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Global Viewpoints
Morgan's model plans
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Morgan, the long established but small UK company that manufactures specialist sports cars, announced at the time of the Frankfurt Motor Show that it plans an entirely new model. A two-seat sports car, it will have an aluminum chassis but will use — as is traditional with Morgan — a frame of European ash hardwood. Body panels will be of aluminum, some of them hand-formed. The use of aluminum for both chassis and body will be a first for Morgan. The car will be instantly recognizable as a Morgan, according to the company, and will not replace any of its current two- and four-seat sports cars. This largest development ever undertaken by the company started in 1996 with the Morgan GT2 racecar, which has existing Morgan bodywork. Morgan worked with Birmingham University on design of the chassis, which has been tested to current European crashworthiness requirements via facilities at MIRA in the UK. The new car was styled by Morgan, which used MIRA's wind-tunnel facility. Its suspension was also designed in-house and is based on the company's racing experience. It uses aluminum to reduce unsprung weight. Two firsts for a Morgan will be the availability of air conditioning and electric windows. Its power unit is a V8 and mass is around 1000 kg (2200 lb). The new car is expected to be revealed next March at the time of the Geneva Motor Show.
Stuart Birch
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