MORGAN SUPERSPORT

This Plus Six successor is billed by its maker as a 911 alternative. So is it?

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Morgan has been through quite a remarkable transformation over the past 20 years or so.

It wasn’t so long ago that Morgan cars were charming but crude.

In 2004, the Roadster got a two-star verdict for its wayward handling and alarmingly long stopping distance. The first aluminium chassis represented a big step for the Malvern firm's cars, but our 2012 Plus 8 road test still judged it to be “not all the car it should and could be”. A real shift came in 2020 with an all-new bonded aluminium platform. Although the Plus Four and Plus Six lacked some polish at launch, they got steadily better with various model-year updates.

Now comes the latest step change in Morgan's 21st-century plan. Although development of the Supersport started as a facelift for the Plus Six, it spiralled into an entirely new model generation.

There have been structural chassis and suspension revisions, and a ream of liveability upgrades. Is it finally comparable with more mainstream sports cars?

DESIGN & ENGINEERING

PROS Looks; proven mechanicals; upgrades over the Plus Six; rarity CONS No manual gearbox or true coupé; fiddly convertible roof

For the Supersport, Morgan evolved the aluminium CX platform from the Plus Six and Plus Four to the CXV. Both names refer to the company’s age in Roman numerals. The chassis itself weighs 102kg, including the front and rear subframes. Thanks to reinforcements, such as additional bracing around the front and rear suspension, the Supersport is said to be 10% more torsionally rigid than the Plus Six. As always, the mostly hand-formed aluminium body panels are mounted to an ash wood frame.