical departure from the traditionally build Morgans. Its styling was controversial and it was definitely in the love it or hate it category. Performance was 0 to 60 mph in 4.8 seconds with a top speed of 151 mph.
Aero 8 GT(N)	2002 The Aero 8 GT(N) racer was launched at Autosport International. Powered by a Heini Mader-prepared, dry-sump BMW M62 V8, with water/oil heat exchanger it produced 500 bhp at 6,900 rpm. It could be yours for £180,000. Le Mans ’62 commemorative editions announced available in Plus 8 and 4/4 versions. 40 of each version to be built at a price of £39,900 for the Plus 8 and £27,500 for the 4/4. Morgan returned to Le Mans with the DeWalt/RSS Aero 8 GT(N). It succumbed to engine failure after 17½ hours.
2003 Runabout	2003 New entry level Morgan launched. Named the Runabout it was available in 3 standard colours only with a standard no-option specification. The price was £22,000 around £2,500 less than the 4/4. It could be recognised by the reduced number of bonnets louvers. After 35 years of production Morgan announced the Anniversary Plus 8. Around 200 of this version were sold. Limited Edition Aero 8 GT Coupé announced.
USA Specification Aero 8	2004 The new USA Specification Aero 8 was launched at the 2004 Los Angeles Motor Show. Now using the latest BMW M62 V8 engine it also had a wider body and a slightly modified rear end. Price (excluding VAT) was £58,500. With the demise of the Rover V8 engine due to it being unable to meet current emission regulations the final Plus 8’s were built. In production for 36 years the Plus 8 was Morgan’s largest selling model with around 6,000 being built. Morgan returned to Le Mans after the disappointment of 2003. The Aero 8 finishes the 24 hour race but fails to complete sufficient laps. The ESCRA prize for best technical assistance crew in the race was awarded to 4 members of the Morgan team. The Runabout ceased production.
2004 Roadster	The Roadster is launched at the British Motor Show as a replacement for the Plus 8. Powered by Ford’s 3.0 litre V6 engine, as used in the Mondeo ST220, it produces 225 bhp with a claimed 0 to 60 mph figure of 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 134 mph. Price (basic) including VAT was £34991.50 as at November 2004. A ‘lightweight’ version of the Roadster is also launched ready for immediate action on the track. Weighing in at approximately 850 Kg and with an engine output rated at around 248 bhp and 300 Nm (221lbs ft) torque it promised a hot performance. Price was £29,373.83 as at November 2004.
2004 Plus 4	The Plus 4 is re-launched using the latest 2.0 litre Ford Duratec engine. Producing some 145 bhp it, as MMC says, perfectly bridges the gap between the 4/4 and the superb new Roadster. Prices are from £28,111.88 as at November 2004. A four-seater version will be available as from early summer 2005. As of November 2004 no prices have been announced for this version.
2005 Roadster	2005 Production of Plus 4 four-seater put back until early 2006. North American Roadster announced. Only 82 examples will be available for delivery between December 2005 to February 2006 at a price of $73,950 plus shipping and local taxes. Standard equipment includes driver and passenger air bags, air conditioning, leather upholstery, folding and reclining sports seats, stainless wire wheels, walnut dashboard and even chrome door handles!
Aeromax	The unique Morgan Aeromax is commissioned by Prince Eric I. Sturdza, President of Banque Baring Brothers Suisse. Aluminium wheels become a NCO on the Plus 4.
LIFECar Project	LIFECar project announced which promises to demonstrate an efficient high performance fuel cell sports car within three years. Click here for details.
4/4 70th Anniversary	2006 4/4 70th Anniversary Edition announced. Just 142 cars will be built - two cars for every year of its production life since launch. Each car individually marked with the year it honours, and finished in period style. The price (April 2006) was £27,950.00 including VAT.
New Aero 8	New Aero 8 Launched. The most striking change was the restyled front, that bore more than a passing resemblance to the graceful lines of the AeroMax coupe that starred at the 2005 Salon de L’auto at Geneva. The all-aluminium super performer now sports more traditional Morgan lines, whilst preserving its remarkable handling and performance. Powered by a BMW 4.4 litre V8 producing 325 Bhp and 331 lb/ft torque. 0 to 62 mph was under 4.5 seconds. It cost £62,500 (including VAT) at April 2006.
New 4 Seater	New 4 seater launched. Long awaited by aficionados, the 4 seater made a welcome return with a raft of new specification, options and for the first time in its 70-year history, engine choice. The Morgan 4 seater had never been available with a range topping engine – until now. Unveiled at the Salon de L’auto in Geneva, Morgan introduced a 223 Bhp version, giving this model the highest power to weight ratio of any open 4 seater on the market. Two engine variants were available, a lusty 145 Bhp 2.0 in the +4 4 seater, and the smooth and powerful 3.0 V6 in the Roadster 4 seater, both using versions of Ford’s well proven Duratec engine delivering performance, economy and reliability which compliment the sheer practicality of this new model. The Plus 4 version was priced at (April 2006) just over £32,000 and the Roadster version at just over £39,000 including VAT.
	A limited run of just 100 individually numbered coach built Aeromax coupes was announced in June. Cars to be constructed at 1 or 2 a week with the final model leaving the production lines in Morgan's Centenary year - 2009. Pricing was anticipated to be around £94,000 + VAT and would be supplied strictly on a first come first served basis.