This piece was sent to us by our friend Christopher Silvestri who runs Christopher John, LTD down in Florida. They are the U.S.’s newest Morgan dealer, and like us, have high hopes for the reintroduction of new 4-wheeled Morgan cars to our shores.
With the Passing of the new replica law, the Morgan V6 Roadster’s return to the U.S. is on the not too distant horizon! And this Daytona area Morgan dealer is ready.
While it has been hard for the Morgan Car Company to bring four wheel cars into the U.S. due to stringent emissions and safety laws in recent years, a new law passed in December of 2015 is allowing Morgan dealers to begin gearing up for new four-wheeled Morgan cars later this year.
The classic Morgan range fits into the “replica” area of the law with brand new vehicles as long as they resemble cars made at least 25 years ago. The law stipulates that the manufacturer must produce less than 5000 units annually and can sell only 325 of the “replica” cars a year. The non-legal side of this is that the ruling sets the wheels in motion for the classic range of Morgan cars to be sold again in the states.
We here at Christopher John LTD, the Morgan dealer in the Daytona Beach area of Florida, are beginning to take orders on the Morgan V6 Roadster with U.S. specification cars expected to begin production in the U.K. by the end of 2016.
Though the exact details have not been ironed out, people have been calling the dealership since I opened wanting 4 wheel cars. I have a long list of interested customers and several who I have helped build their cars on paper and we have them ready to go!
The “Classic” range consists of the 4/4 which is celebrating 80 years of production this year (a world record!) as well as the sporty Plus 4 with its lovely Ford twin-cam engine. But, for this return, at least at first, the V6 Roadster is being slotted as the U.S. specification of choice. Fitted with a powerful 3.7 liter Ford 300 HP powerplant, 6-speed gearbox, and svelte aluminum body, you have the makings of something special.
Pricing for the base package has not been set, but U.K. cars start at 48,000 GBP. Figuring that plus a surcharge for readying cars for the U.S. of about 1,500 GBP, this leads to an estimated price of about $70,000 before looking at the long list of personal bespoke options. The configurations are endless, and the results are some very special custom Morgan sportscars.
Being the newest dealer, I haven’t been waiting as long as some very dedicated and longstanding Morgan dealers here in the U.S., but I certainly know and feel the anticipation and excitement that the Morgan community is expressing for the return of 4-wheel cars. We opened in January and have the very cool 3-wheeler offering and are building the business with that and our other line of cars, the Westfield.
For now, we are taking deposits on new Morgans and answering questions as best we can. One thing is for certain – when you see and hear a Roadster from 2006, the last time they were imported, it’s easy to see what the excitement is about.
Michael Carnell is the editor and founder of the Just British Online Motoring Magazine. As a lifelong British car enthusiast, he has owned or driven British cars of all ages from Austins and MGs to Jaguars and Triumphs. He currently owns a 1966 Vanden Plas Princess 1100 and a 1977 MGB. But there is always room for more - no matter what his wife says.
