Geneva Motor Show - This, says Morgan, is its most extreme street-legal model yet, the first of a limited run of just eight run-out specials based on its flagship Aero 8 model, to be called the Aero GT.
Each of the eight cars will be built to order as a bespoke special edition for the customer, in personal consultation with Morgan head of design Jon Wells, in the Special Projects division at Malvern Link, and yes, they’re all sold - at £120 000 (R1.96 million) each ex works.
The Aero GT has the same 274kW BMW N62 petrol V8 as the standard Aero 8, driving the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox, and Morgan’s latest adjustable suspension. Performance is quoted as 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds and 270km/h flat out.
The dramatic louvered wings, derived from the 2009 GT3 race car, were developed for the Aero 8 in 2015 but weren’t put into production. Instead, they were shelved for later use on an even more extreme Aero model - and this is it.
Each panel is created by superforming, then hand finished as all Morgan body panels have been since 1909, when HFS Morgan began building his iconic three-wheelers on the same premises in Pickersleigh Road that still house the company today, making it the world’s oldest independent carmaker - and it is still 100 percent family-owned.
Enamelled GT badges - each individually hand made by a jeweller - will distinguish the final eight Aero Morgans, and each car has the option of a carbon-fibre hard top, its shape inspired by the 1960s race cars, with an aft-facing roof vent that’s not just there for looks - it measurably improves the car’s drag coefficient.