1964 Morgan Plus 4 Plus

Morgan +4+ (Coupe), 1964-1967

The Morgan +4+ was in production from 1964 to 1967. Styled in house, it is a front-engine, rear wheel drive sports car seating two adults.

We may think of Morgans as a little stick-in-the-mud today, but the company has attempted to diversify. The +4+ was effectively a standard +4 chassis, complete with Triumph TR4 spec four cylinder engine, but clothed in a modern fibreglass shell in place of the hand crafted aluminium of the roadster. With up to date if slightly unconventional styling and more space than the equivalent roadster model, the car was sure to be a success. Except that it wasn't. At £1276 it was 50% more expensive than a standard +4 model, and buyers used to Morgan's old fashioned ways didn't want to spend Rover 2000 or Austin Healey 3000 money on what they saw as an inferior car. It lasted three short years with just 26 being built, before Morgan discontinued the car in favour of the forthcoming Plus 8 design.

Today, buyers should be aware that the +4+, despite its rarity, is little harder to look after than a standard +4. The chassis is the same, complete with sliding pillar and leaf spring suspension, but where the roadster has an ash-framed aluminium body, the +4+ offered buyers a glassfibre shell. This of course means there's no wood to rot, potentially saving money - but brings with it the challenges of glassfibre cracking and crazing. Check the chassis for corrosion in any of the box sections. Mechanically, they're fairly hardy machines - the Triumph engine is reliable if maintained properly, and the rest is basic technology. If the shell is okay - given the rarity - it would be silly to find minor faults.

In period the only real alternative for similar money was the Gilbern 1800GT, with its MGB derived drivetrain under a similar GRP shell. Today though, the +4+ buyer is likely to be so focused on his prize that no other alternative will suffice - with so few made it's not a car you buy on a whim. If you're struggling to find one, a Lotus Elite or Elan might make an interesting consolation prize - alternatively, you might want to consider the unusual Reliant Sabre Six.