After 9 months with the Model 3 Dual Motor I thought it worth comparing it with the "other" performance car in the stable, so to speak.
One has a 4.8L V8, 362 bhp, 361 ft lbs, 0-60 in 4.7 seconds and a range of 250 miles between tank fills.
It weighs 1230kg and at best achieves 27mpg.
It is a 2014 Morgan Plus 8 Auto.
The other is, of course, my M3 Dual motor.
I'm not comparing space, audio system or any other logical parameter. Just the "does it put a smile on your face": any powerful, performance car that fails to involve the driver and put a smile on his/her/its face fails, IMHO.
The M3 continues to make me smile because of the way it delivers performance on demand and effortlessly annihilates slow traffic and thsat it costs so little to run.
The Morgan has been away, since early December at the workshop having a few age related issues sorted and today I picked it up. Waiting for parts for a Morgan is much like waiting for parts for a Tesla, you never quite know. So does absence make the heart grow fonder, or could I live without it?
So after a comfortable trip up on a GWR train to Yate station, collected by a technician from the dealership and met with a mug of tea on arrival I paid the bill: £381.60.
I got in the car, started the engine and set off under a blue sky, not cold so hood down, open roads, little traffic and suddenly I'm back in love with the Plus 8.
The A46/A36 together provided all I needed and the Warminster Bypass.... I made very good progress with a big grin on my face. The car is a lot smaller, it is a naturally aspirated V8 from BMW. On paper the cars have similar torque, the big difference is that the BMW doesn't hit peak torque until about 3500 rpm. The Tesla has AWD, the Morgan RWD with a LSD, no traction control of any sort...! Overtaking with the Morgan requires a hard stab on the accelerator, the box drops a couple of gears and there is an explosive bellow from the exhaust and a roar from the inlet as the car rockets forward. Subtle it is not. Get it wrong on a cold wet road and the back end can bite.
Same situation in the M3: the torque blasts the car. almost silently, forward with much the same performance. One moment you are following a truck at 50mph and then you are gone: in both cases the driver is thinking "what was that?". The Tesla is innocuous, just another virtually invisible modern 4 door car. The Morgan looks like something from the past and shouldn't be able to do that. But in both cases the cars are gone before the truck driver can work out what happened.
The Tesla is brilliant when the roads are namp/wet, qiet, refined dry and warm but always waiting to surprise.
The Morgan isn't so, cold wet roads mean that care is needed and the wipers are rubbish at night (sound familiar?) although the LED lights are good.
In heavy rain the car can leak a bit and mist up as there is no heated rear screen.
But as daytime A and B road cars both cars are a hoot.
Cost to buy? A good used Plus 8 can be yours for £80k.. if you can find one.
Keep the Tesla and try a Morgan for a different take on fun driving!
One has a 4.8L V8, 362 bhp, 361 ft lbs, 0-60 in 4.7 seconds and a range of 250 miles between tank fills.
It weighs 1230kg and at best achieves 27mpg.
It is a 2014 Morgan Plus 8 Auto.
The other is, of course, my M3 Dual motor.
I'm not comparing space, audio system or any other logical parameter. Just the "does it put a smile on your face": any powerful, performance car that fails to involve the driver and put a smile on his/her/its face fails, IMHO.
The M3 continues to make me smile because of the way it delivers performance on demand and effortlessly annihilates slow traffic and thsat it costs so little to run.
The Morgan has been away, since early December at the workshop having a few age related issues sorted and today I picked it up. Waiting for parts for a Morgan is much like waiting for parts for a Tesla, you never quite know. So does absence make the heart grow fonder, or could I live without it?
So after a comfortable trip up on a GWR train to Yate station, collected by a technician from the dealership and met with a mug of tea on arrival I paid the bill: £381.60.
I got in the car, started the engine and set off under a blue sky, not cold so hood down, open roads, little traffic and suddenly I'm back in love with the Plus 8.
The A46/A36 together provided all I needed and the Warminster Bypass.... I made very good progress with a big grin on my face. The car is a lot smaller, it is a naturally aspirated V8 from BMW. On paper the cars have similar torque, the big difference is that the BMW doesn't hit peak torque until about 3500 rpm. The Tesla has AWD, the Morgan RWD with a LSD, no traction control of any sort...! Overtaking with the Morgan requires a hard stab on the accelerator, the box drops a couple of gears and there is an explosive bellow from the exhaust and a roar from the inlet as the car rockets forward. Subtle it is not. Get it wrong on a cold wet road and the back end can bite.
Same situation in the M3: the torque blasts the car. almost silently, forward with much the same performance. One moment you are following a truck at 50mph and then you are gone: in both cases the driver is thinking "what was that?". The Tesla is innocuous, just another virtually invisible modern 4 door car. The Morgan looks like something from the past and shouldn't be able to do that. But in both cases the cars are gone before the truck driver can work out what happened.
The Tesla is brilliant when the roads are namp/wet, qiet, refined dry and warm but always waiting to surprise.
The Morgan isn't so, cold wet roads mean that care is needed and the wipers are rubbish at night (sound familiar?) although the LED lights are good.
In heavy rain the car can leak a bit and mist up as there is no heated rear screen.
But as daytime A and B road cars both cars are a hoot.
Cost to buy? A good used Plus 8 can be yours for £80k.. if you can find one.
Keep the Tesla and try a Morgan for a different take on fun driving!
