Morgan GM Ecotec Conversion

I own a Morgan +8 that my father purchased new in the UK in 1970. Although it has always been a fun car, and only has 40,000 miles on it, it had begun to show some problems that severely detracted from its usability. The Rover (formerly GM) aluminum V8 was prone to severe overheating, and its power output (180 bhp nominal) was severely degraded by the detuning required to get it to run on present-day gasoline. The fuel tank was corroding on the inside, requiring the filter to be replaced about once a month. Furthermore, wear in the front suspension caused severe shimmying at highway speeds.

After considering various alternatives, I decided to ship the car to Isis Imports in California to have the Rover engine and archaic Moss gearbox replaced with a 4 cylinder 2.4 L General Motors Ecotec engine and 5-speed gearbox (think Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky). Other work to be done included rebuilding the front suspension, replacing all four shock absorbers, and completely going over the brakes. A brand new Morgan fuel tank was fitted.

The car came back a week ago, and it's fantastic. The power output of the engine is 177 bhp, and in the 1900 lb. car it provides lightning acceleration, even with a self-imposed break-in rev limit of 4500. The Morgan weighs about 1000 lbs. less than the Solstice, which in standard non-turbo form does 0-60 in 7.2 seconds. Based on that, I estimate the Morgan's 0-60 time to be somewhere in the sub six second range. The most surprising thing about the new engine is its torque. It pulls strongly from 2000 RPM in 4th gear, and if you change down to 3rd, hang on! The suspension tweaks have eliminated the shimmy and substantially improved the ride, and the new gearbox is a delight compared to the old Moss unit. The car is altogether much easier to drive and far more comfortable at freeway speeds than before. Oh, and it sounds great (of course a lot different from the V8).

If anyone's interested, I'll post some better photos and driving impressions as the car is broken in. It still needs paint and upholstery, but that can wait. It's just great to have the old car (and family heirloom) back in its present form!
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Ron:

Thank you for the compliment, and yes, she really does run "like a dream".

Without seeing "your" car, it's difficult to say what it might be worth. A mint condition 4/4 would likely bring in the region of $20-22K in USD. Keep in mind that if the car really has been sitting for 35 years, it might need a lot of work, the cost of which should come off the price.

I haven't really needed to source very many parts, but I've heard good things about these folks:

http://www.morgan-spares.com/

Of course, there's also Isis Imports, but they're out on the west coast.

Keep me in the loop if you do decide to buy that car, or any Morgan.

Here's a really good Morgan forum that I just found out about:

www.talkmorgan.com

Dan

 

I would recommend throwing this question to the talkmorgan "Classic Morgans" forum. You'll find a much greater pool of knowledge than I can provide, and it won't cost you a dime.

 

Oh, well... That guy must have really wanted the car. Shipping charges alone must be well over $5K. If I hear of any for sale I'll send you a PM.

I agree that the price sounds a bit steep for a car that is undoubtedly going to need quite a lot of attention. The seller must be pretty happy, assuming the deal goes through.

Dan