Waking up on the 21st of March with a 3 year old hopping up and down on me is how i started my 40th birthday. This was shortly followed by a 6 year old charging into the room and catapulting herself also into the foray Not a bad start but it proceeded to get much better when my wife told me that we would be dropping the kids of with family in Oslo and then traveling to Malvern to visit the Morgan factory followed by 2 days at a luxury hotel with a fabulous restaurant.
Early the next day we sneaked out of the house and took a taxi to Oslo airport, the flight was more or less on time and we shortly arrived at Heathrow airport. Half an hour later we where in a taxi heading towards the Morgan factory with no time to spare. Luckily we had a taxi driver that thought speed limits where just for others and we made it to the Morgan factory with 30 minutes to spare. Driving through the gates we where greeted with the famous blue shed doors
We joined the 12 pm tour with 4 others and I was proud to be the only Morgan owner on the tour. We proceeded to go through the factory seeing stage for stage of how the cars where made, a fascinating experience. Initially we started in the assembly workshop where the cars are more or less put together, 1 car per person per week was the target. In this workshop the cars, mechanics and electrics and engines where assembled, all by hand. I'm guessing car manufacturers such as Nissan do this in an automated line in an hour or so here its all by hand and takes a week.
Next we proceeded to the wood and frame shop. The frames here are formed from Ash and are formed, cut, glued and fixed together. Each frame is shaved and fitted to the chassis individually and the craftsmen individually fit the frames to the chassis. Again its one frame per week per craftsman. The frames if looked after can last up to 60 years before needing replacement. Frames made after 1986 have been treated and are more resilient to damp, frames before 1986 are not treated are far more prone to rot.
Next we went on to the metal shop. Although parts of the body work are flow formed there are still parts that are hand beaten with nothing more than a hammer and then formed to the required shape. The bonnet is a prime example, its beaten into shape and then filed by hand to form the perfect fit.
Once the cars are fully formed they are taken to the paint shop. Although Morgan provides 10 prime colors for a fee any color can be chosen. Our guide told us of a french gentleman that had just taken possession of a bright pink Morgan. Not to my taste but each to his own
Finally we finished up in the final assembly and leather workshop. Here we got to see the different trim options and the final beautiful products.
Although i'm not a great fan of the 3 wheeler, my wife has taken a real shine to them. She would really like that yellow one but with flowers on the side. I'm certainly not opposed to the idea, maybe something to think about in the future .........
Eventually the tour came to an end, a cup of tea and the biggest sausage roll helped stave off the hunger. Since this was once in a lifetime visit i proceeded to spend 800GBP on a suitcase, leather bags, luggage straps and a few other small items. When i tried to buy the suitcase i was told they where completely out but i managed to persuade the sales assistant that id seen one on a car in the show room. Apparently this had just returned from Geneva motor show and she very kindly went off to see if i could have this last one. A few moments later she returned with suitcase in tow !
After the great tour my wife and i departed to the Cotford hotel, an amazingly great hotel with wonderful food (2013 Michelin recommended). The evening was spent reminiscing about the tour, eating superb food and drinking deep spicy red wines, a night to remember We woke to a wonderful winter scene, which made the area even more special.
The next 2 days were spent exploring the village, taking walks in the hills and drinking/eating ourselves silly. I began to wonder if we would have to pay excess weight on the way home due to the amount of excellent food we ate.
Finally Sunday afternoon arrived after yet another fantastic lunch we relaxed by the fire waiting for our taxi. The trip back to Oslo went smoothly and i can now sit back relax and remember a trip of a lifetime!
