Review: Morgan AeroMax
The sun is in the sky over dear old England, blue sky with no sign of rain. Perfect sports car weather, so you can imagine my excitement when given the opportunity to spend some time with the new Morgan AeroMax. The car was originally designed to be just a show peace, but it caused such a stir that Morgan manufactured a limited number. This very special car is just 1 of 100 ever manufactured. Morgan was founded way back in 1910 and specialised in rather strange looking three wheelers and it wasn’t until the 1950’s when the small British firm decided to add a fourth wheel. Time went by and Morgan remained that charming yet unheard of mark that still today remains solely British. The cross eyed Aero 8 appeared in 2000 and generated a large interest for Morgan, however the cars substructure was still made of wood.
Move forwards 10 years and I am faced with what appears to be the last true British sports car. The first thing you notice with the AeroMax, other than its obscure looks, is the attention to detail. This car was hand built in the Malvern factory by a small team of men. The huge contrast between this car and cars made by a swarm of people is the amount of care that has been polished into every aspect. Every curve, sill and handle has that rustic charm about it. It’s just breath-taking!
Obviously this car being the embodiment of a 100 year old company, it must bring its heritage into the present day. It does this by ditching the Ash that has supported the body all these years for aluminium panels. The V6’s of old have been replaced by a specially manufactured BMW 4.8 litre V8 block that produces 362BHP. This then is the charming country house that turns out to be a firework factory. The perfect sheep in wolfs clothing…
Hearing this car roar into life is like having a pride of lions invading your ears. Anybody who wasn’t looking in the AeroMax’s direction is now. The symphony of this cars 8 cylinders is one of the most amazing sounds I have ever heard. The deep base oscillates in your chest cavity whilst the higher revs stimulate your mind to torturous levels. Driving this car is a public service as children look on in wonderment as if you were Batman and adults gaze on in awe of this truly fantastic peace of engineering.
The cockpit is snug making the occupants really feel part of the machine that will shuttle them to 170MPH. I particularly loved the wheel as this is the one part of the car that connects the driver to the road, and the designers at Morgan know this very well. The entire car is perfectly weighted, leaping from corner to corner like a gazelle thanks to its miniscule 1180KG kerb weight.
All 100 example of this car have been sold for £110,000 however as I write this not a single car is for resale making its estimated value nearly three times what the original owner paid for it. And you know what? It’s worth every penny as what the guys at Morgan are selling you is not the world’s fastest, best looking high performance car the world has ever seen. But it is definitely one of the best driving experiences money can buy.
