Morgan the cars and the factory, by John Tipler. Crowood, £19.95.

July 7, 2014

If this had appeared five years ago I would have been impressed; it’s wide-ranging, readable and well illustrated in Crowood’s attractive AutoClassic style. There is a history, plus tables, roadtests, and comments from Charles and Peter of that ilk.

But after seeing so many Morgan books I searched for anything much new in it, except that I learned the names of some of the Morgan workforce and some esoteric details of assembly. The factory chapters are minutely, indeed obsessivly detailed – we are even told what grade of wet-and-dry is used on the primer. Fans will wallow in it.

But there is a contradiction, too: the overall tone is positively panegyric, implying that Morgans are the only “real” cars left and somehow better than modern cars for being built with pre-war methods. Yet a section on development work describes attempts to improve access, ergonomics, storage, ride, drag, safety and looks. Let’s just admit it: Morgans are silly cars which happen to be great fun.

G C

 

• Patrick Stephens has brought up to date and republished Life At The Limit by Graham Hill, with a Foreword by Damon. You can enjoy Graham’s 255-page book for £16.99. W B

Gordon Cruickshank

Deputy editor

Bravely ignoring his degree in industrial design after discovering night rallies in a Renault 8, GC joined Motor Sport by accident, in the Teesdale days around 1982 when Jenks and WB were office regulars and Mr Tee ruled with a rod of cardboard. He took part in some of the early historic rallies, winning one of the Pirelli Marathons, and regularly runs his Mk2 Jaguar in road events.

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