If the point of the Morgan Supersport was to appeal to a different sort of buyer, I’d say it’s job done. I’m told traditional Morgan buyers find the more modern, ever-so-slightly Art Deco styling of this new model quite challenging. The chap who stumbled upon us on our photoshoot in South Wales whilst out and about in his Plus Four – a traditional Morgan by any measure – took one look, muttered ‘confirmed my suspicions…’ and wandered off again.
It’s a dangerous game to play. If your customary fanbase feels alienated by a new car, even betrayed by it, and that different sort of buyer doesn’t flock to your door, the damage can be irreparable. Morgan is gambling that there’s just enough underlying appeal in the very idiosyncratic sports cars that roll out of its charming red brick factory in Malvern among – dare I say it? – younger enthusiasts that the only nudge they need to actually become paying customers is a more up to date look. And some genuine sports car dynamics too perhaps.
Available funds aside, I’m a reasonable case in point. Before this car arrived, no part of me had ever truly desired a Morgan. Now I do. There’s the look of the thing, for instance. I love it. There’s no doubting what it is, but the old Morgan aesthetic has been updated so artfully and with such a neat, minimalist touch I wouldn’t worry about any ‘old man’ jibes were it parked on my drive. There’s a young design team in Malvern these days, and this is what happens when you hand an automotive institution over to a bunch of millennials. I’m all for it.
