Lot Ended
Description
From a deceased estate; current owner since 1969; body-off
restoration completed in 2017 and only 1,000 miles since; super condition;
runs well; nice original number plate
One of the great
automotive success stories of the Thirties and one of the best-loved pre-war
cars, it is no exaggeration to say that the 8 was the car that saved Morris.
Small and affordable but with room for all the family, it was far more suited to
Britain's increasingly crowded roads than the larger models that had formerly
underpinned the Morris range.
Available as a two- or four-seat tourer and
a two- or four-door saloon, the 8 was capable of 60mph and 40mpg from its 24bhp
885cc side-valve engine, driving through a three-speed box with synchromesh on
the top two gears. It also benefited from hydraulic brakes and a good level of
equipment.
Introduced in 1934, it proved so successful that over 164,000
had been sold by the time it was replaced by the Series II in 1937, around
20,000 of them in open Tourer form.
First registered in Devon in
April 1937, this delightful Morris 8 Two-Seater Tourer was acquired by the
current owner for £50 way back in 1969 at which point it was a non-runner with
some damage to the left rear bodywork.
He stripped the car down to a
bare chassis and boxed up all the parts in readiness for a full ground-up
restoration. As so often happens, life then got in the way and the car stayed in
boxes for the next 45 years.
In 2014 the owner finally had
time to get the job done, notes on file stating that: “I spent eight hours a
day, seven days a week for the following three years getting it finished and
back on the road by late 2017”.
There are a vast file of
invoices and two albums of photos which document the whole process in great
detail, the vendor doing much of the work himself but enlisting professional
help when required. The interior retrim alone cost over £7,000, including new
seat foams with red Ambla covers plus a new hood, tonneau cover, side screens
and hood bag in top quality black Mohair, all carried out by Gary H Wright Coach
Trimming of Milton Keynes.
All five wheels were rebuilt
by MWS of Slough at a cost of £1,860 and a new set of Waymaster tyres and inner
tubes were fitted which cost over £100 each. Another £1,130 was spent on getting
the door handles and the bumpers rechromed. All mechanical aspects were rebuilt
as required and a new wiring loom fitted. You get the picture – this was a
labour of love with no expense spared.
The instruments were rebuilt
and recalibrated and photos of the finished car show the speedo reading 5,542 miles in 2017 and it now shows
6,619 miles so it has only covered some 1,000 miles since the restoration was
completed.
As you can see in the photos,
this Morris looks very pretty indeed and we will endeavour to get it running
prior to the sale (we are told that it was last on the road in 2023). The icing
on the cake is the original Devon-issue number plate, CTT 129, which is
transferable according to the V5C.
On offer here from a deceased
estate (and coming from the same stable as the Morris 8 Van and the two Douglas
motorcycles elsewhere in this catalogue), this super little Tourer now needs an
enthusiastic new owner who can reap the rewards of all the hard work so recently
carried out.
PS: This car is now running and sounds sweet (see
video). One of the battery terminals was loose but it now starts easily
with a jump pack.
Consigned by James
Dennison – 07970 309907 – [email protected]